450BM accuracy negative press, why?

[RBDMTJager]

When I started looking over a year ago, for what was the current most practical, powerful/effective widely accepted and commercially produced public land legal deer hunting cartridge my research kept bringing me back to the 450 Bushmaster.

But in about 40% of write ups for the 450BM I read kept stressing due to it being a straight wall cartridge it's inability to achieve "great accuracy", and do not expect from it the accuracy you get from bottled necked cartridges. Grant you this was with factory ammo, but I admit it put me off the cartridge a bit. But I also realized I had at this point absolutely zero experience shooting any straight walled rifle cartridges let alone reloading for one.

Than I came across this website and saw the 450 BM was indeed capable of very good accuracy out of bolt, semi-autos and single shot rifle platforms and did so in a large number of them and my 450BM accuracy concerns were laid to rest.

My first range session proved to me beyond all doubt the 450BM is indeed capable of very good accuracy and in the case of most of my reloads excellent accuracy. I have also seen a large enough number of 100 yard three shot groups posted here showing excellent accuracy to know the 450BM is capable of excellent accuracy, granted using reloaded ammo. Even my 100 yard group using Hornady Custom Factory 450BM ammo was well within acceptable accuracy standards for a 100% factory rifle shooting factory ammo at 1.1".

I'm not saying most gun writers who have done accuracy reviews of the 450BM are saying it lacks accuracy as a matter of fact most did not. I was just surprised its a larger number than I expected.

Any idea as to why this is?

I chose the 450 Bushmaster over the 350 Legend, 458 SOCOM, 50 Beowulf, 500 S&W because first and foremost it made the most economic sense and because none of the other calibers offered any advantage(s) in terms of ballistics performance or on game performance advantages over the 450 Bushmaster.
And lastly the 450 Bushmaster is the only 45 caliber straight walled public land legal cartridge available in Bolt Rife platform.

In my opinion in the class of commercially produced 1.7" public land deer cartridges you just can not beat the 450 Bushmaster by any applicable performance criteria.

[Al in Mi]

maybe they were intimated by the 45cal bullets !! lol

I have a couple cases of the old Hornady 450 ammo that I use for accuracy testing of a new rifle. Hands down the most accurate factory fodder I've shot from many guns. I'm just not a FTX fan for hunting, but they sure are accurate on paper.

[RBDMTJager]

maybe they were intimated by the 45cal bullets !! lol

I have a couple cases of the old Hornady 450 ammo that I use for accuracy testing of a new rifle. Hands down the most accurate factory fodder I've shot from many guns. I'm just not a FTX fan for hunting, but they sure are accurate on paper.

Now out of my CVA Cascade with a 1:24 22" long barrel the Hornady Custom Grade 250grn FTX were not terrible but definitely not stellar VS my reloads. But this is new factory ammo bought within the last 15 days.
My worst performing reload turned in a 1.1" 100 yard 5-shot group.

[Al in Mi]

Still more accurate than slugs and a good bit cheaper.

[Texas Sheepdawg]

All of these observations you’ve noted about sports writers insinuating that the 450Bushmaster’s alleged tendency to not be as accurate as a bottleneck cartridge have been observed by many of us as well.
Over the past 40 years, I’ve noticed a pattern with outdoor magazines where the some writers and editors seem to be disingenuous. I quit subscribing to guns and ammo many years ago because some of the articles I read just weren’t accurate.
I got to spend some time with an outdoor sports writer when I lived in Memphis Tennessee. He was one of my dad’s best friends. He was an outdoor sports writer for the commercial appeal in Memphis. His name is Larry Rea. Super guy. A devoted family man and was a very close friend to my dad. He was a member of my dad’s church. I first met Larry when we set up a deer hunt back in 1987 in west Tennessee. I believe it was Fayette County. I got to know Larry very well, and he was definitely a hands-on outdoor writer who didn’t just write about hunting, he actually engaged in it. He won a Pulitzer Prize for an article that he did on Ted Nugent. In 1994 I had the privilege of introducing Larry Rea to Ted Nugent face to face along with Michael Ramirez, a political cartoonist also with the commercial appeal and the LA Times and Paul Shanklin the artist, who did all of Rush Limbaugh’s parody music bits on the Rush Limbaugh show. Paul and I were friends from doing some political work in 1994 and we were neighbors in the same community of Cordova, a suburb of Memphis. Paul was friends with Michael. I had access to Ted Nugent through Ted Nugent world bowhunters organization. It was pretty fun. You see, Ted Nugent was friends with Rush Limbaugh, and Paul Shanklin was friends with Rush Limbaugh, and Rush used Michael Ramirez cartoons all the time on the TV show that Rush had during that time. But these Memphis guys had never met the Nuge who was also friends with Rush Limbaugh, and had even sent taxidermy deer heads for Rush Limbaugh to post on set for his TV show. Larry Rea, I believe had interviewed Ted by phone but had never met him face-to-face. I was fairly new in Ted’s organization and we were having a meeting one night about Ted coming to Memphis for a concert and Ted wanted to get together with his organization members there in Memphis before the concert. Sort of a meet and greet type thing. I made the suggestion of introducing Paul and Larry to Ted during that get together, and the members thought that was a great idea, so I called Linda Peterson his secretary at the time and set it up. So the deal was Larry, Paul, and myself we’re going to meet Ted at the hotel, along with the other members before the concert that night. It was a blast. We had so much fun just hanging out with Ted Nugent and his family and getting to know each other. So Paul Shanklin, unbeknownst to us, had informed Michael Ramirez of the time and place of the meet and greet, and Michael showed up in the conference room from the fire escape. It was hilarious. It was then that I introduced everybody to Ted and of course Ted was just beside himself. He loved it. I’ve got some pictures of it. If I can find them, I’ll post a couple. I don’t want to hijack your thread, but I just had to tell you guys that some sports writers are pretty cool.

