Hunting Mule Deer and Black Bear in the Gila Wilderness with a Uberti 1876

[Rancid Roy]

Sort Of...

Howdy All,

Grizzly told me I had to do this, so I'm going to share my "adventure" in the Gila Wliderness of New Mexico with ya'll. If you get bored, Oprah's on.

I have a 28 inch barrelled Uberti 1876 from Dixie Gun Works. Everything about the rifle is great. I have two horses and can pack in on my own so all is even greater. AND...I was going to be packing into the Gila Wilderness, a land of much history and where a few Winchester 1876's were packed no doubt. Naiche, an Apache, and Geronimo [no intro needed] supposedly both carried Winchester 1876 carbines [seen in the American Indian museum in D.C.], plus did T.R. [I think he hunted in this country once as well.

I will begin in the beginning. Forming .348 brass into .45/75. I may have posted this elsewhere here. I bought a set of RCBS "Cowboy" dies in .45/75 and the expander dies of the same brand and type for; .358, .375, .410, .429...cheaper than buying other methods of necking up the cases. Annealing was trial and error with some amount of error. I bought extra brass just in case. I found that I had to immerse the case about half to two-thirds in the watewr pan and then hold the blue flame of the torch on the neck/shoulder area for about 90 seconds. I had read here to watch the brass case "turn color", that was not reliable for me, I was getting split cases. But my method gave me about a 98% success rate. Fireforming the cases was done with a full case of Goex 2F under a .45 Long Colt 250 cast bullet.

I loaded four different lead/SPG bullets, from Buffalo Arms, the "Jim" 350 grainers in .458 and .459, and another in 350 grain. Plus the Goex .458 350 grain.

I tried six different black powders; Goex 2F, Cartridge, and Express 2F; Swis 1.5 and 2, and Graf and Sons 2F.

Initially I loaed all loads for accuracy testing to the base of the seated bullet only. A mistake.

Accuracy was incredibly all over the place, groups in sizes of 10 inches to 1 1/2 inches at 100 yards. The best grouping load was the "Jim" .458 and Graf and Sons 2F. Three shot groups only. The average grain weight of powder was from 58 to 61 grains depending on the powder. "MY" accurate load was 59 grains.

BUT, now I had to load for power, I.E. more powder. So I instantly compressed "MY" load to 70 grains. When I shot it, it went into 8 inch groups! Now I know BP is finicky and I expected what I did MIGHT change the groups, but I was still surprised.

So I started all over with a slight change, I picked what seemed to be the best loads out of about four and loaded all of them to 65 grains. With a my chrono I was getting about 1350 FPS with the 350 grain bullets.

So my hunting load became the GOEX bullet with 65 grains of GOEX Express 2F. It shot the best with consistent 4 inch groups at 100 yards. Not target accurate but it will kill out to 200 yards on deer and bear.

Now to actually sight it in. I wanted a 5 inch high strike at 100 yards to supposedly have a dead on strike at 150. Supposedly this makes a 12 inch drop at 200. Info garnered from the reloading manuals and their drop tables. BUT, the factory barrel sights were either too high with the highest notch on the elevator or too low with the second to the highest notch. Improvisation was required. I slipped a .020 thick metal shim underneath the elevator. I had to experiment with a few shims of different sizes. I was dead on at 5 inches high at 100 yards.

I know there's tang sights. I wanted to leave and use the barrel sight. It actually gives me a very discernible sight picture at low light, necessary for hunting in the morn and eve.

I alos wanted to do this hunt as closely as to the time period of my rifle. I carried a Uberti 7 1/2 inch barreled 1873 SA in .45 Long Colt, a Green River hunting knife in "Indian Period" sheath, period binoculars, and all my clothing was wool or cotton.

HOWEVER!! I ain't totally out of wits, my camp gear was "modern", a pop up tent and very warm sleeping bag with a blow up mattress. And "Heatr Meals" for supper.

I hit my first snag before I went out. There is a quota for the number of bears allowed killed each year in New Mexico. After that quota is filled no more bears can be hunted. When I went to get my bear tag the quota was full and I could not get one. I really wanted to get the bear more than the deer. If it was only a deer hunt I had intended to use my Ubert 1873 24 inch .44/40. But, rules is rules, so I went hunting for deer only.

I loaded up Little Joe my gelding riding horse and Taffy, my mare pack horse and into the Wilderness we went on November 5th. The hunt started on the 7th. The hunt season was for five days only.

The following are a few pics.

This is looking over the West Fork of the Gila River Canyon, I do not know the names of the mountains to the west.


My hunting was a combination of riding around with the rifle in a scabbard or hunting afoot. Huntig afoot with the loooonnngg barrelled 1876 makes you realize why God gave men horses before he gave them rifiles. Plus now I know why Naiche and Geronimo carried CARBINES. As they spent most of their time afoot.

