# First shots w/.450 Bushmaster



## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

Had a calm, cool morning, so off to test fire the Ruger .450 Bushmaster. I manually bore sighted the rifle by looking through the center of the bore and referencing an object 60 yards away. With the firearm in a rest, the reticle of the old Zeiss scope was adjusted to the same point of aim.

At 25 yards, the first shot was on paper then off to 100 yards, while the chronograph read exactly 2200 fps!

At 100 yards, the first group measured 1.375 and the second group was 1.5 inches.

Moved the target to 200 yards and the only two shots I took were 3.5 inches apart, but at 175 yards, shot a tight 1.375" group.

Still have to double check firing at ranges once more, because I made an adjustment to get the groups a bit higher at 100 but didn't follow up down range after the changes were made. Too much sun, so I gathered up the gear and headed out.

Surprisingly, the recoil was much milder than anticipated and as the sun warmed me up, I was down to a T-shirt. Dang good recoil pad on this thing!

I got a bit careless with the muzzle and it flashed a big hole in my front rest. Oh well. Not the first time.

I was also happy with the old scope, which was made in West Germany and that puts it at or before the Reagan years. Adjustments were precise according to the clicks and the reticle was clear with workable crosshairs. No problem out to 200 yards, which is the maximum range opening I have.

So far, so good, but I wanna shoot it some more.


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## hassell (Feb 9, 2010)

Right on Glen, might have to throw a piece of deer hide on the damaged bag.


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## youngdon (Mar 10, 2010)

LOL You are not the first guy to blast a hole in something because of a muzzle brake. Nice shooting though.


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

Ferocious blast, but the brake works like a break should. Doesn't come close to the felt recoil of a 45-/70, but I never shot a 250-grain bullet out of one, either. Can't wait to get enough brass to load some Barnes bullets. Dang, gotta get some new dies, too.

Pleasantly surprised so far. Freezer's not that big.


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## Larry (Dec 2, 2010)

Glen, Glen, Glen!!!!

No dies, just buy commercial rounds.

Its not like its a bench gun or your going to shoot PDs or Ground Squirrels. If you shoot 50 rounds per year, Ill let Don buy you a beer! No worry Don he won't!

Think...its a tool, use it like one. Just enjoy it for what it is!

UNCLE LARRY!


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## prairiewolf (Feb 19, 2012)

wheres a pic of the whole setup !!


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

Not sure if this is what you are looking for, Ed, but here are pics of the rig. Ain't much to look at.

Larry, I just prefer Barnes bullets and have used them in pistols, shotguns, muzzleloaders and rifles for deer. Nothing better. What I've found over the years is that if 2 types of ammo are tested, one will typically print better than the other, but there's only one way to find out.

As stated previously, I don't know about the integrity of the Flex Tips and don't really need that soft-tip style to protect against recoil-induced detonation in the magazine like tube-fed designs. I've long since abandoned any bullet that looks pretty and blows up on impact to any extent.

I don't see a lot of options for this caliber in factory ammo, but I agree with you that I could very well leave well enough alone, as a worse case scenario. But, I won't.


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## Larry (Dec 2, 2010)

OK Glen lets put it this way.......by the time you spend 3 days reloading, dropping 100 on new dies (good ones) and finalize bench testing you could do other things.

Like build a Trapping Cabin, restoring a newly found Massey, taking a decent knap.

My point is the Barnes wont kill any better than the factory. Dead is dead! The round you have is deadly as a deer has a 15 inch kill zone and your accurate with your 1.5 to 1.75 groups.

Now if your going crow golfing with that monster thats a different story! Then work up a load thats at 100 is .5, if not use it for what it is a 200 yard deer rifle.

I am 100% right on this one Glen, you have a fine accurate hunting gun, don't change a thing!


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## youngdon (Mar 10, 2010)

I'd be willing to venture a guess that he's gonna buy the dies more for the reason that he enjoys the reloading side of it. When I buy a new caliber gun the dies come home or are on order at the same time. Other than 22lr's all but two of my guns have never seen factory rounds but from a distance. Not because it was cheaper, but because I enjoy the reloading side of it.


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## prairiewolf (Feb 19, 2012)

Nice rig Glen, to me a rifle doesnt have to be pretty to like and enjoy it ! I also am like Don, I reload for every center fire I have, rifles, pistols and revolvers.


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

There's always that intangible with handloads. Knowing that you were quality control.

