Replies

• Tugar Posts: 2,479 Senior Member

  June 2018 edited June 2018 #2

  Nobody? The write up for the 458 Socom and the 450 Bushmaster make them seem to be pretty close. The biggest difference I see is that the 458 takes rifle bullets with the 600 grain being subsonic. One heckuva sledge hammer. Probably easier to find the heavier 45 bullet. 

  Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.
  Winston Churchill

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• timc Posts: 6,684 Senior Member

  June 2018 #3

  Sorry no help here, I went with the Beowulf for my thumper because .458, well it just ain’t a .50!

  timc - formerly known as timc on the last G&A forum and timc on the G&A forum before that and the G&A forum before that.....
  AKA: Former Founding Member

  2 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• tennmike Posts: 27,457 Senior Member

  June 2018 #4

  Don't have any experience with either. But given the choice, and in a bolt action rifle, I'd go with the .458 SOCOM just on bullet selection choice. The .458 SOCOM and the .450 Bushmaster ballistics are pretty close with the bullets used. Depends on what use you would put it to, as both are decent ballistically for most any hog, deer, or bear hunting within 200 yards.
  For me, it would be sort of redundant, as I have Remington rolling block, Sharps rifle and carbine, and a Ruger #1 all chambered in .45-70. But I wouldn't kick a short action bolt rifle out of the safe in either chambering.

    “I refuse to answer that question on the grounds that I don't know the answer”
  ― Douglas Adams
  

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• FFLshooter Posts: 1,057 Senior Member

  June 2018 #5

  All I know is that they batter the hell out of a lower in an AR.

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• Tugar Posts: 2,479 Senior Member

  June 2018 #6

  One of the biggest reasons I am leaning more towards the 458 is that with 500 and 600 grain bullets, It's subsonic. A can at the end would be very interesting. A nearly silent Mjolnir . (Thor's hammer)

  Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.
  Winston Churchill

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• MileHighShooter Posts: 4,997 Senior Member

  July 2018 #7

  I've thought about both quite a bit, I want a big bore AR and have a couple lowers waiting around for a purpose. 
  
  I think the 450 would be cheaper to run over all. The 458 uses rifle bullets and unless you go cast, most of the bullets are going to cost more than .452 bullets, which are sold cheap in bulk for pistols. Well, 405's are pretty reasonable. Either requires buying brass. And dies. But IIRC the 458 can run on standard magazines, but the 450 requires magazines from Bushmaster. I could be wrong. Something about a straight wall case that spaces on the rim always turned me off from the 450 as well. Don't know why, works just fine on pistols, but the bottle neck 458 just SEEMS better to me, for absolutely no scientific reason. 
  
  What is your purpose for the gun? 

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• Tugar Posts: 2,479 Senior Member

  July 2018 #8

  Plus I just saw the Wilson Combat 458 HAM'R. Basically a 458 Socom Improved with the shoulder blown out to increase case capacity just a bit enough that the HAM'R won't chamber in a SOCOM rifle. 
  
  

  Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.
  Winston Churchill

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• BigDanS Posts: 6,992 Senior Member

  July 2018 #9

  I haven't bought or made one, yet.  It appears the round puts significantly greater stress on the bolt lugs than others and you can get bolt failures if you shoot them a  lot.  there are some "overbuilt" .458 SOCOM bolts out there.
  
  In addition, it appears to be a finicky round for reliability, and it  is widely written that you should get  a complete gun and not try to build one to get it all tuned together.  ( I want to build one, but I have been discouraged ).
  
  I keep toying with the idea.  If you want a hard hitting .45, the .45-70 is it.  I believe this would be an excellent sub-sonic round, but that's not in my toy box.
  
  D

  "A patriot is mocked, scorned and hated; yet when his cause succeeds, all men will join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot." Mark Twain
  Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.... now who's bringing the hot wings? :jester:

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• MileHighShooter Posts: 4,997 Senior Member

  July 2018 #10

  BigDan - 
  
  Interesting, who was driving you away from the 458? I haven't delved WAY too much into it. The 375 SOCOM looked real interesting too (Since I have lots of .375 bullets already) but that didn't seem to take off like the 458 did. I guess it makes sense though, and really a lot of these big bores are relatively new-ish, guess we are just seeing the long term reliability now. 
  
  What did your sources say about buying say, a complete upper? Still better to buy the whole rifle?

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
• BigDanS Posts: 6,992 Senior Member

  July 2018 #11

  MileHighShooter said:

  BigDan - 
  
  Interesting, who was driving you away from the 458? I haven't delved WAY too much into it. The 375 SOCOM looked real interesting too (Since I have lots of .375 bullets already) but that didn't seem to take off like the 458 did. I guess it makes sense though, and really a lot of these big bores are relatively new-ish, guess we are just seeing the long term reliability now. 
  
  What did your sources say about buying say, a complete upper? Still better to buy the whole rifle?

  No one review or thread has pushed me away from it.  In aggregate, I keep finding bits and pieces of people finding issues with lower end makers, home built guns, etc,  I refuse to invest $2000 in an AR style gun, but I won't invest $700 either if it isn't going to reliable for me.  Not sure if just an upper will do, either.  Just not enough reliable info out there for me to go ahead and make one, and too expensive to buy a name brand one.
  
  D

  "A patriot is mocked, scorned and hated; yet when his cause succeeds, all men will join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot." Mark Twain
  Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.... now who's bringing the hot wings? :jester:

  0 · Share on TwitterShare on Facebook