The .45-70 Government is a rifle cartridge developed by the U.S. Army's Springfield Armory for use in the Springfield Model 1873, as a replacement for the aging .50-70, adopted in 1866. Although it has been replaced by more flexible cartridges in military use, it remains an extremely powerful type of ammunition, particularly against wasteland big game.
Hollow point bullets feature a hollowed out shape at the tip of the bullet, causing the bullet to expand upon impact, delivering more kinetic energy to the target and disrupting tissue more extensively. However, this same property also leads to reduced penetrative power, as the bullet will be stopped by armor much more easily due to its properties.
.45-70 Gov't, SWC (hand load)
The semiwadcutter is a .45-70 round loaded to combine the best properties of a traditional bullet and a wadcutter. It features a conical nose with a flat point, sitting on a larger cylinder, which transitions into a narrower end. As a result, rather than tearing into the target like a standard bullet would, the semiwadcutter punches a clean hole, with the middle segment of the bullet enlarging the hole. The result? A bullet offering superior damage and performance against reinforced targets.
