Hopkins and Allen Heritage

[FishnRod]

Picked up this H and A underhammer today. I have always loved the looks of them. I believe it is 45 cal, but there is no caliber or twist marked on the barrel.
Does anyone have a link for Hopkins and Allen, where I could enter the serial number and find out more about this rifle?
Thanks

 

[sheriff john]

Been shooting these since the 70's, on my second one. Simple and accurate. The pin that holds the barrel to the receiver is tapered. It is possible to drive it in the wrong way. Wear long sleeves and have fun. Good for offhand shooting.

 

[FishnRod]

Been shooting these since the 70's, on my second one. Simple and accurate. The pin that holds the barrel to the receiver is tapered. It is possible to drive it in the wrong way. Wear long sleeves and have fun. Good for offhand shooting.

Do you have a recommended load for your 45?

 

[sheriff john]

.440 patched round ball, 60 grains of FFFg. Long sleeve shirt (you'll find out why). My Heritage came with a peep sight and hooded globe front sight. Other, later one had regular sights. Both have been good, servicable rifles.

 

[hanshi]

I've had a Heritage .45 for about 55 years and yours is in better shape than mine; which has been used on deer and bobcats from almost day one. I used 60 grains of 3F and killed deer out to 75 yards. I'm also a fan of them.

 

[renegadehunter]

I have an H&A .45 underhammer, but have not shot it yet due to several issues with it. With that being said, I read up on them quite a bit when I first got it.
I have it in my notes that they are almost a .440 caliber rather than a .45, and that it's best to start with a .433 RB and a thinner patch?
Sounds like sheriff john has no issues using a .440 RB though. Just wanted to bring up that some have said a .433 RB works pretty well in them.

 

[FishnRod]

I have an H&A .45 underhammer, but have not shot it yet due to several issues with it. With that being said, I read up on them quite a bit when I first got it.
I have it in my notes that they are almost a .440 caliber rather than a .45, and that it's best to start with a .433 RB and a thinner patch?
Sounds like sheriff john has no issues using a .440 RB though. Just wanted to bring up that some have said a .433 RB works pretty well in them.

I bought a .440 mould for it, sure hope they work. Neat rifles

 

[painter]

I have an H&A underhammer pistol marked as 45 cal. After measuring the bore I bought .433 balls.

 

[FishnRod]

I have an H&A underhammer pistol marked as 45 cal. After measuring the bore I bought .433 balls.

Yikes, I may have a mould for sale. Lol
No caliber or twist marked on the barrel. Hard to find info on the web referencing the serial number.

 

[Mark Herman]

You probably won't find much, if any, info re dates. There have probably been a zillion of these made in several configurations. I have at least 4 that I have modified to shoot trap, table, chunk and offhand matches with. One has 3 interchangeable barrels. The table gun has a 1 1/8" barrel and adjustable trigger. The trap gun has a 36" vent rib barrel. In stock configuration they make good offhand rifles. The action can be cleaned up with some careful filing. The rifles are the simplist most durable you can find and can be modified easily and inexpensively.

 

[Nobade]

Funny that so many of you have settled on 60 gr FFFg for your 45s. I had mine out not long ago and that ended up being the best load for mine also. .440" ball and a twill patch. I did cone the muzzle to make it easier to load, before I did that it was pretty tough and probably would have benefited from smaller balls.

 

[foxm1754]

Congratulations on your purchase. The H & A 45 underhammer is how I started my journey in 1974. It was a great rifle. Bought it used from a hardware store the next town over. Shot as well as I was capable of holding it. Part of the barrel markings at the time was "Heritage" and "45 caliber". Had the same patchbox and forearm as yours pictured.

I used a 0.429 round ball (Lyman mold), salvaged pillow ticking spit patch ( 0.018 ?? been a while....), and #11 caps. Used 25 to 30 grains 3F for target loads with good results. Yes, protect your forearm in some manner from cap fragments. Also be careful when driving the tapered pin out for cleaning if the hammer is on full cock.

Am not aware of any factory link for additional information. All the best on your quest.

 

[FishnRod]

Plan to use this rifle next Nov for deer.
I also think it would be a kick in the woods, doing a stump shoot with it.

 

[hanshi]

The cheap "hair curler" mold that came with mine cast ball that loaded rather well. I eventually bought a Lyman .440" mold and used that size ball up until I retired the rifle. My hands were stronger back then and with the thin patches I used no short starter was needed. All loading was done with the ramrod and nothing else. I had no idea the size ball that dropped from the first mold as it was not marked.

 

[FishDFly]

I have always wanted one of those rifles and one of the pistols, just never run into them.

 

[FishnRod]

I have always wanted one of those rifles and one of the pistols, just never run into them.

Me too, wanted one for years, finally found one.
Twenty years ago "The Gun Works" had an underhammer in 62 caliber. I used to pick it up every time I was in the store, but it was more than this struggling young family man could afford at the time.
Never shot an underhammer before, really looking forward to it.

 

[Mark Herman]

Call Deer Creek in Indiana. They sell them as kits or complete. Rifles and pistols.

 

[hawkeye2]

I have some H&A underhammers and I bought an original from The Gun Works a few years back.

 

[renegadehunter]

Mine is a .45 Heritage model. It has a pretty bad crack in the wrist. It also has a ton of barrel movement, I suspect that the hole the pin goes through on the breech end of the barrel is extremely wallowed out. I'd confirm that is the case if I could get the tapered pin out. No amount of soaking it with PB Blaster and hitting it with a brass punch will make it budge. No idea what to do with the stock, can't find a replacement anywhere. Making a new stock for it is something I have zero interest in trying to do. I bought it for around a $100 bucks if I remember correctly. Considering its issues, it still has a good outward appearance overall. I believe a decent gunsmith would make short work of removing the pin and fixing the wallowed out hole (weld and re-drill), and then I would just need to do some sort of glue job on the stock to get it shooting.
I've read that they are extremely, extremely good PRB shooters.

 

[FishnRod]

Mine is a .45 Heritage model. It has a pretty bad crack in the wrist. It also has a ton of barrel movement, I suspect that the hole the pin goes through on the breech end of the barrel is extremely wallowed out. I'd confirm that is the case if I could get the tapered pin out. No amount of soaking it with PB Blaster and hitting it with a brass punch will make it budge. No idea what to do with the stock, can't find a replacement anywhere. Making a new stock for it is something I have zero interest in trying to do. I bought it for around a $100 bucks if I remember correctly. Considering its issues, it still has a good outward appearance overall. I believe a decent gunsmith would make short work of removing the pin and fixing the wallowed out hole (weld and re-drill), and then I would just need to do some sort of glue job on the stock to get it shooting.
I've read that they are extremely, extremely good PRB shooters.

At least you're not into it for a lot of money, yet. I would hang on to it, they are getting harder to find. If you do decide to let it go, please let me know.