How big of a felt difference would there be between a .50-70 and a .50-90 using the same exact bullet? I know that there's going to be a noticeable difference but would it be too much to use it a 40 round gong match?

I'm trying to figure out what to do with the. 50-70 I've got that has to much throat without the expense of a rebarrel. I've tested it by seating the bullets out as far as possible but when you chamber the round the bullets slide back in the case some and the accuracy is still not much better than seating the bullets at correct length.  .50-90 brass is now available so I was thinking about the option.

My rifle is about ten pounds so it's probably going to have a little bite to it in recoil. A couple of the guys l shoot with suggested having Bobby Hoyt put a liner in it as a less expensive alternative to a rebarrel so I'm going to give him a call after the holiday I'll also call shiloh to see if they have a price difference for rebarreling a shiloh with a Wolfgang chamber.

Hawkeye, what about getting a mold from Accurate Molds that you specify to have a longer front band to match your freebore.  It also sounds like you might want a slightly larger diameter bullet so it has more friction and wont slide into the case.  My 50-70 Roller gives me all the recoil I want so I never considered going to a 50-90 but for the type of shooting I do I don't need the extra velocity.  Tom

I would load it with 70 gr (or what ever charge you'd like) and fill the space ahead of the powder with wads, until the breech block, would just close.

Actually, you can shorten the barrel of a Sharps-pattern rifle at the breech.  I have a Shiloh that was originally a .40-65 that somebody grafted another Shiloh barrel (in .45-70) onto.  In order to make it index, they had to shorten it a partial (or maybe full) turn, cut off the breech end and rechamber.

Of course, the forend had to be shaved back a little where it meets the action face and the lever spring had to have the screw hole offset so it still pushes properly on the lever to keep it up.  The "tulip" part of the octagon flats is still there, but the round end past that is very short now.

Not the most aesthetic bit of gunsmithing I've seen, but the thing shoots very well and the repair isn't that glaringly apparent.

I think one of the Sharps catalogs mentioned that the .45 caliber would do at 1000 yards what the .50 caliber would do at 600 for accuracy.  Maybe you're expecting too much of your .50-70, especially with the stubby 450-gr bullet.

I don't understand what you mean by the bullet slides back? When I load my cartridges, I always have the bullet resting tightly on the powder/wad. That means I vary the actual amount of powder depending on the bullet, chamber length, overall cartridge length, and amount of powder. I seat the bullet out till it nearly or actually touches the lands but is still somewhat compressing the powder.  I would think that you are leaving some free/empty space in the cartridge and if that's the case you are running the chance of ringing your chamber.

Using smokeless…

If you keep the same bullet weight and velocity, there is no difference in recoil between a .50-70 and a .50-90

To try to get past the gap of .510" that's between the end of the chamber and the start of the rifling l loaded the rounds longer than standard length as others here have suggested. When they are chambered the  bullets are forced into the case equal to a round of standard length. I've tried loading black at the standard cartridge length but still had poor accuracy.

1Hawkeye wrote on May 24^th, 2025 at 7:34pm:


If you have time for a wipe between shots, you can use BP with amaranth seed as a filler.  Much superior to any other fillers I have used.

CHRIS

Stock design and butt plate selection will have as much or more influence on "felt recoil" as the powder charge.