New to the 450

[smason8]

Hey everyone, i'm new here. I recently have decided to buy and upper for my AR to allow me to hunt medium to large game. I was originally looking at 6.8 spc spec II and 6.5 Grendle. After some research and not being satisfied with either cartridge over my .260 Rem 700 bolt, I decided on the .450. The bushmaster upper comes in 16" and 20".....I have found both to be on backorder. I would like to know which length of barrel is prefered for this caliber??? I'm in Michigan and my shots will be 50 to 150 yards.
Sould I buy the 16" or the 20"?

Thanks ahead of time.

[bushmeister]

There are arguments for both, but I prefer the carbine as I hunt a good bit of brush and if my head clears, the gun does too. Others prefer to get the extra fps out of the big barrel. It really is a personal preference.

[AR_Hunter]

Smason8,
I just ordered the 16" carbine a few weeks ago and am waiting for it to be delivered. I was considering the exact same cartridges as you until I did further studying of alternates and found the 450. The longest shot I have where I hunt is around 100 yards and I wanted something that knocks deer down and can kill hogs quickly. After finding this site I'm glad I went with the 450! With reloading it looks like it is the best "all around" cartridge for the AR platform. Like bushmeister I wanted the carbine length for the thick stuff and my 5.56 is the same length.

PS. This site is awesome! It's members are extremely professional and it's nice to have the inventor of the round here too. Keep up the great work.

[Texas Sheepdawg]

This issue has been kicked around for some time and I am sure it has become the "less filling, tastes great" topic.
I shoot a lot of 22s and the longer the barrels, the more accurate they are. Also, when you have a longer barrel,
your shot will spend a fraction more time in the barrel. What this does, in my opinion is give the powder more burn
time increasing energy in FPS, I believe the stats that Wildcatter gave out says around 128 FPS faster. Also, with
the longer time in the barrel, this gives the bullet more time on the lands therefore better accuracy.
Another benefit to more time in the barrel is a more complete powder burn, thus reducing muzzle flash even further. And it also gets that Muzzle blast 4 inches further away from you.
Yes, you add 4 inches to the barrel. This adds I think 8 ounces.
I live in Texas Scrub brush and prairie. I chose the 20 inch barrel for mainly the accuracy and the FPS gain.
But everyone has their own reasons for going with a 16 or a 20.

PS
Welcome to our electronic camp fire! Pull up a Stump!

[Texas Sheepdawg]

Here is another ongoing conversation on the same topic.
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1866

[BD1]

"I shoot a lot of 22s and the longer the barrels, the more accurate they are. Also, when you have a longer barrel,
your shot will spend a fraction more time in the barrel. What this does, in my opinion is give the powder more burn
time increasing energy in FPS, I believe the stats that Wildcatter gave out says around 128 FPS faster. Also, with
the longer time in the barrel, this gives the bullet more time on the lands therefore better accuracy."

I'm curious about the derivation of this "accuracy" info as it runs contrary to everything my experience has taught me. IMHO less barrel time= more accuracy, and the relationship between barrel length and optimum velocity depends on bore ratio. Barrel stiffness plays a much larger role than barrel length. Straight wall cartridges like the .22 rf and .450 B tending towards shorter, rather than longer, barrels for accuracy. Granted, there is point where velocity enters into the accuracy equation, somewhere out past 300 yards or so. Bottle neck cartridges rule that roost. Neither the .22 lr or the .450 B is playing in that game. I do own a very accurate M67 single shot 22 rf with a 24 inch barrel, which I have been shooting for about 45 years , but IMHO it's accuracy is due to the action and barrel being milled from a single piece of bar stock, with the bolt way machined in, not because of the barrel length. Most of the "accurate" .22 rf builds I've seen use 18" barrels. Most AR platform 5.56 high power builds are using 20" heavy barrels, rather than the 24" barrels used by varmint builders, as stiffness still trumps velocity in that game.

I'm still learning how to shoot and if you're on to something I can learn from in this game, I'm all ears.
BD

BD

[Texas Sheepdawg]

My experiences with the 22LR come from having a collection of
22LR rifles, one semi and the rest bolt actions. My 10/22 is the least
Accurate I think and that may be because it's a semi. I have a 1950 era
Mossberg LS 144 bolt action bench rifle. The barrel is Loong! It is a tack driver
With both iron and scoped sights. I also have a Marlin bolt action in a model
17 youth, it is a single shot, and with a decent scope it has been okay for
Shots out to about 80 yards then it gets a bit squirrelly. It has a short barrel.
The 10/22 is just a bit more accurate. Yes, the 10/22 is Stock with
No bling other than a scope. I can't list them all but I will describe two more.
I have a Remington 581 bolt action and it also has a long barrel and
It's accuracy is almost as good as the mossberg 144. I also have a Remington
516 that my grandpa bought my uncle back in 1951 and though it's
A bit raggity on the outside, with iron sites only, I can still pop ping-pong
Ball sized dots at 80 yards. The 10-22 and the Marlin youth are the two
Loudest of the bunch and with loads like CCI stingers, sometimes have
A bit of unburned powder left in the barrel and sometimes I do see
A bit of flash on the Marlin. The Mossberg is much quieter and with
CBs, sounds more like a air rifle.

[wildcatter]

Hey everyone, i'm new here. I recently have decided to buy and upper for my AR to allow me to hunt medium to large game. I was originally looking at 6.8 spc spec II and 6.5 Grendle. After some research and not being satisfied with either cartridge over my .260 Rem 700 bolt, I decided on the .450. The bushmaster upper comes in 16" and 20".....I have found both to be on backorder. I would like to know which length of barrel is prefered for this caliber??? I'm in Michigan and my shots will be 50 to 150 yards.
Sould I buy the 16" or the 20"?

Thanks ahead of time.

Welcome to the Board smason8, and to the Friendliest, Courteous, knowledgeable to say nothing to of the Brad Pit look alikes we have around here. In other words this is a greatest bunch of guys, found anywhere on the Web. Good to have you aboard.

I like your choices..t

[En4cr]

I went with the 16" barrel only because that was the one that was in stock at Midway a few months ago. It has been so cold around my location, I haven't even taken it out of the box yet. However, this Saturday is supposed to be nice, so I plan on taking it out and getting everything sighted in, then try my hand at reloading for the 450....