Henry Caliber

[greymount]

I am thinking of purchasing an 1860 Henry miliary rifle with brass frame.  What caliber do you is recommended a 44/40 of 45 LC? The cost is the same for both calibers.  I plan on purchasing the ammo and not completing any reloading.

[Bangor Dan]

If you'll be using black powder loads you'll probably prefer the 44 WCF cartridge....the bottle necked cartridge seals the chamber well and clean up would be much easier.

Bangor Dan

[stepnmud]

I would have said 45 Colt, to be able to use factory ammo and can use 45 Schofield or convert to use 45 Cowboy Specials with blackpowder if reloading becomes an interest at a later time.

except I'm using a converted Henry to shoot 44Russian/Specials with blackpowder loads.

[Forty Rod]

In the absence of any other considerations, shoot whichever costs the least.  If you're not reloading it can become a major factor.

[Trailrider]

The .44-40 cartridge is a bit more difficult to prepare to load for than the .45 LC.  HOWEVER, once you have the dies adjusted and a proper diameter bullet determined for the replica (usually .429-.430" unless your revolver barrel dimension and cylinder chambers dictate smaller bullets), and a .44 Magnum expander plug substituted for the usual .427-.428" plug found in many dies, and the seat/crimp die adjusted to give a good, but not excessive roll crimp, you will find the .44-40 feeds better, and obturates better than the .45 LC cases, especially with black powder!

I recommend Winchester .44-40 brass, when you can get it, and Starline, if not.  Do NOT use Remington .44-40 brass, as it tends to have too thick a wall.  For those who claim the thinner .44-40 brass won't last as long, all I can say is that I haven't figured out the life of Winchester .44-40 brass, as I am still shooting most of the brass I bought 20-odd years ago, and they are on their 21st reload...using smokeless powder!  I have actually LOST a few cases...in tall grass, or at "no brass" shoots.  The other caution is don't get too ham-fisted when running the cases into the dies.  You can crumple them by hitting a misaligned case mouth against the bottom of the die.

Hope this helps.

[W. Stick McCullough]

 Given that you aren't planning on reloading, I would say to check ammo prices near where you intend to shoot. Looking online it appears that there is little difference in price between the two calibers depending on which manufacturer you go with. Personally, I would go with the 44WCF (.44-40), as it is more 'correct' than the .45 Colt. Another consideration is what your revolvers are chambered for. Having to buy multiple calibers can be a pain, so it is something to keep in mind as well.

[dcwilliams29id]

Another Vote for 44WCF.

[Dr. Bob]

First, I would check for the availability of both calibers in your area.  I expect that 45 Colt is easier to find in non-metropolitan areas. 

[Joe Lansing]

    Unless you're buying your ammo in a chain store, get the proprietor to order it for you. Better yet, get it by mail order. Don't be a slave to what someone else wants to keep on the shelf. If that was the case, I probably wouldn't have half of my guns. Pick the caliber of YOUR choice.

                                                               J.L.

                                                                         

[Montana Slim]

Lots of good points above...I'll expand on my theory.
.45 Colt may be best from the standpoint that comercial bulk ammo & re-loaded ammo (cowboy loads) are available. Not sure I see much along those lines in 44-40. Also, you may wish to match up with revolvers of same caliber.

Ordering in bulk from Cabelas or such may be your best deal on 45 Colt ammo..unless you have a shop nearby that loads/sells their own.

Personally, I prefer the 44-40.... but I load all my own with BP.

Regards,
Slim

[Don Berry]

45 colt, easy to find. Easy to reload.  44-40 is hard to find anywhere. I had a henry in 45 colt, steel frame.  Do Not care much for the brass framed Henrys.

[dcwilliams29id]

Every gun shop I have gone into lately on my travels around the mid-atlantic is out of most .45 as well (I did see a box of Corbon).  I just order on the internet, and it comes to my door in the brand and quantity I want, without all the fuss (and most of the time at a price that is cheap enough to make up for the shipping).  There are many good online ammo retailers that carry both,and there are various manufacturers out there for either round (winchester, ultramax, black hills, buffalo arms, etc.).  I wouldn't let what the local gun shop carries dictate what I buy (if I did, I would own half the guns I do, nor would I be able to inexpensively shoot many of them). And if you ever did consider reloading, ammo availability matters even less. I just placed my second bulk order for Black Hills 44-40 from Cabelas.