TN1

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TN2 me Ted Michael Paul

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[tacticalbow]

Now, let's discuss why you may have come across some write-ups mentioning potential accuracy limitations of the cartridge and the possible reasons behind this perception.

Factory Ammo Variability: One factor that could contribute to concerns about accuracy is the variability in factory ammunition. While factory loads are generally reliable, there can be variations in bullet design, powder charge consistency, and overall quality control. Some shooters may have encountered factory loads that didn't perform as consistently or accurately as they had hoped, leading to generalized statements about accuracy limitations.

Bullet Selection: The bullet design and weight can significantly impact accuracy, especially with straight-walled cartridges like the 450 Bushmaster. Bullet profile, construction, and quality control can vary among different brands and bullet types. The accuracy potential of the cartridge may be more evident when using specific bullet designs or handloading with carefully selected projectiles.

Barrel Quality and Rifle Platform: The overall accuracy of any cartridge is also influenced by the quality of the barrel and the rifle platform used. Different rifles can have variations in barrel harmonics, chamber dimensions, and overall build quality, which can affect accuracy. It's possible that some shooters who experienced accuracy issues were using rifles that didn't fully optimize the potential of the 450 Bushmaster.

Shooter Expectations: It's essential to consider the expectations of the shooters and their experience level. Some individuals may have higher accuracy expectations, especially when comparing the 450 Bushmaster to traditionally accurate bottlenecked cartridges. The straight-walled nature of the 450 Bushmaster may result in slightly different accuracy characteristics, leading to perceptions of reduced accuracy, even if the actual performance is still acceptable for hunting or practical shooting purposes.

It's important to note that individual experiences can vary, and while some shooters may have encountered accuracy challenges with the 450 Bushmaster, many others have had positive results, as you have seen on the website you mentioned. The cartridge has gained popularity for its power and effectiveness in hunting scenarios, and with careful load development and rifle selection, it can deliver excellent accuracy.

Ultimately, it's recommended to test various loads, experiment with different bullet designs, and optimize your rifle setup to find the best combination that delivers the desired accuracy for your specific needs.

[coyote wacker]

I owned a Gun Shop for close to 20 years have owned and shot thousands of calibers and configurations of rifles and pistols from factory build to full hand made customs....I must say using factory ammo the 450 Bushmaster is one of the most accurate calibers made....I haven't shot or herd of a gun that as far as accuracy that didn't shoot good....some people expect more at a cheep price....
Sure there has been some that didn't function properly but did shoot OK and were able to correct function....remember they were all built by a human and nobody is perfect ....
One thing to remember most guns built for the 450 Bushmaster are not top of the line guns but guns built for the average person the buy and go hunting at a budget price....

[plant_one]

they're just mad that one hole is nearly half MOA


like seriously... you dont need sub ¼ moa accuracy to kill deer at 200 yds. its a 200 yd cartridge for all practical purposes. it does a great job of making venison acheive room temperature.

its just mag writers puffing their necks because they can.

[coyote wacker]

its just mag writers puffing their necks because they can.

It all depends on what they get for "FREE".....