What are the steps to making brass for the 450AR?
anyone know the cost of dies?Also is it easily downloaded for practice loads cast bullets?

thanks

If you're talking about the .458 AR ... I can help a little.

I start with RUM brass. Have used all the way down to 7mm RUM but mostly .300 RUM as I got a bunch free. .375 RUM is the easiest as the neck up operations are simpler.

Got my dies from CH4D (and they are marked .450 AR ... he screwed up).

I usually neck up from .308 to .338, then from .338 to 9,3 or .375, then from .375 to .416 and on to .458. One could in fewer steps but this puts relatively little stress on the necks and I lose very few pieces of brass.

I then trim to length and fireform with a 425 gr cast bullet and 50.0 gr of AA 5744. This is actually a nice plinking/smaller game hunting load.

Ready to go, headstamped as .458 ACCREL brass is available and is very, very good! Just is not terribly cheap.

The cartridge just works very, very well.

run 375 rum brass through the die, trim slightly long, fireform .. OR, just load em and shoot em, plenty accurate

dies - I am going to tell you the Hornady dies are AWESOME and are probably 2-3 months from time of order ... CH4D is out of stock, i think

qualcart ahs the brass, on had, and those are great .. little spendy, but great.

I will be happy to loan/rent the reamers to gunsmiths. If you want a gun made up and don't have a bigbore smith ready, please contact Jim Kobe

what speed would you like? I think we've done nearly everything from 1500 - 2400 fps - Click on my ammo guide link below

quote:

Originally posted by canam:
What are the steps to making brass for the 450AR?
anyone know the cost of dies?Also is it easily downloaded for practice loads cast bullets?

thanks

Well ... I've opened 300RUM (but in 3 steps ... 35, 416, 45) and its a bit brutal on my brass which has a tendency to split at the shoulder on firing. Doesn't bother me as I have a few hundred. The easiest option is 375RUM brass, trimmed and opened to 45cal ... then sneak down on it with the FL size die until it closes with some resistance for the fireforming load.

Hornady dies are very good by the way.

paz has had his running like a slightly souped up 45/70 with cast pills and TrailBoss.

Cartridge is remarkably flexible and an easy power upgrade over a 458WinMag without the need for a magnum length action like a 458Lott.
Cheers...
Con

The 458AR would have to be one of the cheapest easiest to feed big bores around.

Cases are a dime a dozen, i open up 300rum cases fairly easily, normally just need an anneal before i start and another quick one before i fireform, stops the splitting like Con gets.

+3 on the Hornady dies, they are excellent.

i have ran 500gr cast pills at 1080fps with trailboss, right up to 2750fps (that's with no fiddling, am sure i can get em to go faster) with a 350gr jacketed pill, very versatile.

Paz

Con,

Try annealing the case mouth/shoulder area after necking up to 35 caliber. Should ease the pain on the brass.

quote:

Originally posted by ScottS:
Con,

Try annealing the case mouth/shoulder area after necking up to 35 caliber. Should ease the pain on the brass.

Yep ... I tried opening and annealing it only at the end and that was a failure.

The first batch done though was good and we reckon it was because we cut it to length on a wheel (that heated it up), cleaned up the necks on a fabric 'buffer' that heated it up some more ... then did the opening and final anneal. The cut and clean got the brass too hot to handle, a pseudo anneal that seems to have done the trick.
Cheers...
Con

quote:

Originally posted by Con:

quote:

Originally posted by ScottS:
Con,

Try annealing the case mouth/shoulder area after necking up to 35 caliber. Should ease the pain on the brass.

Yep ... I tried opening and annealing it only at the end and that was a failure.

The first batch done though was good and we reckon it was because we cut it to length on a wheel (that heated it up), cleaned up the necks on a fabric 'buffer' that heated it up some more ... then did the opening and final anneal. The cut and clean got the brass too hot to handle, a pseudo anneal that seems to have done the trick.
Cheers...
Con

Another common cause of split shoulders on fireforming wildcats is insufficient pressure. The first fireforming load should be done with full-house pressures.