The 45-70 and 35 Remington are two popular lever action rifle cartridges. And with them being so popular it only makes sense to compare the two to see which is better. So in this article, we will be taking a closer look at each of the cartridges and see which one is truly better and why.

Here is the short answer: 

When comparing the two you will find that the 45-70 has more energy, slightly more drop, and more wind drift than the 35 Remington. So while the 45-70 is going to hit harder, a lot harder, the 35 Remington will have better ballistics and less recoil.

Now we can take a closer look at each cartridge, compare the two cartridges, see when you would want one over the other, and see if there are better calibers out there.

45-70

The 45-70 is an old cartridge that was made for military service in 1893. The 45-70 was used in the Spanish-American War but was not favored because of its inability to shoot at long range. The Spanish had the flatter shooting 7mm Mauser so they could engage the American troops at a range greater than what the 45-70 could accurately shoot. After the war was over they chose to retire the 45-70 for the flatter shooting 30-40 Kreig.

The 45-70 still saw service by hunters around the world. The 45-70 was a popular big game cartridge because of its high energy at close range. At the time, the 45-70 was being used to hunt everything from pronghorn and bison on the plains to cape buffalo in Africa. However, after the world wars, the 45-70 had lost popularity as there was the greater 30-06 Springfield.

Nowadays, the 45-70 is still being used to hunt big game. While it has been largely replaced by better cartridges, it still has its place for hunting big game such as moose, elk, deer, and hogs.

35 Remington

The 35 Remington doesn’t have the heroic story that the 45-70 does as it was more for the hunting field than the combat field. The 35 Remington is a medium power hunting cartridge made to compete with the other medium power cartridges at the time like the 30-30. 

The 35 Remington is mainly used as a deer hunting cartridge that is primarily in lever action rifles. It pretty much performs similar to a 30-30 if it had a 35-caliber bullet and not a 30-caliber bullet. 

The 35 Remington is a good hunting cartridge that works great for close-range deer hunting. If you are going to need more power than what the 30-30 can offer then the 35 Remington is for you.

Which one is better

So we have taken a look at each of the calibers, but which one is better.

If you are hunting big game animals such as elk or moose, you will want the 45-70. The 45-70 has more energy so it will be better at killing bigger game animals. But if you are just hunting animals such as deer, then the 35 Remington will work fine.

Shootability is a tie. While the 35 Remington is harder to find and costs more, the 45-70 is going to be less fun to shoot as it has more recoil. So if you are going for a rifle that won’t hurt to shoot then you will want the 35 Remington. But if you are fine with heavier recoil then you will want the 35 Remington.

Conclusion

For most deer hunting situations, a 45-70 or 35 Remington will work great. If you are going to be hunting bigger game animals, then you will want the 45-70. If you want a gun that will have a very available supply of ammo then you will want the 45-70. But if you want a gun that will not kick too bad then you will want the 35 Remington.