i see everyone using the 0.452 bullets in their .50 cal sabot rounds. is it not possible to use a 0.458 rifle bullet in this application?

i'm asking this question with regard to bullet fit....not necessarily will it expand or any of the other dozens of considerations. i'm curious to know if it will fit properly inside of the sabot when pushed down the bore. just wondered if anyone has tried this and found it to be good or not so good.

thanks for the help.

It depends what the sabot was made for, particularly the thickness of the petals. If the sabot maker says use .452, then that's what you will have to use. The .458 bullet is obviously .008" fatter so will probably be too tight to load in your barrel. TC barrels are particularly tight and there are even some new thin petal or EZ load sabots being produced to address that issue. If you can get 'em down your bore, they would be fine to use, but if you get a load stuck going down, you will be in for some hell !!!

so, the sabot manufacturer says on the package what diameter bullet can be used..??

Yes, go to MMPSabots.com for some good info.

.50 caliber sabots are available in sizes for use with .40 bullets, .429 bullets, .451/.452 bullets, and .457/.458 bullets.

MMP makes an orange colored sabot for the .457/.458 and some folks have great results using them.

this is exactly the information i needed. thanks for the help.

one more question.........i read on aother muzzleloading site that it is recommended to use a "magnum sub-base" if a hot load is to be shot. these sub-bases are to be loaded between the sabot and the powder. i have likewise read that a good substitiue for the sub-bases is the 28 gauge shotshell wad bases. apparently you are supposed to cut the shot cup off of the base of the shot shell wad. i have measured the base from a shotshell wad and it measures 0.530. the "sub-base" from MMP is 0.505 to 0.507, according to the MMP rep. my bore measures 0.508, plus or minus. is it going to be safe to compress the 0.530 wad into my bore and then fire it. the reason i ask is that the shotshell wads cost $9.00/500 and the MMP sub-bases copst $8.00/50......quite a difference if the shotshell wads work.

any comments or advice??

I have never used a "sub base" and had great results with magnum loads of 150 grains of goex ffg