Two of the most popular lever-action cartridges are the .44 Remington Magnum and .45/70 Gov’t. Despite their size difference, they have much in common. Both are proven hunting rounds and there are a staggering number of loads available in each. That cornucopia of options hints at an advantage these cartridges have over our most iconic lever-action hunting round, the .30/30 Winchester.
In terms of versatility the .44 and .45/70 are difficult to beat. If you want to hunt big game, plink for pleasure, or protect yourself against aggressive critters, whether ambling on two legs or four, they have much to offer. So how do you pick? Ultimately it boils down to your intended use, which also informs the specific type of rifle to choose.
A (Brief) History of the .45/70
The .45/70 Gov’t started life in 1873 as a round for the U.S. military. It was a black powder cartridge loaded to mild pressures by today’s standards. The .45 refers to the bullet’s .458-inch diameter, while “70” designated the weight in grains of powder it used. The original load employed a 405-grain bullet propelled at a leisurely 1,150 fps from the Springfield Model 1873 Trapdoor rifles it was built for.
Modern actions, using stronger materials and design, can handle greater chamber pressures than the Trapdoors of old, so most .45/70 ammunition delivers significantly better performance. And there are some versions, usually labeled .45/70 +P that really step on the gas. Those are designed for large and dangerous game and will loosen your fillings with each pull of the trigger.
I go into more detail in this story about the “immortal” .45/70 if you’re interested.
This old cartridge got a new lease on life when Hornady released the FTX (flex tip) bullet in the early 2000s. It featured improved velocities and a more aerodynamic bullet shape for better trajectories and terminal performance. Since that time, the number of .45/70 lever actions has jumped, with the most recent addition being the Smith & Wesson Model 1854 introduced back in 2024.
Origins of the .44 Remington Magnum
The .44 Remington Magnum was born of the experimentation that Elmer Keith did with high-pressure .44 Special loads in the early 1950s. He convinced Smith & Wesson and Remington to commercialize the round and it was first offered to the public in 1956.
The handgun it was chambered in, of course, is the legendary S&W Model 29, which was made famous by Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry. After audiences got an eyeful of him proclaiming it “the most powerful handgun in the world” while standing over a wounded bank robber, sales skyrocketed.
Unlike the .45/70, which started life as a lamb before transforming into a lion, the .44 Remington Magnum was a beast from the get-go.
Keith and his cohorts tested the wildcat cartridge with many bullets, but the first commercial load was a 240-grain semi-wadcutter that stepped out at 1,470 fps from a 6 ½-inch barrel.
Interestingly, this gave the round a muzzle energy of 1,151 foot-pounds, which is nearly identical to the 1,169 foot-pounds generated by the first .45/70 Gov’t load.
The .44 Mag in Lever Actions
Though it was designed for revolvers, it wasn’t long before the .44 Magnum was offered in long guns. Ruger’s first rifle, in fact, was the Model 44, a gas-operated semi-auto launched in 1961. Winchester followed suit in 1968 with a Model 1894 lever action in .44 Magnum, as did Marlin in 1969 with their Model 1894.
Those lever guns were a big hit, as sportsmen quickly figured out what the .44 Magnum was capable of when shot through a carbine’s longer barrel.
To demonstrate that point, I shot several rounds from the same box of ammunition through my Smith & Wesson 329 PD revolver and a S&W 1854 lever action in .44 Magnum. The 225-grain Barnes Expander load averaged 1,240 fps from the wheelgun with its 4.13-inch barrel. From the 1854 lever gun’s 19.25-inch barrel, it exited the muzzle at 1,680 fps — a gain of 440 fps that nearly doubled the muzzle energy from 768 to 1,410 foot-pounds.
Lever Guns for the .45/70 Gov’t
It wasn’t that long ago that if you came out with a lever action in anything other than a brown wood stock and blued metal that you would be run out of town on a rail. And certainly for a cartridge as venerable as the .45/70 — the first lever-action for this round was the Marlin Model 1881 — making a rifle with any other material and finish would have been heresy of the highest order.
The early 2000s were a turning point, however. Some companies introduced lever actions with laminate wood furniture, followed not long after by models with synthetic stocks. While these don’t trigger the wrath of the hunting public as they would have 30 years ago, many sportsmen still have a strong preference for the traditional look of walnut and blued metal.
