.458 Socom Molds

[Stalrev]

Hello everyone, wanting to see if anyone is using molds less than 500 grains for the .458 Socom and what type of molds. scared to use my 454 molds which i powder coat for my 45LC, cause i don't know if they will cycle right or be useful, and i don't want to waste my Large primers making up the shells if they aren't good.
i see where alot of folks are doing the RCBS 45 500 mold and the Lee 458-500 but i wanted to go a tad smaller with like 300-400 grain.
the reason i for the smaller grain is my main hunting is White tail but with the 2 hogs a year for freezer, my 45LC does great on the white tail but little light on the hogs.

so any info on the molds would be awesome
and thanks again

EDIT*** my 45lc mold is a NOE 454-307-A6 which i pour at low hollow point . (pictured)

[Hossfly]

That boolit looks similar to mine, will check weight when I go back to the reload room. Was having cycling problems at first but got powder level up and now cycles every time. Didn’t know that round would kicked that hard. Using 2200 powder.

[Stalrev]

yeah im new to the 458 but been seing alot of videos of the kick. so dreading that part lol but we will modify to get it tolerable lol, but thinking that size boolit but with the higher velocity and knockdown would be a good fit. but not sure how that .454 will be dont want it to loose in barrel for accuracy, and for the poor barrel lol.

[Hossfly]

I got a past from Midway USA and if adjusted good it will mitigate that punch. I started to trade it off after shooting full house rounds but quickly down loaded and ran into cycling issues. Changed buffer weights. Went back to original buffer and upped powder now cycles perfect and is accurate to 100 yds. Will really swing a steel target.

[Stalrev]

my brother ( retired Marine) has built me the platform for the .458 we are awaiting for me to get the dies, molds and upper so this is a project for me. He trusts this forums guys /gals, so i signed up to put my trust in yalls opinions as well

[Hossfly]

I started with 100 Starline new brass, have dies, for it plenty powder and primers. Just need to get out there and reload them. Deer season ends the 14th here in La. Will have more time then. Just got to get through this cold snap. Cant hardly stand getting below 30’ LOL

[Stalrev]

we right across the LA line over near Atlanta texas, yeah next week teens at night high 20s, i guess our week of winter is here and already sucks lol.

[makeurownfun]

I shoot a lot of 458 (Monroe LA)

The kick is not something to dread or worry with. I built 2 ARs and a bolt rifle, none are bad. I shoot 300-600gr projectiles. I have most of the NOE 459 molds too

[Stalrev]

hey neighbor ( 45 min west of Shreveport) the 300 grain molds ( i am looking and see the HTC is that the ones ? are you powder coating?
thanks

[Stalrev]

going through the forum here and found this so far from members
NOE 459 Molds work
LEE 458-500
Accurate Molds 46-350S( gas checked) and 46-325SP ( non Gas Checked)

[Loudenboomer]

The Lee 450 RNFPGC has been working ok. The nose fits but caution must be used as to not upset the nose while seating the GC or rounds may not chaimber.

[G W Wade]

I tried an RCBS 325 that I use in my Win 1886 45/70. They feed great but have to do more work on load and bullet fit for the Socom GW

[THE_ANTIDOTE]

Go with the Lyman #457124.

[Sig556r]

Go with the Lyman #457124.

Or 457125….even the Lee 500g

[Rick B]

The RCBS 300 grain RN FP. It's a gas checked, grease groove bullet. 1-14 twist barrel. Shoots very consistent groups at 100 yards. Recoil is easy on you.
Rick

[makeurownfun]

hey neighbor ( 45 min west of Shreveport) the 300 grain molds ( i am looking and see the HTC is that the ones ? are you powder coating?
thanks

Yes, I powdercoat everything.

[Texas by God]

It seems to me that the 340 gr Lee would be a good choice. It has worked well in 45-70 and .450 Marlin for me.


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[lar45]

I would measure your powder coated 454 bullets to see how fat they are. You'll probably want atleast. 459"
What about a second layer of PC?
I've got the 450bushmaster, so I'm going the other way to get heavy bullets.

[sukivel]

I’ve loaded the MP 462 Hammer at 337 gr solid and 317 gr hollow point for the socom and it cycled perfectly. Didn’t seem to recoil much to me…


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[405grain]

Stalrev: You're going to want a bullet that's designed for a .458 bore, the .454 is probably going to be too small even with powder coating. There are lots of bullet mold choices from makers like Lee, Lyman, RCBS, Saeco, NOE, Accurate, and others. Though a flat point or hollow point is desirable for hunting, some ojive (a bit of rounded or pointed) nose will probably give you the most reliable feeding. See if you can find a design that balances good feeding with good shock potential. Any of the cast bullets in the 300 to 350 grain range would be good for hunting deer and hogs. (disclaimer: I shoot a 45-70, but that uses the same bullets as a 458 SOCOM) A 300ish grain bullet has a lot less recoil that a 400 or 500 grain slug, and has a higher speed with a flatter trajectory.

Here's why I think that you should NOT use those .454" bullets in your rifle. Barrel leading is caused when hot, high pressure gas blows passed a cast bullet that hasn't fully sealed the bore as it's shot. A .454" bullet in a .458" barrel is going to be so undersized that it has no hope of sealing the bore. Though powder coating dose offer a little bit of protection from gas cutting, it's not going to save you in this application because your bullets are going to be grossly undersized. For a good seal with any cast bullet it should be sized around .001" larger than the groove diameter of the barrel. You are going to need cast bullets that are sized at least .459"

A further consideration is that you are going to be using your handloads in an AR platform rifle. If you shoot a plain based cast bullet in an AR system (even if it's powder coated) as the base of the bullet passes by the gas port a high pressure/high temperature jet of gas is going to scavenge a groove into the base of the bullet and send vaporized lead up into the gas system. This is going to cause two things. First, the damage and imbalance caused to the bullet is going to make them inaccurate. Your rifle will not be able to shoot to it's potential if you use plain based cast bullets in an AR rifle. Second, that vaporized lead is going to condense back into lead and begin plating the gun parts when it cools. In an AR that lead condensation is going to occur on the bolt stem, and it's going to cause your rifle to start jamming. So, how do you prevent lead build up from jamming up your gas system, and at the same time improve your rifles accuracy? Simple; you need to select a cast bullet that uses gas checks. A gas check will prevent all of the problems that I just described, plus it will allow you to shoot your bullets at higher velocity if you want to.

Also; Welcome to the forum.