Here's some of my gear. My cartridge belt is the "Smith and Wesson 500" by Hunter and found at Cabelas. I added some loops for the .45 Long Colt on both sides of the Back-centered factory loops. I ain't no "Old West Reproductions" quality leathersmith but it did okay.


This is Little Bit, so named because she was Little Bitty. She came into our camp on the fourth day at about 10:00 A.M. and wandered all around, visiting with me and the horses. I could get within about ten feet of her and she wanted to get closer than that to the horses but Little Joe "snorted" her off if she got too close. However, the horses accepted her alright and I fell in love with her. She spent the day right in our camp and by noon she bedded down in the timber across the creek within about 20 yards of us and still visible. By evening she had left and I thought I would see her no more. But the next day at about 2:00 P.M. she showed back up and stayed until for several hours again. I never saw her after that.


I had said before this was once Apache country and by the sign I saw it still is. As an experienced woodsman of the west I can read sign. This smoke signal alarmed me at first until I read it, it says, "Come to the new Apache Casino, slots are CHEAP!!"

Okay, okay, actually it was a wisp from a deadening forest fire.

Little Bit was ultimately one of only two Mule deer I saw, the other a young doe such as her. I saw a band of three young bull elk and the infamous/famous Mexican Wolf, he just stood in a dry lake bed and stared at us when we rode by, He had been read his "rights" before he was released into the Wilderness and damn well knew them. He knew I knew his "rights" as well because the governemnt has read them to me as well. He was safe. Actually I have heard they all are not too afraid of man/woman since man/woman rasied them from pups. I found Mearn's Quail and lots of Ebert's Squirrels.

I had a great time. I rode in country that was ridden long ago by men such as me who love the wilderness and I slept sound and never had to answer to anybody for any reason, I was completely alone for seven days. I saw an outfitter coming in the first day and his wranglers when I went out the last day. I was truly a free man for that time period. I roamed where I wanted and when I wanted. I stopped to look when I wanted as well.

The .45/75 will be put away until I can get down south to the Magdalena Rangers HQ where I will shoot it in a match.

Next year, if I can get a bear tag and a deer tag I will return to the Gila with it and try again. If I get an elk tag I wll have a toss up between the 1876 and my Shiloh Sharps in .45/70.

I am truly blessed and lucky to be alive in these times and able to do what I did. I stopped several times while there and thanked God for my largesse.

Thanks for looking. Regards, Rancid Roy.

[john boy]

Roy, what a great writeup.  Thoroughly enjoyed reading your words and feelings.  Many times, some of the better hunts is when one never pulls the trigger.

While reading your words, reminded me of several days that I spent tramping in the woods, a back pack with a few rations, my female beagle with me and carrying a 22 rifle.  Hunted for my food and had cans of dog food for Frau.  Bedded under a pine tree one night on a mattress of pine needles, Frau snuggled up close and in the morning there was 3" of snow on part of the ground cover that I folded on top of us.  Never knew it snowed and we were warm as toast in the morning.

Thank You Again for the nice writeup in the Gila Wliderness

[Rancid Roy]

Thank you john boy,

I too have slept with only a tarp for cover and its actually a good way to go. It provides more warmth than if the tarp was higher above the body as in a tent. My happiest outdoors times were when I had the least amount of gear and money involved. Life was simple then.

[Arizona Trooper]

Great write-up! Thanks! Those mountains in the distance are probably the Blues in eastern Arizona. That is the place to go on an elk hunt, but you better have a good horse to drag it out. That's rough country.

Many years ago, I did a similar outing on the east side of Silver City. Slept sound every night with my Spencer in easy reach. I would get up in the middle of the night just to look at the stars. You will never see so many stars as out there! How I miss the West! One day I will live back there.  

[Rowdy Fulcher]

Rancid Roy
Good story and Good pictures . I have never been to the Gila Wilderness , need to add to my list of places to HUNT .
Thanks again .

[Rancid Roy]

Thanks for the kind words, folks.

Arizona Trooper, that shot was facing east or southeast, although in the story I said, "...west." my mistake. The Blues are west of where I stood. I have wanted to spend some time in them myself. My first night in I slept in an open meadow with my sleeping bag and a trap over me. I watched stars all night long. The only way to sleep.

Rowdy you need to come see the Gila, if not to hunt just to see it. In the right place you will see lots of game and few to no people.

[Grizzly Adams]

Howdy, Rancid!

Thanks for a great writeup and pics!  A most excellent adventure!

Sorry for the tardy response, but I have been out of pocket following some surgery!  All is well now, so I can spend more time keeping up to speed with the forum!