Heck, it even shares the same bullet diameter as the old .450 Nitro Express. Another factor that goes into a cartridge’s stopping power is the penetration of the bullet. Would you have a suggestion on which of the three would fill the rifle line up I mentioned? I recognize that this is not a true “apples to apples” comparison, which is impossible since those four cartridges are not all available in the exact same rifles. I did my best to compare rifles of a similar weight, but consider the recoil figures below to be an approximation. This is why all three cartridges are relatively popular for feral hog control. Minuteman. All of these rounds are in the 300-350gr range besides the single subsonic .458 SOCOM round which is 500gr. As you can see in the photo below, the .450 Bushmaster, .458 SOCOM, and .50 Beowulf share many similarities, but there are some obvious differences between them as well. In addition to Bushmaster, Ruger also produces their semi-automatic AR-556 in .450 Bushmaster. And sometimes reaching for your pistol is not an option. The .45 Colt, .454 Casull, and .460 S&W all use .452″ bullets like the Bushmaster while the .50 AE and .500 S&W use .500″ bullets like the Beowulf. While the numbers are much lower than say a .338 LM round, for their purpose, these numbers shouldn’t cause any alarm. From the muzzle out to 150yds, there is no difference between these two cartridges. The AR-platform is the most popular style of rifle in the United States and offers many inherent advantages for hunters, so designers have made many attempts at building more powerful cartridges for the AR-15 over the years. Both can handle your needs, but at the end of the day, your personal preference is going to be from confidence in the round from use. Derived from the .223 Remington (also known as the .223 Rem), the original M193 ball load for the 5.56x45mm fired a .224″ 55 grain full metal jacket bullet at 3,250 feet per second (1,290 foot pounds of energy). Before we move on and wrap up this cartridge comparison, we wanted to select a round for each cartridge that we think we excel in certain shooting scenarios. As you can see, 300+ yards is going to offer some difficult shooting for even skilled marksmen. Unfortunately, those same designers must also operate within relatively severe constraints when building larger bore cartridges that will reliably function in an AR-15. For that reason, hunters desiring a big bore AR currently only have three mainstream choices: the .450 Bushmaster, the .458 SOCOM, and the .50 Beowulf. In the end, your cartridge selection often comes down to personal preference after using both. The .458 SOCOM and .50 Beowulf are not SAAMI certified and no major ammunition companies produce ammo for them. We will go ahead and say that there is not a round on this list that wouldn’t neutralize a target at close range or that couldn’t take out medium sized game within a reasonable range. Do you hunt in a state like Indiana or Michigan that restricts rifle deer hunters to using a straight walled cartridge? 458 SOCOM SBR Hornady Interlock JHP 300gr, 458 SOCOM Buffalo Bore Jacketed Flat Nose 350gr, 458 SOCOM Underwood Ammo Lehigh Controlled Fracture HP 300gr, 458 SOCOM Buffalo Bore Subsonic Jacketed Round Nose 500gr, 50 Beowulf Alexander Arms Rainier Plated HP 335gr, 50 Beowulf Underwood Ammunition Bonded JHP 325gr, 50 Beowulf Alexander Arms Millennium Solid Brass Spitzer 350gr, 50 Beowulf Underwood Ammunition Xtreme Penetrator 325gr. Heck, it even has a slightly less arching trajectory than the high pressure .45-70 load. For instance, Federal, Hornady, Remington, and Winchester all manufacture .450 Bushmaster ammo. The same goes for Savage and Ruger with their bolt-action 110, American Ranch, and Gunsite Scout rifles. However, the .450 Bushmaster has the biggest selection of factory ammo and rifles. Or what bolt works for which cartridge interchangeably with other cartridges. I tested the 300-gr. From the factory loads that we have selected, there appears to be a trend towards the .458 SOCOM rounds showing better ballistic coefficients than the .40 Beowulf rounds. The reason was again because of the low stopping power with the traditional rounds, and a large, .50 cal cartridge gave the promise for a round with devastating power in close quarters to mid range shots. Four of the five .458 SOCOM rounds break the .2 mark while only to .50 Beowulf round do so, and they also have two rounds below the .15 mark. Sniper Country is reader-supported. Most .450 Bushmaster ammo typically has bullet weights