450 Marlin pros / cons.

[Milt Dale]

I have a hankering to have a 450 Marlin built on REM M7 action with a 19 “ barrel .Great Bush Gun . I liked my BLR 450 but would prefer a bolt rifle this time around . Still have a box of Alaska bullet works Kodiak 350 gr bonded core bullets that need to be used up . RJ

I have a T3 in 300wsm, I am looking at re-barrelling to 450 Marlin, I am on a few waiting lists for brass, I would also like a short barrel, a just legal 18" I think. I could go 458-2 but I am not in a hurry, Marlin dies are readily available I understand Hornady only does periodic runs on the brass. The rifle already has a Weaver rail and I am thinking I might be able to modify it and replace the rear mounting screw with a Skinner Lo-Pro sight then add a Masterpiece banded ramp to the front, I just did one on a .303. I am not ordering a barrel until I have brass, I checked with Bob Jury and He told me He is not doing .458 anymore so not sure where I will get a barrel yet but there are a few choices

 

[Suther]

I have a T3 in 300wsm, I am looking at re-barrelling to 450 Marlin, I am on a few waiting lists for brass, I would also like a short barrel, a just legal 18" I think. I could go 458-2 but I am not in a hurry, Marlin dies are readily available I understand Hornady only does periodic runs on the brass. The rifle already has a Weaver rail and I am thinking I might be able to modify it and replace the rear mounting screw with a Skinner Lo-Pro sight then add a Masterpiece banded ramp to the front, I just did one on a .303. I am not ordering a barrel until I have brass, I checked with Bob Jury and He told me He is not doing .458 anymore so not sure where I will get a barrel yet but there are a few choices

There is no legal barrel length on a bolt action gun. You can't CUT a barrel shorter than 18", but if you're getting a custom one made then you can have it made at pretty much any length. I'm not sure if it would be illegal to make one with a barrel so short that it would be below the legal handgun barrel length of 106mm or whatever it is (of course that would be wholly impractical for a bolt action rifle anyways), but certainly anything longer than that would be legal to own, and even potentially NR depending on whether the assembled gun has a long enough OAL.

If you're going to hunt with it in BC it has to be at least 305mm (12").

 

[Milt Dale]

There is no legal barrel length on a bolt action gun. You can't CUT a barrel shorter than 18", but if you're getting a custom one made then you can have it made at pretty much any length. I'm not sure if it would be illegal to make one with a barrel so short that it would be below the legal handgun barrel length of 106mm or whatever it is (of course that would be wholly impractical for a bolt action rifle anyways), but certainly anything longer than that would be legal to own, and even potentially NR depending on whether the assembled gun has a long enough OAL.

If you're going to hunt with it in BC it has to be at least 305mm (12").

Thanks, I always thought 18" was the aftermarket legal limit, anyway I don't want it shorter than 18".

 

[hoytcanon]

Yea I shot a couple of Bears with my 450M BLR and it killed them DRT . I still have brass and bullets too.
Who smithed yours ? Reamer His or yours ? RJ

My reamer, smith was Peter Rempel. Will have another one on the way to him as soon as the barrel arrives.

Edit; Should note that Peter works with Richard Dykstra of Creekside Gunshop in Wainfleet, ON.

 

[Milt Dale]

I sent a message to Hornady yesterday, they said they do not make 450 Marlin brass but they have a run of ammo scheduled for August

 

[track]

The 450 Marlin kills from one end and wounds from the other. The 450 Marlin has a recoil energy of 37 pounds, compare that to the 30-06 which has 20 pounds of recoil energy.