[Grizzly Adams]

No question about it -44-40!

[Peter M. Eick]

When I was deciding to buy my Henry, I was faced with the same problem.  As a long time reloader, I read too many stories about how the 44/40 was going to be hard to load, crushed cases, not progressive reasonable pain in the butt to load.  I asked your same question here and got about the same answers you have gotten.  I spent days on the net searching up posts and data.

In the end I went 44/40 and have no complaints.  It is not a simple round to load, but it is easy. l do i on my progressive Pro2000 with no problems and I have never yet crushed a case.  I don't shoot factory other then to try it out and all of my ammo has been reloads since the first two boxes of cowboy stuff.  I will say I found the 44/40 accurate, fun to shoot and have had zero problems.

[Will Ketchum]

  Personally, I would go with the 44WCF (.44-40), as it is more 'correct' than the .45 Colt. Another consideration is what your revolvers are chambered for.

Just curious.  Why would you think that the 44WCF (44-40) is more "correct" in the Henry than the 45 Colt?  Neither was ever available in the Henry at the time so one is as correct as the other.  It is doubtful that any of us would ever shoot a Henry in the rimfire round it was built in.  However there are some who have bought a 44 WCF and had the chamber sleeved to 44 Russian or Colt and altered the lifter.  Still not "correct" but as close as we can come with a center fire cartridge. 

Will Ketchum

[Dr. Bob]

Got my 1860 converted to 44 Russian and it holds 16!!        The rifle is more accurate than I am and is great fun to shoot.  I paired it with an 1872 Open Top in 44 Russian and am having a ball.  What ever ctg. you choose, you will love having a Henry!

[W. Stick McCullough]

Just curious.  Why would you think that the 44WCF (44-40) is more "correct" in the Henry than the 45 Colt?  Neither was ever available in the Henry at the time so one is as correct as the other.  It is doubtful that any of us would ever shoot a Henry in the rimfire round it was built in.  However there are some who have bought a 44 WCF and had the chamber sleeved to 44 Russian or Colt and altered the lifter.  Still not "correct" but as close as we can come with a center fire cartridge. 

Will Ketchum

Simply because the .44WCF was actually used in rifles, the .45 Colt was not. I didn't mean to imply that it was correct for the Henry, my apologies.

[kcub]

On the other hand, the .45 Colt was actually used by the military, not that either is actually "correct".

[Montana Slim]

Again...If your planning to buy all your ammo, I suggest 45 Colt. Average cost is roughly $5 / box (50) lower & folks would still like to buy even the cheep Magtech 45 Colt Brass when your through with it...whereas few have use for Magtech 44-40 brass (=garbage).
Once you start pricing ammo, reloading becomes an attractive alternative.

Regards,
Slim
(Alway looking for low-cost, but serviceable 44-40 brass  )

[will52100]

I haven't bought ammo in years, so no help there.  Mine is in 45 colt.  Performance wise, not much differance.  Slightly heavier bullet with about the same powder charge, black powder that is.  Blow by is minimul, have seen a henry foul to a stop shooting nothing but smokless though.  The 44-40 will seal better, not because of the bottle neck design, but because the case mouth is paper thin.  I've tried anealing some 45 case mouths and they sealed with no blow by.  Too much trouble, I just clean the fouling out once in a while.  I have seen I don't know how many 44-40 cases damaged beyond reloading though from getting stepped on and such, while not so many of the 45.

All that said, if I had a 73', it'd be in 44-40, and then I'd probably have a henry in the same calibure to make ammo stocking easier.

I do have a couple revolvers in 45 colt, that's what decided me to start with.  never had any real issues with the 45 in the Henry.

I did have to thin down the lifting block because of blow by, but that was an easy task.