450Bushmaster.net

Has anyone used any of the 230gr Hornady .451 HAP Bullets in their 450 Bushmaster? If so, what kind of accuracy did you get and have you done any Water Bottle or Gel tests? Hornady says that they "penetrate deeper and don't expand like their XTP bullets". However, they do have an exposed lead hollow flat tip point which would make them legal for hunting if they perform at the speeds we're shooting (2200 - 2350fps). Just thought the HAP's might be an alternative to Tim's recommended 230gr Hornady Flat Point FMJ's since those have been discontinued. He seems to think those will put an immediate smack-down on just about anything including a T-Rex. However, I was unable to stock-up on those before they became unavailable, and most game depts. will not allow us to hunt with them.

LlindeX wrote:Has anyone used any of the 230gr Hornady .451 HAP Bullets in their 450 Bushmaster? If so, what kind of accuracy did you get and have you done any Water Bottle or Gel tests? Hornady says that they "penetrate deeper and don't expand like their XTP bullets". However, they do have an exposed lead hollow flat tip point which would make them legal for hunting if they perform at the speeds we're shooting (2200 - 2350fps). Just thought the HAP's might be an alternative to Tim's recommended 230gr Hornady Flat Point FMJ's since those have been discontinued. He seems to think those will put an immediate smack-down on just about anything including a T-Rex. However, I was unable to stock-up on those before they became unavailable, and most game depts. will not allow us to hunt with them.

I haven't used them either, but having read Hornady's description, they look like a good contender. Trust me, they may not expand much at handgun velocities, but they will out of the 450b. It's struggling to make it up to zero right now, so no water shots right now for me. I'm guessing that they are not as thick a jacket as the XTP Mag bullets, but with such a small exposed area and tiny HP, it probably won't matter. Best of all, it wont count as an FMJ.

Hoot

EDIT:At $.18 a round from manventureoutpost, they are affordable to shoot also!

Hoot,
Due to the open lead tip on those HAP bullets, our game & fish dept. would consider them legal to big game hunting! You have my sympathies up there. I understand that a water shot today in your neighborhood would be somewhat of an IceBlock Shot. Not too informative, and definitely not worth the trouble. Besides, I think most folks believe Its time to watch all of the old Super Bowl re-runs anyway.

I was just in my local shop to look around and they didn't have any of the 230gr .451 Hornady HAP bullets to sell. The owner told me he'd never seen them, so we looked them up in the Hornady book to prove they existed. He says he'll order some in, "but don't hold your breath 'cause its virtually impossible to get Hornady bullets right now". My Guess Is, I'll have to wait a while to test 'em out.

They're in stock at the link I provided. If you don't need that many I'd bet some other members would be happy to split the order with you.

Hoot

I've shot more of the HAPs in my .450BM than anything else. Good accuracy. Only have a coyote and a deer with them, but they performed very well. I think I would want something tougher for elk, moose and bear. But they are GTG in my book for deer, hogs, vermin.

When I did shoot them in the Fackler box, the XTPs looked a little "prettier" but the HAPs expanded reliably and I did not get jacket shedding.

When shooting them into your box, how did the HAPs compare to our normal FTX's? Do you have any pictures of recovered rounds?

I did not take any photos. I did not expect a lot since they don't expand at pistol velocities. The HAPs lost at least 30% of their weight and looked more like I hit them with a hammer than shot them into media. The jackets were torn non-uniformly and one had a definite shift of the exposed core to one side, so it did not "expand" if you measured the end, but if you measured the offset from the base it did. I was using gallon bags and it ended up hitting the side of the box in bag 8. I pack the bags pretty close to 1" thick and I did not get past the 15th bag, however, I was popping bags open on every shot, unlike with handgun rounds. I think if they hit bone, they might grenade as I think they have a softer core than the XTPs or FTXs.

MarkCO,
Thanks for the information. Sounds like they might be a cheaper practice round, but not what I was looking for. I was looking for something that would substitute for the now discontinued Hornady 230gr flat tips in terms of performance. If these do have softer lead than the FTX's, then that just won't get the penetration I'm looking for.

Good morning fellas I'm a newbie to this site and the 450b , I was not aware that .451 bullets could be used in it, I was under the impression that only .452 bullets had to be used, can someone enlighten me on how this is possible?

I havent slugged my bore personally, but 451 diam have been used since reloading for 450bm was possible, with excellent results. This entire thread is full of addictive information, also see Hoot's depository for more gems.
Please be aware that many of the loads you will see are not published data, and as such, please be careful.
I dont personally believe the 450BM is a good round to start reloading in, if you are fairly new.