460 Smith and Wesson

I think one of the issues with the 460 rifle barrels may be the Katahdin barrel is 1 in 15 twist in a 20 in. barrel. The SW 460 pistols were a progressive twist and a 200gr bullet had a mv of 2200fps. Add a longer barrel and the speed and pressure is greatly increased. I have shot both rifle and pistol and with an older friends rifle ended up loading 40-42gr H4198 with a 200ftx. I did not chrono the load but am sure it was much slower than 48gr w296 with the same bullet but much more pleasant to shoot esp. for a 78yr. old man. Also had scope issue with his rifle ended up bedding a pic rail to mount the scope. Also load data for the 460 pistol is pretty large doses of pistol powder.

What is the better option then? Since published 460 rifle data doesn't seem readily available.

They are similar, just not as much charge weight in 450, and again small rifle primer. I have also used AA1680, CFE Black, and H4198. Elkman has some good posts on the 450 and powder amounts if you dig them up, but they are in a Ruger American.

All this talk could be just a bunch of hot air too. Lol. You may have no problems and hit the nail on the head right away. So please dont take anything I say as the gospel. Not try to be a drag on your project and truly hope somebody figures it out. Good luck.

I wonder if the rotational speed is the detrimental factor more than muzzle velocity? The 1-15" twist is notably quicker than most any 45 caliber barrel we are using for a muzzleloader. And the muzzle velocity of the 460, in a rifle, certainly can not be faster than some of the loads we shoot in the muzzleloaders.

Finally making some progress toward putting this little gun in service. The goal is a rifle for the kids to get comfortable with to deer hunt. So, I was able to purchase a second stock (thanks to speedrackin). Shortened the length of pull by 1.25 inches, installed the cheek rest and I'm preparing to bed the forend. Never attempted a bedding job on a break action before. Some oak plywood blocks are going to be epoxied in place for filler material before the actual bedding happens.





My initial plan of adding weight to the forend has changed. Weight will be added, but at the muzzle. The original brake has been removed, and the threads are now cut 11/16-24. Hopefully the new "muzzle device" will be cleared in time for hunting prep this year. As it sits the weight is 8 pounds 11 ounces, total length of 32.5 inches. The suppressor will add another pound and about 7 inches.

I have not even seated any bullets for it yet. I have dies and all the components ready to go. Kinda hoping the ATF releases my accessory before I head down the road of burning powder. Since the intention is to be shooting is suppressed.

Well, last Friday I received the email from the ATF approving the suppressor. WAY sooner than anticipated. So, I have not completed the bedding of the forend or started putting loads together.



I did order some 395 grain Hornady Sub-x FTX bullets. Going to tinker with those a bit to see what the gun does with subsonic loads in a heavy for caliber bullet. Also have a box of the 250 grain FTX for experimenting. I'm hoping to find a nice subsonic load with either of those bullets that would be a good kid friendly deer load. The 395 grain bullet may not be a viable option, but it's designed for low velocity terminal performance so I wanted to check it out.

Slowing down the 460 may be the answer to accuracy with light bullets in a 16 twist barrel. The 450bm is a 24twist.

Part of my "experimenting" in loading subsonic loads created this little dilemma. 12 grains of powder was just enough to get the bullet almost exactly halfway down the bore. Gotta admit, can't say I've had that problem before. But, it came out a lot easier than I expected expected. Lesson learned, don't be lazy, get the chronograph out. I should have done that from the beginning.