The 45-70 is an iconic hunting cartridge, that has been used for almost 150 years; but that Is a long time and a lot of advancements have been made sense then. So, how does it compare to the more modern counterparts such as the 50 Beowulf? Is the 45-70 still a relevant cartridge, or is it an outdated cartridge that is best left in the past? Let’s find out.
Here is the short answer to the question:
The 45-70 has 2,280 ft-lbs at the muzzle, while the 50 Beowulf has 2,776 foot-pounds at the muzzle. While the 50 Beowulf has more energy than the 45-70; it drops more, ammo is harder to find, it’s more expensive, and the ballistics are worse. It is a safe bet to go with the 45-70.
So now that you have my very controversial opinion, let’s a closer look at each of the cartridges, their history, what are the biggest differences, and why I think the 45-70 is better.
45-70
The 45-70 was made for the United States government in 1873 to replace its predecessor the 50-70. The cartridge was soon adopted by sportsmen around the world for big game hunting.
As soon as hide hunting became more popular, around the early 1880s, the 45-70 became a popular round for hunting bison. With the breach loading weapons, bison hunters could kill as many as 100 bison in one hunt.
When the bison went almost extinct and the market for hides went down, hunters began to try the round by hunting dangerous game in Africa. Many cape buffalo, elephants, rhinos, and hippos were killed with the cartridge, but the 45-70 was soon ruled as not having enough “stopping power” to kill the dangerous game animal of Africa.
Today the 45-70 has a bullet weight range of 300-500 grains making it ideal for hunting: deer, elk, hogs, black bears, and even as a defense gun against grizzly bears.
50 Beowulf
The 50 Beowulf was made to be a close-range high “stopping power” round. The 50 Beowulf is made to be used in an AR15 platform making it ideal for fast follow-up shots if you need them. 50 Beowulf is best for hunting hogs or deer in thick cover where shots are under or at 100 yards. more on the ballistics and energy later.
50 Beowulf gained some steam when people were looking for a close-range caliber that had a bigger bore than the 450 Bushmaster or the 458 SOCOM while still carrying enough energy to punch through heavy brush
Which one is best
While They both do good for what they’re made for, there still is a better one. So here are why I think the 45-70 is better than the 50 Beowulf.
Affordability and availability
While nothing is affordable or available as far as ammo these days. So you can’t get things, but the 45-70 is still way more available than the 50 Beowulf. The 45-70 is a much more popular caliber than the 50 Beowulf, therefore, making it easy to get rounds, and for a better price. Nowadays, there are very few sites you can find 50 Beowulf and by the time you find it, it will be gone in a day or two. Not to say this doesn’t happen with 45-70 but you can at least find a couple of boxes in stock at a local Cabelas, Academy Sports, or online.
As far as price goes neither one of these calibers is doing very well. Even before the ammo shortage, I could barely find 50 Beowulf for under 1.5 dollars a shot. Now 50 Beowulf runs for about 2.5-3 dollars a shot and 45-70 not far behind at 2-2.5 dollars a shot so the 45-70 still has the 50 Beowulf beat.
For this category I would have to give it to the 45-70, there just isn’t enough production of the 50 Beowulf to beat the 45-70. However, if you are handloading you could reuse brass and make your own ammo for a cheaper price which may make the 50 Beowulf a better option.
Ballistics
As mentioned earlier, the 50 Beowulf has more energy than the 45-70 but drops more. While the difference is subtle the drop is not; the 50 Beowulf has 4 more inches of drop at 200 yards with a 150 yard zero than the 45-70. And while the 50 Beowulf has more energy at the muzzle, it has 600-foot pounds less at 200 yards with the same bullet weight as a 45-70.
So as ballistics work, the 50 Beowulf having a bigger bullet makes it drop more and the case just doesn’t have enough gun powder to carry a bullet of that size. Again, I would have to give this to the 45-70.
hunting
A big part of the history of the 45-70 was hunting bison and with the growing amount of AR15’s in the hunting woods there are bound to be more and more 50 Beowulf users hunting each year, so is it better at hunting than the 45-70? depends on the animal.
If you are hunting hogs and need to shoot a lot of them for the farmer, then you will want the faster shooting capabilities of the AR15 platform that the 50 Beowulf often comes in. The other upside to the 50 Beowulf being in an AR15 platform is that it is one of the easiest to use semi-auto rifle platforms on the planet.
If hunting elk or deer at a longer range (longer ranges being further than 150 yards), the 45-70 would be better because it has better energy and less drop at longer range. Although the 45-70 is not a very good elk hunting cartridge in general, except in some certain applications.
These two calibers best shine when shooting at close range or you need to punch through a heavy brush. These calibers haul along with the term “brush gun”; the term bush gun is a gun that is in a caliber that is heavy enough to go through thick brush and not get knocked off course, this allows you to reach the game on the other side while also keeping a good amount of energy to put an ethical shot in it.
Many calibers such as the following are considered “brush guns” or more correctly brush calibers: 35 Remington, 35 Whellen, heavy 30-06 ammo (200+ grains), 444 Marlin, 45-70, 450 Bushmaster, 458 SOCOM, and 50 Beowulf are all good for hunting in thick brush.
For this one, I would have to call it a tie, as they both have their upsides and their downsides but I can’t quite say none is better than the other.
Conclusion
Both rounds are good, and you can’t go wrong with either one. While I do think the 45-70 is better, that doesn’t mean that the 50 Beowulf is a bad round, they both are very capable rounds. Either round can still kill a deer and do it very effectively.
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