I've been considering picking up a Winchester Model 1886 .50 Express from Doug Turnbull Restoration. Seems like a nice big-game lever-action rifle. I just have some questions before getting an expensive rifle (My budget is in the basement. I can't afford my WASR-10 until summer, thanks to being up at college with no time for a job).

How expensive is the ammo for this rifle, and does anyone besides Doug Turnbull, and presumably Winchester, sell it? I'd like to have a local source for ammo and not receive it in the mail.

Does it really have more firepower than my .45-70? I've got a Marlin Model 1895G "Guide Gun", and while firing it is truly an awesome experience, I'd like a bigger gun. I plan on going on a northern elk and bear hunt as a birthday gift for my father, and I've heard stories about the .45-70 not always having enough stopping power for the bigger kodiaks.

I'm curious about how it compares to the .45-70 because of a .50 1911 conversion I've been seeing floating around the net for a while. It fires a bigger bullet, but the performance for the gun isn't much different than a .45, and was wondering if this might be a similar case.