Bent,
I didn't take it as bad mouthing.. i suggested he email neal and ask him what is going on. With most people, you'll get more information that way.

You know that Neal and Rob are hunting buddies, right? LOL, the inventors of both the 550 and 600

The plus on the 600 - it really is big, and HUGE, and devastating ...

However, cases.. well, cases are ALOT easier on the 550

Love em both
jeffe

quote:

Originally posted by Bent Fossdal:
I think the one thing that is stopping the succes of the .550 Magnum is the .600 OK.
The .550, while an exelent constructed cartridge, is just to big for most peoples use in Africa. The guns just gets to heavy, or the recoil to heavy in lighter guns. Too few people need them.
And for the ones who must have the biggets one, the .600 is sitting in that chair. And most people who have guns like this built for them, really do not care about the price of reloading components, so the cheep brass for the .550 is really not a subject.

I think there is definitely some truth to what Bent is saying here.

The market for rifles bigger and badder than the 458 Lott is pretty small. For those that want the biggest and baddest I would venture that the 600 OK has stolen a lot of attention away from the 550 Magnum.

Then again, give the small market and the nature many of those in it, it would also not surprise me in the least to find out that quite a few of those with one of the two cartridges, end up owning the other as well.

My 2c,
Canuck

Bent & Canuck,

I don't know anyone, aside from the posters here who has ever heard of the 600 OK. Since the SHOT Show most everybody in the industry knows about the 550 Magnum. I've even had a few calls and Emails about it from a few...they figured anything that wild had to have me involved somewhere, or at least in the know... I plead innocent on all counts there. I think it's really cool, though!

Rich
DRSS

I don't see any bad mouthing going on here. Dan did me a great honor and encluded the 550 Magnum in his article and I have had some contact with him since then about the cartridge. I even tried to met him at one of the shows to look at the rifle but it didn't work out on my end. Dan and I have had some phone time and he has asked for updates from me. So I take his questions as following up from our previous talks.

RNS

Also the two cartridges were designed for different reasons so if the 550 Magnum looses out to the 600 OK it has done so by design.

Rob designed set out to develope the biggest baddest stomper that you could fit in a bolt action and he accomplished that perfectly.

The 550 Magnum was designed for lower cost and increased power over current hunting cartridges.

Both have there market and following by design and there is no competition between them as I see it.

RNS

The advantage of the .600 OK is that it pushes a larger diameter, heavier bullet. But brass is available from only one maker, and then only sporadically.

The advantage of the .550 mag is that the brass is easily formed from high quality Norma 460 Wby brass. Bullets, although on a special order basis, are available from several makers. The .550 is generally an easier wildcat to deal with, and a bit more affordable to shoot than the .600 OK. Either requires a competent reloader to keep it running.

I won't speak for Bent, but the advantages/disadvantages of the two cartridges aren't really salient to the point I was trying to make. I understand the differences completely.

To restate my point, which IS did adress with a differing opinion, I think about 2 or 3% of all hunters/shooters in NA are interested in a rifle bigger than a 458 Lott. Just based on my experience, I would guess that a good chunk of those guys are discriminating in their choice and a bunch of them just want to have the biggest shoulder fired cannon at the gun range, to show off or test their limits or just to enjoy blowing big holes in stuff. Its those latter guys that may get attracted by the 600 OK over the 550 Mag.

A portion of the "discerning" big bore enthusiasts will fall on either side of the fence depending on what they are looking for (end use, financial constraints, willingness to put up with limited supplies of brass, bullets, etc).

To address Neil's point about competing, I agree that in theory they are designed for different purposes and should not compete. But the reality is that the market for these things is so small, and the reasons for buying them is so diverse that I think every cartridge bigger than a 458 Win mag is competing with the others.

As an example, for the guy that wants one cannon, whether its for a DG hunt or fun shooting, he's may look at the 550, 600 OK, 500 A2, 470 Mbogo, etc etc. Whatever he picks is potentially one less of the others that ever gets built.

IS, your point is taken, but don't forget that AHR is actively marketing 600 OK's too. We have had a couple of newbies show up here, explicitly asking for info on the 600 OK with their first post. So the word is out beyond just AR.


Cheers,
Canuck