But, it looks like Larry is right. No dang bullets in .452 diameter - least of all Barnes. Nothing other than the same Hornady bullets, unless going with pistol bullets. No thanks. Did some checking and weight retention is decent, but not great - even though the particular Flex Tip bullet in .452 diameter has been strengthened. Looks like factory fodder for the foreseeable future.


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## Larry (Dec 2, 2010)

I was not right...you just went the extra distance and found out the unfortunate facts Glen. I am sorry for yah. But again, nothing is lost. Its a fine gun and your a great shot. It will give you plenty of venison I am positive in that!


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

I'm very confident it will work as is and have plenty of store-bought ammo for a while.

I guess the Michigan gun is more of a niche firearm to conform with our rules. But, the new deer caliber is catching on with hunters and I'd wager that bullet manufacturers will step up with some .452 bullets before long.


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## Mo Mo (Sep 16, 2016)

How does this round compare to a 450 Marlin or a 45-70 gov pertaining to ballistics and recoil?


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

I have no experience with the 450 Marlin, but I suspect felt recoil statistics are out there on the web. You can do your own math on ballistics; it's all out there, too.

As for the .45-70 comparison to recoil, I can only say I never shot any 250-grain bullets from my .45-70, but if I had done so, I'd say about the same. Because of the relatively light bullets and the recoil pad and brake, it's much milder than anything I ever shot in the .45-70. But, that 250-grain bullet is scooting along at 2200 fps making the 250 Bushmaster a legitimate point-blank range-200-yard gun for deer using a conservative 6-inch kill zone.

For me, however, the point is moot. Those other calibers are not legal for deer in my area.


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## Mo Mo (Sep 16, 2016)

glenway said:


> For me, however, the point is moot. Those other calibers are not legal for deer in my area.


Could you not use a .44 mag?


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

Doesn't compare to the horsepower of the .450 Bushmaster, but the answer is yes. Taken a few with a .44 Remington Magnum Ruger Redhawk, but it's more of a close-range option for deer.


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## Mo Mo (Sep 16, 2016)

There is something to be said about a person who can take game with a .44 mag handgun. That's awesome!


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

My favorite handgun for deer is shown in my avatar in my left hand: T/C Contender in .45-70 JDJ stoked with some tipped Barnes 300-grain SOCOM deer busters. Point blank range is 125 yards with a 6-inch kill zone, making it a better choice than the .44 Mag by far.

Couple of thoughts: 1) Gotta wear hearing protection when hunting, and gotta have a stable rest. Other than that, it's not that difficult, as long as the setup is well thought out.

But, it's the Bushmaster this time around.


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## Mo Mo (Sep 16, 2016)

Anything new to report on your new rifle? How is accuracy since the barrel is breaking in. Any pros and cons? Last ruger american rifle I owned, I had polished the bolt on as the machining was very rough.


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## glenway (Mar 27, 2011)

Nothing new, Huck, except I'll be testing some new and innovative ammo by Umarex soon for the .450 Bushmaster. (Pic shows style in different caliber.) It will have to be at least as accurate as the factory Hornday Flex Tip stuff or I'll abandon the notion of using it for hunting.

I really haven't shot it much but the accuracy is quite acceptable with the factory Hornady ammo and my low-power variable Zeiss scope. The gun has never shot a group over 1 1/2 inches at 100 yards and since it's a hunting gun intended for shots within 200 yards, better accuracy is irrelevant, even though I suspect a scope with higher magnification could produce better groups. Not interested in that.

Two whitetails were taken with it - one by me and one by Bullwinkle. Both were double lung shots, because we feared excessive meat damage with a bone hit. It's not saying much to kill a deer with a double lung shot, because just about any decent caliber will punch through the ribs on both sides. But, in the southern Michigan zone, we are restricted to use muzzleloaders, shotguns, or rifles chambered for straight-wall cartridges limited to 1.8 inches case length. This package pushes the limits.

What I like about it: Light, compact, good trigger, accurate, inexpensive, functions flawlessly, low felt recoil with muzzle break and good shoulder pad, low-glare finish

What I don't like about it: Cheap stock with sharp edges, have to wear hearing protection when hunting, very few options with ammo, unless a handloader - and, even then still very limited.

That zipper sound you mentioned with the cycling of the action is obvious, no doubt. But, at the same time, I find the bolt travels true and locks up solidly. Work like that had to save Ruger and me some cash, so I have no inclination to spend money slicking it up.

I'll provide a more complete report when I get to working with the rig a bit more.


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