bushmaster (2024)

FAQs

Is a 450 Bushmaster overkill for deer? ›

450 are suitable for any North American big game animal from deer to grizzlies. Neither are ideal for varmints given their limited range and large-diameter bullet, but both are excellent deer cartridges that can also target elk, moose, and bear at ranges within 200 yards or so.

PUSHING THE LIMITS OF THE 450 BUSHMASTER

What happens when you put a 450 Bushmaster straight-wall hunting cartridge (typically with an expected range of 100-200 yards) in the hands of a Pro Shooter?

450 Bushmaster has a rather flat trajectory out to 200 yards; if the firearm is zeroed at 150 yards, the user can expect to see a rise of 1.8 inches at 100 yards, zero at 150 yards, and a drop of 4.9 inches at 200 yards. The cartridge fits single-stacked in a standard AR-15 magazine with a single-stack follower.

This results in 22.22 ft-lbs of free recoil energy, which is how much recoil you're going to feel in your shoulder, and 12.27 fps of recoil velocity, which is how abrupt or jolting a rifle's recoil will be.

The 308's dominance in ballistics continues as it has the higher sectional density compared to 450 Bushmaster. On average, the 308 has a SD around 0.26 compared to 0.18 for 450 Bushmaster. The 308's higher muzzle velocity and energy focuses all that force into a smaller area, thereby penetrating deeper into the target.

Perfect for hound hunting, excellent over bait, but poor choices for spot-and-stalk hunting. Last spring, I shot my second Alberta bear, a nice 6.5-footer, with a . 450 Bushmaster, which is pretty similar to the . 45-70 in performance.

Ultimately, the 450 Bushmaster has a higher ballistic coefficient than the 350 Legend. However, it's by a very small margin and likely not a key factor in your decision-making process.

Although the 458 SOCOM has slightly higher case capacity, the lower bullet weights fired by the 450 Bushmaster generally surpass those fired by the 458 in terms of muzzle velocity.

It's great for whitetails, within reason, inside 150 yards, and in really good shape but this is not a long-range gun. You can't push it very far. You also want to take into consideration your shot angle more so than you would with a bigger caliber gun.

The . 450 Bushmaster is one of the cartridges derived from Col. Jeff Cooper's “Thumper concept,” where he wanted a cartridge suitable for double duty in both defensive rifles, and in a hunting gun, where a heavier bullet of larger diameter would be employed to deliver one-shot kills when hunting larger game species.

What was the 450 Bushmaster designed for? ›

The . 450 Bushmaster is a straight-walled cartridge that is effective for hunting numerous game animals, including deer, elk, hog, and even some bears. But most importantly, the caliber is legal in states that do not permit traditional bottleneck cartridges.

308 Win kicks the snot out of 450 Bushmaster. At the muzzle they are basically the same, . 308 Win has around 2700 ft.

Although the 450 Bushmaster does an admirable job increasing the stopping power of the AR platform, 30-06 ballistics are simply better in virtually every category. For this reason, most hunters will stick with their tried-and-true bolt-action rifles chambered in 30-06.

The . 450 Bushmaster is well known as a formidable caliber for tough animals such as wild boar and black bear. With a heavy, slow-moving bullet, pinpoint accuracy is critical. Using a 100 yard zero, the bullet drops 10 inches at 200 yards.

Although the 458 SOCOM has slightly higher case capacity, the lower bullet weights fired by the 450 Bushmaster generally surpass those fired by the 458 in terms of muzzle velocity.

This means that the 50 Beowulf effective range for deer is around 150 yards and 100 yards for elk. In contrast, the 450 Bushmaster and 458 SOCOM have an effective range of 250 yards for deer and 150 yards for elk.