450 NE 3 1/4 stick to factory or load for it

[robertstuart]

Anyone have hands on experience I used the factory ammo to kill a few wildebeest and a giraffe.

Going todo a Buffalo in June maybe a hippo as well.

 

[deewayne2003]

No first hand experience, but from friends that have them I can say you are on the right track.

It's cheaper and easier to find the factory ammo than it is to source the brass alone.

If I may suggest getting a set of dies from CH4D - I switched to their dies for my .470 and my brass life increased greatly.

 

[1dirthawker]

@robertstuart
depends on availability of either. if you have good bullets and available brass, powder, etc. and the skills to handload, then i would roll my own bullets.

however, if you don't wand the best for your rifle, then the factory loads will do.

you can handload some very good bullets both softs and solids that factory loads cannot duplicate. also, with a chronograph and handholds you can develop loads that will regulate exactly to your rifle.

the initial cost for reloading is greater, but, worth it if you want the best terminal performance from your rifle and if you shoot a lot, you will end up saving a lot of money since 450 nitro's are not inexpensive to feed in the factory loads.

 

[zephyr]

I own shoot and reload for a 450NE....
dirthawker is pretty much spot on.... If.. you are happy with the performance of Hornady's DGS & DGX and they shoot well in your gun then you're good to go. But as a Hand loader there are probably more quality .458 bullets to be found then many of the other Big Bore calibers ..As a hand loader you can fine tune your double for better groups

 

[Fenstar]

Handloading (esp the .450 NE) is the joy of my hunting journey. Both work. Ammo, built by my own research and hands, is 10x more satisfying in the end, to me. Have fun!!

 

[MacJenkins]

If you have the means to load and source correct components I would certainly load your own. Brass for the 450 currently I have not seen any instock. Would like to resupply my stash when it comes available again. Reloader 15 has dried up and if I understand correctly Alliant is no longer producing propellants for the consumer market anymore. I'm currently doing some load workup on Varget in a couple double rifle calibers as my stash of RL15 is dialed in for 5 other doubles of mine and want to save it for those. If Varget does not work out we have imcoming some RL 15.5 we will try. Of course you can use IMR or H4831 they just come with a good bit more recoil IMO.

Keep in mind this is coming from someone who almost likes loading and dialing in rifles as much as I like to hunt with them.

 

[Troubleshooter]

Another consideration is how well the factory ammunition regulates in your rifle (I am assuming it is a double rifle). If the answer is "not too well" then it presents a stronger case for reloading. Although that is the option which I personally would pursue anyway, if only form a cost standpoint.