August Schuler Suhl .45-70 s/s

[Woodcarver]

Somebody has a Pedersoli MkIV listed in the classifieds now at a good price. I have one, and have really enjoyed it. Pedersoli does a good job on fit and finish for the money.

Sorry, I misspoke about the Pedersoli listed, it is a 9.3x74R, not 45-70.

 

[vlwtx348]

A Buddy of mine bought a Sabatti SxS in 45-70. He is happy with it.

Safe hunting

I absolutely do love it! Action is still a bit stiff but will eventually loosen up.
The only thing is it is regulated with Hornady Leverevolution 325 FTX ammuntion. Nothing wrong with that ( and I understand why they chose that round for regulation) but I would sure like it to be regulated with something closer to 500gr. Someday I'll find time to see if I can work up a heaver round that just happens to regulate. Since most of my hog shots are less than 30 yards I should be able to get close enough.

 

[AZDAVE]

@mikesheree Understand your requirements and will address your options below. You were wise to listen to @Red Leg and @rookhawk on that Schuler!!! There are a lot of less than honorable folks out there trying to separate money from your wallet.

Over the years I have owned 4 different doubles in 45/70. (don't own one now)
The first was a Russian Bakail. It was a club, ugly, stock looked like it was made from old pallet. It shot better than I would have ever expected and had a VERY crude adjustment for barrel regulation and it worked better than I expected. But it was fun to shoot and as long as you staying within trapdoor pressures you were good to go. For a thrown it behind the truck seat put on the 4 wheeler, dunk in the swamp and realize it was a POS and never would be worth anything over the $850 price tag I got it for it was a harbor freight kinda tool. Traded it to a shop about 3 months after I bought it and shot about 200-240 rounds through it.

Second was a Sabatti, it didn't have the muzzle ground and shot Federal factory exactly like the regulation target. Had it for a year and a half and a old army buddy really wanted it so I sold it to him. Was a major improvement above the bakail. Was a solid double that my buddy is still hunting and shoot with 15 years later.

The third was Siace Alaskan model. It had the best wood of any double I have owned. My only gripe was that it didn't fit me well. The comb was to high and smacked me in the cheek every time I shot it.
It was one of the best regulated double I have ever shot and workmanship was top notch. I gave thought to taking my rasp and sandpaper to it and making it fit. (in hind sight I wish I would have and kept it.) I traded it on a deal for a 470 NE double.

The fourth was a Rizzini 550. Was a a great little double, shot well and was regulated with the Hornaday leverution 325 gr. I developed several good loads for it and shot it for a couple years, Since I have a 9.3x74 and 405 win doubles it was in the same power level so I used it a a partial trade for my Krieghoff 500/416.

I would own a Siace or Rizzini again but would skip the first two.

 

[Troubleshooter]

If you want a 45-70 equivalent power double rifle for affordable money, the 9.3x74r has loads of choices and is a wonderful caliber. On the smaller end, 303 British had many in prior generations and isn't bad, but may be pricey. On the newer end as in the last 100 years and quite common, 8x57 rimmed mauser (8x57JR or 8x57JRS) exists in many brands that is a wonderful cartridge that is easy to load and feed.

Agree that the 8x57 rimmed is indeed a good cartridge. However, as one who owns an 8x57JR, I would comment that the 8x57JRS is much easier to find, either in terms of reloading components or as a loaded cartridge. Not that you're going to find either one at Walmart.

 

[mikesheree]

@mikesheree Understand your requirements and will address your options below. You were wise to listen to @Red Leg and @rookhawk on that Schuler!!! There are a lot of less than honorable folks out there trying to separate money from your wallet.

Over the years I have owned 4 different doubles in 45/70. (don't own one now)
The first was a Russian Bakail. It was a club, ugly, stock looked like it was made from old pallet. It shot better than I would have ever expected and had a VERY crude adjustment for barrel regulation and it worked better than I expected. But it was fun to shoot and as long as you staying within trapdoor pressures you were good to go. For a thrown it behind the truck seat put on the 4 wheeler, dunk in the swamp and realize it was a POS and never would be worth anything over the $850 price tag I got it for it was a harbor freight kinda tool. Traded it to a shop about 3 months after I bought it and shot about 200-240 rounds through it.

Second was a Sabatti, it didn't have the muzzle ground and shot Federal factory exactly like the regulation target. Had it for a year and a half and a old army buddy really wanted it so I sold it to him. Was a major improvement above the bakail. Was a solid double that my buddy is still hunting and shoot with 15 years later.

The third was Siace Alaskan model. It had the best wood of any double I have owned. My only gripe was that it didn't fit me well. The comb was to high and smacked me in the cheek every time I shot it.
It was one of the best regulated double I have ever shot and workmanship was top notch. I gave thought to taking my rasp and sandpaper to it and making it fit. (in hind sight I wish I would have and kept it.) I traded it on a deal for a 470 NE double.

The fourth was a Rizzini 550. Was a a great little double, shot well and was regulated with the Hornaday leverution 325 gr. I developed several good loads for it and shot it for a couple years, Since I have a 9.3x74 and 405 win doubles it was in the same power level so I used it a a partial trade for my Krieghoff 500/416.

I would own a Siace or Rizzini again but would skip the first two.

Thanks for the very thorough discussion.