That’s why I selected this Model 1854 — it provides an excellent contrast to the very modern and quasi-tactical blacked out .44 Magnum carbine I also tested.
.44 Remington Mag Pros and Cons
Pros
- Compact and handy
- Easy to carry
- Fast cycling
- Low recoil
- Wide variety of ammunition
- More economical to shoot and reload
Cons
- Not ideal for hunting dangerous game
- Limited maximum hunting range
The compact size of these guns — the Smith & Wesson measures 33 inches overall — makes it an excellent pick for a truck gun and for hunting in thick brush. It also means that a suppressor won’t increase the length to the point where the carbine becomes unbalanced and unwieldy.
The stock on my model comes with multiple M-Lok slots, so adding accessories is simple too. A sensible addition is a weapon light like the Surefire Turbo Scout Light Pro. I chose this because it casts a formidable beam that will make dealing with a home intruder much easier and is also strong enough to use while hunting pigs at night.
Another thing I really like about this setup is the generous magazine capacity. The gun can hold nine rounds in the tubular magazine that lies underneath the barrel to help make sure you have enough ammo on tap to deal with whatever situation you encounter.
On the downside, a .44 Remington Magnum, by necessity, sacrifices power in comparison to the .45/70. So if dealing with dangerous game is a possibility, the .45/70 is a better choice.
.45/70 Pros and Cons
Like the .44 Rem. Mag., the .45/70 Gov’t is a versatile round. You can run light-recoiling 405-grains loads that won’t bother your shoulder in the slightest. Or you can stuff it full of fire-breathers, like the hard-hitting .45/70 Magnum loads from Buffalo Bore, which are meant for hunting large African animals and would be a great choice for a monstrous Alaskan coastal brown bear.
For deer, elk, bear, and other big game, there are too many options to mention, with many excellent bullets in the 300- to 350-grain range to consider.
While not as compact as a .44 Magnum carbine, a .45/70 lever gun is still shorter and sleeker than most bolt actions. This makes it a great companion on a horseback hunt, as it will ride easily in a scabbard and can be brought into play quickly.
Pros
A lever action in .44 Magnum can cover a lot of ground. It is a capable hunting round within its limitations — 100 yards — for sure. But since they can run mild .44 Special loads it is an excellent platform for training in a relatively economic, and easy to run, manner.
- Versatile ammunition selection
- Excellent on big game and dangerous game with the right load
- Nimble and handy
Cons
- Recoil can be stiff with high-powered rounds
- Limited maximum hunting range
Compared to the .44, the .45/70 has a better maximum hunting range, but isn’t a long-range cartridge by any stretch. When loaded with Hornady’s 325-grain Flex Tip ammo, the .45/70 can be effective to 200 yards, give or take, which is much farther than you’d want to employ a .44 Magnum.
While the longer case gives you more volume for powder to achieve better ballistic performance, it does limit the capacity of the rifles it is chambered in.
The Model 1854 holds five rounds, which isn’t shabby, but it doesn’t compare to the 9 rounds of .44 Magnum.
As you can see in the video that accompanies this story, the .45/70 runs well, being able to put a lot of lead on target briskly, but the .44 is nimbler still. It really comes down to whether you want more rounds and less recoil, or more oomph on target.
Final Thoughts on the .44 Magnum Versus .45/70 Gov’t
These rounds have a lot of overlap. In lever actions they are both handy, capable hunting rounds. But because the .45/70 can be loaded to high pressures with massive bullets it has the edge when dealing with very large game.
The .44 Magnum/.44 Special is a better round for casual plinking and practice, as it shoots even softer than the lightest .45/70s and is cheaper in the bargain.
I also love how well adapted a .44 Magnum carbine is for carrying in a vehicle. It is less obtrusive and easier to maneuver than its bigger .45/70 cousin. This quality, along with its more impressive magazine capacity, is why I give it the nod for home defense too.
There’s no objective answer to which cartridge is better — but based on your goals one will probably suit you better than the other. Or you can do as I and so many other shooters and hunters have done — and get one of each.
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