Lets talk new AR15 cartridges

.450 Bushmaster.

200 yd range. I believe it is legal for medium/big game anywhere in the USA.

I got it because I hunt in GA and in MI where only straight wall cartridges 1.8” case length maximum are legal.

Great choice. I used a 6.8 for years. Great medium range deer round.

IronHand

6.5 Grendel for me. Great range and accuracy. Have several and they all function well. Hardened Arms is hard to beat. Lightweight Grendel hunter under $550:

https://www.hardenedarms.com/ecProd...endel Melonited 1/8 w/ 12" HD Quad Rail Rifle

Plinking ammo under $0.25 and readily available with hunting ammo under $0.80.

I went with the close cousin of the 6.8 SPC, the .277 WLV. A 6.8 projectile in a case based off of the 5.56 so I can utilize standard bolt and magazines with + or - 95% of 6.8 SPC factory load performance.

I'll second the Four Fifty Bushmaster.

Another vote for Thumper, 450 Bushmaster.

Now, that's a tasty little mushroom...

Haven't hunted with either one yet but I have a 458 socom and a 6.5 Grendel. The 458 is for big stuff at bad breath distance, and the 6.5 for farther out there on deer and smaller. Need a scope for my Grendel though.

I chose the 30 Rem AR, 6.8SPC, and 7mm Valkyrie as my hunting MSR's. I do use other calibers from time to time BUT if I had to chose one it would be the 7mm Valkyrie without a second thought.

My favorite is the 458 socom or 9mm, at this point for totally different reasons but what I use most. Got a little pig with a .300 blk awhile back as well and it only made it a few feet from a full run. No “wrong” answer.

The 450 BM killed the first hog I shot with it DRT. I have killed a couple with .223 and haven’t killed a few with lots of stuff, that’s “better”. If you hit the right spot an ice pick would be end game, stuff that has lots of energy, that causes destruction is your friend things get less than perfect, that’s where I come in...

450 bushmaster. Iowa is a straight walled only state.

I went with 7.62x39 and couldn't be happier for the plinking and shooting I've done. It will be my crappy weather deer rifle.

I am looking at 450 bushmaster uppers though!

I went with BCA fluted HBAR 7.62x39 during a good sale. Paired with a PSA MOE EPT STR lower. Really cheap to plink with. Cheaper to hunt with than just about any other medium bore cartridge. All the accuracy I need. Many pigs will fall to this rifle starting in a few weeks.

On paper I really like the 30 Rem AR but it appears dead and I dont reload...yet.

I also have my eye on the 358 yeti if it goes more mainstream or I start reloading

What AR uppers did I choose, and why?.....

In general, the “why?” part is easy - I live in the United States of A-freakin’-merica...

22LR - Service Rifle practice the first time, fun the second, third, and fourth.

17 Remington - fox and bobcat hunting

204 Ruger - Prairie dog hunting

20 Practical - same

223/5.56 - have had these for home defense, coyote hunting, 3 gun, service rifle, plinking, G3 Benchrest, deer hunting, prairie dogs, hog hunting, precision rifle practice, ‘Murica...

22-250 - stupidity

6x45 - coyote, hogs, and deer

243 LBC - precision rifle competition, coyotes, hogs, and deer

243 WSSM - deer

25 WSSM - deer & coyotes

25x45 Sharps - coyotes and deer

6.5 Grendel - 3 gun, coyotes, hogs, deer, long range plinking

6.8 spc - coyotes and deer

7 valk - ask George Mallory

300 Whisper/300 blk - suppressed plinking first time, stupidity the second and third

7.62x39 - Mallory

9mm - indoor 2/3 gun league & Mallory

458 Socom - Mallory

450 Bushmaster - deer and pigs

500 Beowulf - Mallory

224 Valk barrel is on order - only to piss someone off

Varminterror said:

“why?” part is easy - I live in the United States of A-freakin’-merica...

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Best. Answer. Ever!

I went with the .223, .458 socom, and 6.5Grendel.
The 223/556 are cheap and effective enough for the most part.
The .458 and Grendel just appeal to me more than the other options, and. Offer all the performance I can really use.

Varminterror said:

224 Valk barrel is on order - only to piss someone of

Click to expand...

Perhaps second best answer ever even, probably why I'm considering another 6.5 Creedmoor......

As previously mentioned, Iowa is a straight wall cartridge only state. 450 Bushmaster not only fits that requirement but was stunned how incredibly accurate it is. Easy to reload for, however; somewhat limited for bullet selection.

450 Bushmaster has lots of bullet options out there. Anything that works in 454 Casull or 460S&W is an excellent candidate for 450BM. Hornady, Barnes, Lehigh, Maker, and no doubt others are making 450BM specific bullets. And with a sizing die or two a large portion of the .458 dia bullets selection is available to the 450BM reloader.

450BM is really taking off Remington, Hornady, Winchester, and Federal all now offer 450BM ammunition, and the boutique loaders like Buffalo Bore, Double Tap, and Black Butterfly do also.

So what's the latest on the .350 Legend?

Still waiting for barrels & brass.

After researching this for some time I am set on a 358 Yeti. Its about 10% less powerful than a 358 winchester from the same length barrel, but fits in an AR15. I have spoke with the owner of MDWS, I missed out on the last production run but the next run is due in a month or two.

https://www.maddogweapons.com/358-yeti.html

Our deer hunting is from fixed stands in woods and sloughs. Probably 80% of our deer are at 100 yards or less, and the other 20% are 200 and less. I have a preference for larger diameter bullets due to the larger volume of bleeding they tend to produce for tracking in the tall grass. I went back and forth between it and a 450 bushmaster, but I decided on the yeti because after running the numbers I just really did not like the look of the drop and wind drift of 450 bushmaster past 100 yards. The drop I can manage but the wind drift is pretty extreme at 150 and beyond.

I often wonder why people try to stretch the performance of the AR15 with custom chamberings when they could just get an AR10

If you want to experiment, that's fine. If you just want the performance it's hard to beat the 308

IronHand

alfsauve said:

So what's the latest on the .350 Legend?

Still waiting for barrels & brass.

Click to expand...

It’ll be great for it’s intended purpose. I’m not a huge fan of those ballistics, but it certainly will do the job. I’m sure I’ll have one eventually.

Brass is out there, Starline at least sells straightwall 223rem brass which would work. Guys have been making similar for a long time, so barrels can be had as well, just not readily off of the shelf today.

Ironhand54 said:

I often wonder why people try to stretch the performance of the AR15 with custom chamberings when they could just get an AR10

If you want to experiment, that's fine. If you just want the performance it's hard to beat the 308

IronHand

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Non-sequitur, as it is not hard to beat the 308win, very easy in many metrics.

The weight of the AR-10 also sucks.

None on my list except the 7mm Valk were “custom chamberings.” No more “custom” than any of the other custom barrels I ordered for any of these other standard cartridges. They’re all custom.