Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle Side Gate 22 in. – Superb Rugged Lever Action

Description

The Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle is model H010BG, and it is the one that stops people at the counter. A polished hardened brass receiver, a brass barrel band, a brass buttplate, straight grip American walnut and a 22 inch octagon barrel in polished blued steel.

The part that changes how you use it is the side loading gate. Older Henry lever guns loaded only through the front of the magazine tube, which meant pulling the follower out every time. The Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle loads through a gate in the right side of the receiver as well, so the tube can be topped up with the rifle still in your hands and still loaded.

What the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle gives you

• .45-70 Government, lever action, loads through the side gate or the tube
• 22 inch octagon barrel in polished blued steel, 1:20 twist
• Polished hardened brass receiver, brass barrel band, brass buttplate
• Straight grip American walnut stock and forearm, 14 inch length of pull
• Fully adjustable semi-buckhorn rear sight with a diamond insert
• Brass bead front sight
• Drilled and tapped, Weaver 63B scope mounts
• Large loop lever and sling swivel studs
• Transfer bar safety
• 8.10 pounds, 41.1 inches overall

Why the side loading gate on the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle matters

• The magazine can be topped up without unloading the rifle or pulling the follower
• The front loading tube still works, so you can fill it the traditional way if you prefer
• You can add rounds with a cartridge already in the chamber
• For a hunter that means the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle stays ready between opportunities instead of going out of action
• For a range session it means fewer interruptions and less fumbling with the brass follower tube

Henry H010BG specifications

• Manufacturer model number: H010BG
• Caliber: .45-70 Government
• Action: lever action, side loading gate and front tube loading
• Barrel length: 22 inches
• Barrel type: octagon, polished blued steel
• Rate of twist: 1:20
• Receiver finish: polished hardened brass
• Rear sight: fully adjustable semi-buckhorn with diamond insert
• Front sight: brass bead
• Scopeability: drilled and tapped, Weaver 63B mount type
• Stock material: American walnut
• Stock style: straight grip
• Buttplate: brass
• Length of pull: 14 inches
• Safety: transfer bar
• Extras: large loop lever, side loading gate, sling swivel studs
• Overall length: 41.1 inches
• Weight: 8.10 pounds

The brass buttplate is the one thing to plan for

Henry fits a brass buttplate to the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle rather than a rubber recoil pad, and that is a styling decision rather than an oversight: a black rubber pad on a brass and walnut rifle would look wrong, and Henry builds this gun to look right.

It does mean .45-70 recoil reaches your shoulder through brass. At 8.10 pounds there is enough rifle here to soak up a good deal of it, and for hunting, where the shots that matter are counted on one hand, most owners never give it a thought. If you plan to shoot it in volume from a bench, a slip-on pad costs very little, and the subsonic and reduced-recoil loads exist for exactly this reason.

Worth flagging because Zanders records this rifle as having a recoil pad and Henry specifies a brass buttplate. We are going with Henry.

Sights, mounts and glass on the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle

The iron sights are good ones: a fully adjustable semi-buckhorn rear with a diamond insert and a brass bead up front, which is the traditional pairing for this kind of rifle and works well inside the ranges a .45-70 is honest at. If you would rather mount glass, the receiver is drilled and tapped and Henry specifies Weaver 63B mounts. The Henry HEGW9/10PR Picatinny rail is made for the H009 and H010 receivers, so it fits the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle and gives you a modern rail to work from instead of hunting for two-piece bases.

Ammunition for the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle

For hunting, Fusion 300 grain bonded soft point is the straightforward choice for deer, hogs and black bear at woods distances. Federal built a Henry Birthday Edition 300 grain jacketed soft point, which is a neat thing to run through a Henry. If the brass buttplate is on your mind, Federal 300 grain subsonic is the gentlest thing we stock in this caliber and it is genuinely pleasant out of a rifle this heavy.

Other Henry rifles we stock

If the brass receiver is not what you are after, the H10 Provider Rifle in .45-70 is the same cartridge in a plainer package, and the H10 Protector Carbine is the shorter one. For carrying and storing it, Allen makes a Henry branded 44 inch case in hunter orange and a Henry Big Boy sling.

Worth knowing before you buy

• Three sources give three different capacities for this rifle. Henry’s own current specification for the H010BG says six rounds. Sports South records 4+1. Zanders records five. We are not going to pick one and print it as fact. Ask us and we will load one and count before it ships.
• Zanders also records a 1:12 twist, a 39 inch overall length and a 7 pound weight. Henry specifies 1:20, 41.1 inches and 8.10 pounds. The figures on this page are Henry’s.
• The safety on the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle is a transfer bar. There is no manual safety lever.
• Full factory specifications for the H010BG are published by Henry on the official model page, and the .45-70 Government cartridge is standardized by SAAMI.

Why the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle earns its place

• A polished brass receiver that will take a patina rather than a coating that wears off
• An octagon barrel, which adds rigidity at the muzzle and is the classic profile for this kind of rifle
• Iron sights that are actually adjustable, not a bead and a notch
• A side gate, so the rifle never has to come out of action to be topped up
• Enough weight to make .45-70 recoil manageable rather than punishing

This rifle suits the hunter who works in timber and brush, where a heavy .45-70 bullet inside two hundred yards is exactly the right tool, and it suits the collector who wants a lever gun that looks like the ones in the old photographs but loads like a modern one. It is not a lightweight mountain rifle and it was never meant to be. At 8.10 pounds the Henry Brass 45-70 Rifle is a gun you carry to a stand rather than up a ridge, and that weight is the reason it is comfortable to shoot.