Sharps .45-70 vs. Rolling Block .30-30?

Which one would you pick?

  • Pedersoli Business Sharps in .45-70

    Votes: 17 85.0%

  • Pedersoli Rolling Block Sporting in .30-30

    Votes: 3 15.0%
  • Total voters
    20
  • Poll closed .
M

Model12Win

Moderator
Hello all!

I've got to pick between these two rifles:

Pedersoli Sharps Business rifle in .45-70

sharps.jpg


Pedersoli Rolling Block Sporting in .30-30

rollingblock.jpg


This will be my first "old west" style single shot rifle. I will be using it for informal target shooting out to 300 yards or so, and plinking. I am a reloader so cost of ammo is a non-factor. If you had to pick between these two guns, which one would you choose and why?

Thanks all!
 
Easy. No .30-30 in the "Old West". No .30-30 until 1895. No 'Old West' in 1895.
Plus one's for Business and the other isn't. snicker.
 
LOL!

Yes, I am starting to lean towards the Sharps. I've found a good price for one, and plan to use a Lee Loader to load up .45-70 ammo for cheap for it. :)
 
Informal target shooting with a single shot rolling block, easy the .30-30! Why choose the .30-30? It's really simple for me, better bullets. With a single shot rifle you're not limited on case length or flat point bullets. Since you're a hand loader I'd run 155 & 168 grain match bullets wit a full case of Lever powder and stretch the legs of the old .30-30. Hodgdon lists 2500 fps with Lever powder for the 150 grain bullets, and the ballistics of even a 150 grain ballistic tip or BTSP is pretty impressive from the .30-30 at those speeds.

Unless you want to shoot past 1000 yards I see no reason to use the .45-70. Plus the .30-30 will be far more pleasurable to shoot as far as recoil as well., and you'll be able to shoot the .30-30 for a lot longer at the range. At least you picked the shotgun style butt for the .45-70 which will help spread recoil over a larger area than the crescent butt. 500 grain bullets will still thump you pretty well.
 
The Sharps is a stronger action and the 45-70 is the belle of the ball when it comes to long range shooting. No contest here. If you want to be "authentic" you need a 45-70. The 30-30 is a modern cartridge and doesn't belong in either of those guns.
 
I'm not sure that the Sharps action is stronger than the Rolling Block action but, if it is, I'd love to see the evidence. I like both actions (and calibers, for that matter) but I voted for the 45-70 because I'm thinking "old West buffalo rifle" when I see these two cartridges being compared.
 
The Rolling Block looks pretty handy, the Sharps doesn't. Unless you cast, the 45/70 might be spendy to reload. Nobody buys factory ammo, right?
 
As far as the rifle, whatever you like best as no one can make that choice for you.

If you cast then the 45-70, if not the 30-30.
 
The choice is obvious, get them both !

It's unbelievable sometimes how wishy-washy some people can be in the face of an option any ten-year old could make...
 
The only Sharps I've owned was a .50/70, I played with it some, with cast
bullets and BP. A collector came along and made me a deal I couldn't refuse.
Rolling Blocks are a different story. I've owned several 45/90 45/70 7x57
43 Spanish, 30/40 Krag and a whole lot of the smaller calls. down to 22s.
Shot them a lot. The 30/40 was my favorite plinker, it was carbine. The
45/70 & 45/90 were both good shooters. They were mighty heavy, not much
of a woods rifle. The 43 was a long Infantry rifle, but it shot good too. All
these rifles were originals. In the 45& 43 cal. I only used cast bullets. In
the Krag I shot 150g FMJs for plinking and 150SPs for hunting. So I would
pick the 30/30 for the most shooting for your ammo buck. Both actions are
strong enough for either cartridge.
 
If neither are authentic antique rifles then I would go for the 30-30. Im not a 45/70 fan. IMO its an outdated cartridge that will do it all, but better choices for any individual uses. 30-30 is inexpensive and pleasurable to shoot. If you decide to hunt its more than a match for white tail or pigs.
 
45-70 all the way!

45-70 All the way, you can cast bullets or buy bullets (a huge selection in .458 bullets), you can load super hot rounds (in the right action) or super soft loads, smokeless or black powder with bullets ranging from 145 grain (yes Lyman makes a mod for it) up as high as 535 grains (maybe higher I've only seen up to 535)...bullet construction can be round nose, flat nose, spitzer, hollow point, jacketed, cast, etc...

you're only limitations are you action and recoil sensitivity...
 
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