45 70 cartridge

[McCDig]

Back on the 25th of October I ventured to Woodsboro, MD to detect for the first time at that town's community park. Israel Creek runs through the park and is named for an 18th century settler to the area. The park shows extensive earth movement to create playing fields, a fishing pond and picnic areas. I did detect where an 1876 map indicated a home site. From that location I dug an iron ring, iron buckle and a cartridge. My oldest son was by the house tonight and he quickly identified the bullet as a .45-70 and knew that these were first used in the 19th century, post Civil War. Not certain of the age of this one, but I am thankful for his ballistics acumen to quickly id my first .45-70.

 

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[trapperart]

Congrats and thanks for the info

 

[vpnavy]

Nice find! Thanks for sharing...

 

[port ewen ace]

got this 3 years back at 1830's home in Ulster county, NY. dates 1867-1911. Union Metallic Co. solid head .50-70. same parcel had this honker

 

[l.cutler]

It is copper jacketed so it is not an earlier one, most likely well into the 20th century.

 

[Lucky Eddie]

Yes modern in manufacture. It has a cannelure - which is where the bullet is crimped into the case. In unfired condition it had a flat nose. Reason for the cannelure and flat nose was so it could be loaded into saddle ring carbine lever actions - which had a tubular magazine where the rounds are stored tip to tail
The flat nose on the projectile was so it didn't fire the primer on the round ahead of it in the magazine. The cannelure was to crimp the projectile was to prevent the projectile from being driven into the case any deeper under recoil by the round ahead of it possible compressing the powder and increasing its burning rate and leading to a detonation.

Early US .45/70US govt rifles were springfields with a drop block breach loaded & fired one round at a time by a lever. Theyhad no magazine so there was no need for copper jacketed, flat nosed cannelure projectiles. They fired 70 grains of blackpowder & had lead projectiles coz the velocities were far slower.

The projectile you have found was for a more modern action like the Modern Marlin lever gun, which had a strong enough breech to take more modern double based smokeless propellants capable of much higher breech pressures and firing projectiles at almost double the speed - requiring copper jacket projectile to prevent the softer lead projectiles from disintegrating from much higher rpms about their axis mid flight due to rifling twist in the barrel.

Hope that helps some. I had a 45/70 US Govt Marlin Saddle Carbine, and used to re load for it. Roughly half of Custers men at the Battle of the Little Big Horn were armed with Springfield drop floor 45/70 US govt rifles. Not that it saved them. They were firing 70 grans of black powder and 45Cal lead projectiles.

Cheers

 

[ScubaDetector]

As stated it is a modern bullet. Not a cartridge. A cartridge is the shell that holds the powder. You have the bullet that was fired. I have found hundreds of 45-70 bullets and a few cartridges and also some unfired 45-70 rounds from the late 1800's.

Keep the finds coming!