in the 158gr to 300 gr range, with 250gr and 260 gr bullets being the most popular. Before we get started, I have an administrative note: Some of the links below are affiliate links. All three cartridges are solid performers and there is quite a bit of overlap in their capabilities. There is great information out there that has been compiled by expert shooters, but does their data correlate to your skill level? I am interested in learning about the different cartridges and how they compare. As the rounds move out to the 200 and 300 individual rounds, do begin to distance themselves from one another. What barrel lengths do you recommend for the 450 Bushmaster and why? I will probably eventually get a 300 Blackout. The rifle and cartridge suffered through major teething problems during the Vietnam War, but modifications to the rifle and the propellant used in the cartridge eventually solved most of those issues. Like the .458 SOCOM, the .50 Beowulf was developed from the .50 Action Express parent case and employs a rebated rim, sized to match the 7.62x39mm and 6.5mm Grendel rounds … While most hunters and shooters would probably agree that Modern Sporting Rifles chambered in .223 Remington are great for general plinking, more serious target shooting, and varmint hunting, using the diminutive cartridge on larger game is a very contentious subject. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Jan 23, 2017 - Explore Todd Walter's board ".50 Beowulf" on Pinterest. These are powerful loads, with 100 yard KPS values of 53.6 and 53.8 for the Beowulf and Bushmaster loads, respectively, while the SOCOM load has a 100 yard KPS of 58.7. With factory ammo prices usually starting around $1 per round and quickly going up from there, ammunition is pretty expensive for all three cartridges. They are now 10 round mags for your .458 Upper. As powerful a round as the 458 Socom is, we certainly didn’t expect it to last quite that long. Best Concealed Carry Insurance [Comparison Chart]. For instance, if the games are deers, the 450 is more than capable. So keep in mind as we move through this comparison that the terminal ballistics of these rounds involve more than simply the kinetic energy or the sectional density. One thing that jumps out to us is that all of the rounds bleed off velocity pretty rapidly, though we also have to keep in mind that these rounds are designed for much closer range shooting than 400 and 500 yards. Each rifle has its own personality, and numbers can fluctuate based on environmental and physical differences in your rifle. Of course, the increased recoil of the .50 Beowulf might make successive shots more difficult to put on target when compared to the .458 SOCOM. Though all of the rounds we looked at dropped below the 1,000ft.lb mark at the 300 yard mark, there is still enough energy to drop medium size game with a well-placed shot, especially considering the size of these rounds. As I am moving into boar hunting, this article provided a lot of insight for my consideration in selecting rounds for new pursuits. The AR-15 can only accommodate cartridges up to 2.26″ long, so all three go right up to the limit that will fit in the rifle. Below we have listed the averages for each cartridge out to 300 yards. Below, we will look at the bullet energy as well as penetration and how they relate to stopping power between the 458 SOCOM vs 50 Beowulf. Both of these rounds can and are used at the range as well as for hunting purposes, so these sections are still relevant. For the sake of clarity and not getting stuck in the weeds, we are going to keep the discussion to each category but will bring it all together when discussing applications. Exactly what I was hoping to read and understand!!! However, don’t confuse any of them, even the relatively high velocity .450 Bushmaster, with a flat shooting, long range cartridge on par with the 7mm Remington Magnum or .300 Winchester Magnum. The averages for the 200 and 300 yard mark for both cartridges are 1,052 and 800ft.lb for the .50 Beowulf and 1,056 and 810ft.lb for the .458 SOCOM rounds. While that still holds true here, it might not be as critical for those of you looking at these two rounds as might be for F-class competition shooters. Of course, with the internet, you are going to be able to get your hands on whatever you need, but it might take more time. Instead, a handful of much smaller companies produce factory ammo for those two cartridges. Still, to the make these comparisons, we have selected five rounds of each cartridge and listed them