Hello all!
I'm relatively new to this forum and I've learned a great deal already. I feel like this might be a great place to get some input on a decision I'm trying to make since it seems as though I can't really go "wrong" either way...
I have researched double rifle calibers and cartridges extensively for a while now and I am very much attracted to all of the good things said about the .450/400 3" for an actual hunting rifle as opposed to a "stopping" rifle in something like .500 nitro and up. The primary selling point in my mind is the versatility of the .450/400 since it is well known as being perfectly adequate for anything I'll ever care to hunt in my life. Also the history, the people who carried that cartridge (Corbett comes to mind), the stories, etc all make owning a rifle in that chambering very cool to a 32 year old kid like me.
Then part of me really likes the idea of having that true big bore in my hands the next time I make it over to Zim, or Tanzania, or somewhere down under. The versatility of the .450/400, as I said, is more attractive to me but then I do have plans to build bolt guns in the near future that would perhaps render that cartridge's versatility somewhat (I hate to say it)...pointless? I plan to have something built in .300 H&H (for plains game) and maybe .400 H&H just because I like a lot of things about the both of them. I can see why having a double in .450/400 and a scoped .400 H&H or similar would be smart.
There is also the issue of ammo availability. Right now everything is hard to come by but I still see .500 nitro factory loads and components available presumably since fewer people use rifles chambered for it. Meanwhile 450/400 is almost nonexistent and when it does pop up it's almost always solids and a box of 20 goes for at least what .500 and .470 is going for maybe even a little more. I can honestly say after shooting the .470 nitro that the recoil was fine for me. Manageable, and you still feel like you're carrying a serious weapon. I've been told the .500 is only a little worse and gives a little more performance?
So my conundrum is...should I stick with the 450/400 and just hope for ammo to be available again while mastering shooting a double with whatever ammo I find in the meantime? I've heard it said that the 450/400 is the first double you should buy and the last one you should ever sell. I'm sure that's very true and I do very much like it's versatility. It definitely has its own cool factor. Also I've got plenty of wild hogs here in Texas to practice on with whatever I choose. Or should I go for the true big bore .500 which I can actually get ammo for, the recoil isn't going to kill me, it's got its own cool factor as well, and it would avoid having too much overlap among the "small" .300 the medium .400 H&H (or similar)
Of course the easy answer is "just get both" and whichever one I go with I will most likely end up getting the other down the line as well. Just wondering where I should start and why?
Thank you all for the wisdom!
I'm relatively new to this forum and I've learned a great deal already. I feel like this might be a great place to get some input on a decision I'm trying to make since it seems as though I can't really go "wrong" either way...
I have researched double rifle calibers and cartridges extensively for a while now and I am very much attracted to all of the good things said about the .450/400 3" for an actual hunting rifle as opposed to a "stopping" rifle in something like .500 nitro and up. The primary selling point in my mind is the versatility of the .450/400 since it is well known as being perfectly adequate for anything I'll ever care to hunt in my life. Also the history, the people who carried that cartridge (Corbett comes to mind), the stories, etc all make owning a rifle in that chambering very cool to a 32 year old kid like me.
Then part of me really likes the idea of having that true big bore in my hands the next time I make it over to Zim, or Tanzania, or somewhere down under. The versatility of the .450/400, as I said, is more attractive to me but then I do have plans to build bolt guns in the near future that would perhaps render that cartridge's versatility somewhat (I hate to say it)...pointless? I plan to have something built in .300 H&H (for plains game) and maybe .400 H&H just because I like a lot of things about the both of them. I can see why having a double in .450/400 and a scoped .400 H&H or similar would be smart.
There is also the issue of ammo availability. Right now everything is hard to come by but I still see .500 nitro factory loads and components available presumably since fewer people use rifles chambered for it. Meanwhile 450/400 is almost nonexistent and when it does pop up it's almost always solids and a box of 20 goes for at least what .500 and .470 is going for maybe even a little more. I can honestly say after shooting the .470 nitro that the recoil was fine for me. Manageable, and you still feel like you're carrying a serious weapon. I've been told the .500 is only a little worse and gives a little more performance?
So my conundrum is...should I stick with the 450/400 and just hope for ammo to be available again while mastering shooting a double with whatever ammo I find in the meantime? I've heard it said that the 450/400 is the first double you should buy and the last one you should ever sell. I'm sure that's very true and I do very much like it's versatility. It definitely has its own cool factor. Also I've got plenty of wild hogs here in Texas to practice on with whatever I choose. Or should I go for the true big bore .500 which I can actually get ammo for, the recoil isn't going to kill me, it's got its own cool factor as well, and it would avoid having too much overlap among the "small" .300 the medium .400 H&H (or similar)
Of course the easy answer is "just get both" and whichever one I go with I will most likely end up getting the other down the line as well. Just wondering where I should start and why?
Thank you all for the wisdom!
