.450 Bushmaster
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2011) |
| .450 Bushmaster | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 .450 Bushmaster (left), .223 Remington (right) | ||||||||||||||||
| Type | Rifle | |||||||||||||||
| Place of origin | United States | |||||||||||||||
| Production history | ||||||||||||||||
| Designer | LeMAG Firearms LLC | |||||||||||||||
| Designed | 2007[1] | |||||||||||||||
| Manufacturer | Bushmaster Hornady | |||||||||||||||
| Produced | 2009–present[2] | |||||||||||||||
| Specifications | ||||||||||||||||
| Parent case | .284 Winchester | |||||||||||||||
| Case type | Rebated, straight | |||||||||||||||
| Bullet diameter | .4520 in (11.48 mm) | |||||||||||||||
| Land diameter | .4420 in (11.23 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Neck diameter | .4800 in (12.19 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Base diameter | .5000 in (12.70 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Rim diameter | .4730 in (12.01 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Rim thickness | .0540 in (1.37 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Case length | 1.700 in (43.2 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Overall length | 2.260 in (57.4 mm)[3] | |||||||||||||||
| Case capacity | 59.5 gr H2O (3.86 cm3) | |||||||||||||||
| Maximum pressure (SAAMI) | 38,500 psi (265 MPa) | |||||||||||||||
| Ballistic performance | ||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||
| Test barrel length: 20 in (508 mm) Source(s): Lynx Defense[4] | ||||||||||||||||
The .450 Bushmaster (11.48x43mmRB) is a rifle cartridge developed by Tim LeGendre of LeMag Firearms, and licensed to Bushmaster Firearms International. The .450 Bushmaster is designed to be used in standard M16s and AR-15s, using modified magazines and upper receiver assemblies.
History[edit]
The .450 Bushmaster is descended from the Thumper concept popularized by the gun writer Jeff Cooper. Cooper was dissatisfied with the small-diameter 5.56×45mm NATO (.223 Remington) of the AR-15, and envisioned a need for a large bore (.44 cal or greater) cartridge in a semi-automatic rifle to provide one-shot kills on big-game animals at 250 yards. Inspired by this, LeGendre developed his .45 Professional cartridge,[when?] and later[when?] built and delivered an AR-15 in .45 Professional to Cooper.[5]
Bushmaster requested[when?] the ammunition manufacturer Hornady to produce the .45 Professional cartridge for this project, but Hornady wanted to shorten the cartridge case and overall length to accommodate their 0.452 in. 250-grain pointed SST flex-tip bullet. Bushmaster and LeGendre approved the change from a 1.772 in. (45 mm) case and 2.362 in. (60 mm) overall length (OAL) to the now standard 1.700 in. (43.18 mm) case and 2.260 in. (57.40 mm) OAL. This permitted operation in the more abundant and popular AR-15 platform versus the AR-10 platform. Also, a name change to ".450 Bushmaster" was approved.[citation needed]
Loadings and ballistics[edit]
The .450 Bushmaster makes use of .452 in. bullets because the lower impact velocities and energies would not adequately expand the heavier jacketed .458 in. bullets.[6] The cartridge is chambered in bolt-action rifles by Ruger, Savage, Mossberg, and Remington, Ruger's No. 1 single shot rifle, AR-15 rifles, as well as an AR-15 pistol by Franklin Armory.[7]
Ballistically, the .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.[citation needed] The cartridge fits single-stacked in a standard AR-15 magazine with a single-stack follower. A 10-round AR-15 magazine body yields a four-round [8] magazine, a 20-round AR-15 magazine body yields a five- to seven-round [9] magazine, and a 30-round body yields a nine-round [10] magazine. Hornady, Remington and Federal now manufacture ammunition for the rifle, and Starline manufactures empty brass for handloading.
See also[edit]
- List of AR platform cartridges
- List of rebated rim cartridges
- List of rifle cartridges
- Table of handgun and rifle cartridges
- 11 mm caliber
- .350 Legend
- .360 Buckhammer
- .400 Legend
- .444 Marlin
- .45-70
- .458 SOCOM
- .460 S&W Magnum
- .50 Beowulf
- 12.7×55mm STs-130
References[edit]
- ^ "Bushmaster - Welcome to Bushmaster Firearms International". 28 November 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-11-28. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ GUNSweek. (2021, October 30). Bushmaster firearms reintroduces the 450 bushmaster Rifle. GUNSweek.com. Retrieved May 5, 2023, from https://www.gunsweek.com/en/rifles/news/bushmaster-firearms-reintroduces-450-bushmaster-rifle
- ^ a b c d e f g "CARTRIDGE and CHAMBER DRAWING - 450 BUSHMASTER" (PDF). SAAMI. p. 147. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-08-22. Retrieved 2018-08-22.
- ^ 450 Bushmaster Ballistic Chart LynxDefense.com
- ^ Barnes, Frank C. (2012). Cartridges of the World: A Complete Illustrated Reference for More Than 1,500 Cartridges. Gun Digest Books. pp. 97–. ISBN 978-1-4402-3059-2.
- ^ "45 Cal .452 250 gr FTX (450 Bushmaster)". Hornady. Archived from the original on 2017-07-10. Retrieved 2016-08-13.
- ^ Pridgen, D.K. "FRANKLIN ARMORY XO-26 .450 BUSHMASTER". Tactical-Life Magazine. Retrieved 26 Feb 2014.
- ^ "Lancer Magazine – 4 Round - Tromix Lead Delivery Systems". Tromix.com. 27 June 2018. Archived from the original on 17 October 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
- ^ "Duramag SS .450 Bushmaster (Stainless Steel)". Duramag. Archived from the original on 2019-12-08. Retrieved 2019-12-08.
- ^ "AR-STONER Mag AR-15 450 Bushmaster 9-Round SS Black". Midwayusa.com.