below. More ammo options too. However, many big game hunters had concerns similar to those shared by many in the military regarding the effectiveness of the .223 Remington cartridge on deer sized game. .450 Bushmaster vs .458 Socom vs .50 Beowulf Just would like to hear anything and everything anybody has to say about any of these rounds. It does not have the expansion of our choice for the .458 SOCOM, but what it does have with the .50 cal bullet is enough to make clean kills up to 300 yards, and the trajectory is extremely flat when compared to other. Though there is a slight trend for the .458 SOCOM being a bit flatter in its trajectory, both cartridges have rounds that perform better and more poorly in this specific area. I’d personally lean towards the .450 Bushmaster for wild boar, but that’s just me. It is designed on the AR (Armalite) platform. However, the .458 SOCOM has a big advantage in this category since it uses the .458″ bullets like the .45-70 Government, .450 Marlin, .458 Win Mag, .458 Lott, and .460 Weatherby. I have the 50 BW, I just bought 458 socom, I love the way it shoots, I will get the 450 bushmaster next. Again, most wouldn’t put too much stock in four inches of difference between these two cartridges, but the data is there. We have listed the averages for max capacities we have found from reliable sources here, and we see that they hold similar amounts of powder and they are also fitted with similar weight bullets. With two decades of chasing all manner of upland game, hooved mammals, strutting gobblers, and any small game that can fit in his Dutch oven, he hopes to offer new ideas and viewpoints on hunting and firearm concepts and traditions. And whether you have open, holo, magnifiers, or traditional magnified scope optics on your rifle, home defense and hunting situations don’t always comply with letting you make careful and accurate readings to distance and other factors. For self-defense, the reason for wanting a round with incredible stopping power is obvious. In the case of the .458 SOCOM vs .50 Beowulf, we are not going to mess around with the trajectory over 500 yards. Thanks , john for the information on big bore guns . I have a .458 socom with a suppressor also. Glad you enjoyed the article and thanks for subscribing to the podcast! Shoots under 2″ all day at 100 yards. I see mags for .450 advertised at $27.00 apiece. I have been interested in a black rifle in a bigger caliber for hunting and home defense, ended up going with the .450 Bushmaster for ballistics and ammo availability, but I plan on getting uppers in .458 SOCOM and .50 Beowulf as well. 16, 18 or 20 inch. SBR and Rock River are both known for making good quality rifles in .458 SOCOM. The Lyman 50th Edition (p348-349, 350-351, p373-374), and Hornady 10th Edition (p751-753, p776-777) reloading manuals were also used as references for the history of the cartridges and provided data to compare their size and recoil. This 40mm long case was designed to be fitted with the much larger .458 diameter bullets that produce dramatically more force than the 5.56 rounds but still able to be used with an AR magazine and a specialized .458 SOCOM upper receiver. Availability, expense of ammo, performance, components and all all other factors tell me the .450 is the best choice all around. Arguments will abound from both sides of the aisle concerning which cartridge is preferable. On the other hand, the .50 Beowulf has a .447″ rim diameter, which is the same as the 7.62x39mm cartridge used in the AK-47. This is not the same as the kick you feel when firing, but increased recoil energies do translate to increased felt recoil. Factory loads for the .50 Beowulf are lacking compared to other cartridges but is slowly gaining traction. And like most ballistic numbers, environmental conditions can change these slightly from day to day based on temperature and pressure, among others. The .450 Bushmaster and .458 SOCOM have a .473″ rim diameter, which is the same as other popular cartridges like the .30-06, .308, and .270 Winchester. I have a 2 AR15's. Put a small hole in them, filled with water, plugged the hole and KABLOOEY! Once again, all of these cartridges will work at short range, but I’d personally lean towards the .458 SOCOM here because Barnes produces their 300gr TTSX bullet specifically for that cartridge. Normally, velocity is critical for both hunting and self-defense for a variety of reasons including performance at long range, proper expansion, and penetration. 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