Whatever bullet I use, I am looking for loads with it that produce 1200 to 1300 fps.
I mostly use cast lead 405, along with 350 grain plated bullets from Berry's.
Folks also say that if you keep cast lead bullets under 1500 or 1600, you won't have any problems with lead in the barrel. The Oregon Trail "laser cast" bullets I have, have a reputation for being hard and capable of being pushed faster without leading.
People also say that shooting some jacketed bullets now and then has a benefit for scraping lead out of the barrel. This may just be wishful thinking. It is unclear if plated bullets will accomplish the same thing.
But I have no intention of shooting lead bullets faster than 1400 fps, so I am not terribly worried. A final thought is that it is one thing to be shooting Oregon Trail at 1700 fps (some do without problems) and something else to be shooting some unknown lead bullet.
"Bill Bagwell" has hunted a multitude of African game with the 45/70 loaded to 1250 fps and dispatched all but a few with a single bullet.And another fellow says:
I shoot my 1895CB with 405gr Oregon Lasercast handloads somewhere between 1000 and 1200fps out 200 to 300 yds with great accuracy using open sights (MVA tang) and "Wind's" shooting sticks, and my shoulder survives quite comfortably!
My Lyman books show bullets from 300 to 535 grains, making me curious about the heavier bullets. Two things can be said about heavier (and longer) bullets. They will probably fly better for long range shooting. They will also make the recoil worse.
The Hodgdon "magazine" manual shows Trapdoor loads to the 300 grain cast lead. Trail Boss will give 1200 fps using 14 grains. They show a load with 45 grains of Varget in the trapdoor section, but producing 1600 fps.
Montana Bullet works has a nice 550 grain bullet and you can buy it with or without a gas check for about $50 per 100. They even sell a 635 grain bullet. I have questions about these long bullets and long COAL in my Marlin.
Perhaps an equally big question is the recoil with bigger bullets, as per these statements in forum posts:
"Those loads killed on one end, wounded on the other."
"The reason I no longer have a Marlin 1895 is because I found some 500 gr FP that would make a cartridge of a length that would run in the marlin action. When loaded as lightly as possible in a relatively small gun like the 1895 they would thump me so hard it made my shoulder ache for a few days. I still use a 535 Postell in my Sharps out to 600 yards no problem, but the marlin with big bullets just kicked my rear."
Sometimes it is nice that the 1896CB is a light gun, and sometimes is isn't.
Tom's Computer Info / tom@mmto.org