Gunsmithing Anyone built a bolt action 458 Socom?

[Nooch13]

So one of the state’s I hunt, Pa is still stuck in the dark ages and is bolt action only for big game hunting. I was thinking 458 socom would make a real good bear gun up there and was considering building one. I’d be lucky to get over a 100 yard shot and there is a lot of brush.

I’ve seen Tromix sells remage style barrels, but I haven’t seen go/no go gauges for 458 socom. I suppose I could head space it with a round, but I’m looking for input.

Also, I would think a short action with a 308 bolt face would be the right action to start with, no? What are your thoughts on the overall project?

 

[Coffee_and_Pipes]

If you’ve got the money, and this is what really interests you, go for it.

Having said that, is there any reason you’re considering .458 SOCOM over a .45-70? Do you own or plan on getting a .458 AR? It seems that the thing .458 has going for it is that you get a semi-auto option that mimics a hard-hitting, existing cartridge. Also, the .45-70 cartridge is straight-walled, which some restrictive states require (I don’t know about case length restrictions).

On Midway, .458 ammo starts at $2/round, but .45-70 starts about $1.50-1.70/round. You would also have an easier time walking into a shop and finding some kind of .45-70 than you would with the .458. If you reload, this would be less of an issue, of course.

As far as follow up shots go, I’m a smaller-framed guy, so any benefit to me of a short action would be eliminated by recoil.

If you were interested in shooting suppressed, .458 would give you off-the-shelf options a .45-70 wouldn’t, but if your state won’t allow hunting with a semi-auto it seems like they would be opposed to suppressors.

Thinking things through is half the fun of the process. Enjoy, and keep us updated.

 

[Spblademaker]

308 bolt is .473, so you should be gtg with that. I would give Tromix a call about head spacing or getting gages. They may suggest a smith who has their gages. Only deal with Tromix or SBR regarding the 458 Socom. You may run into issues with anyone else.

 

[Heyitsclint]

Interested
I have been batting around a 12.7x42 (generic beowulf) ar build and wondered if it too was used in bolt action. For me it is just for fun and my own cool factor.

 

[Wulf]

I would like to see both 458 and 50beo in a bolt gun running subs

 

[Heyitsclint]

There is something kind of cool about a big hunk of lead flying down range subsonic suppressed.

 

[Nooch13]

So following up, I do have a nice mostly tromix parts 458 socom in an ar platform. I have the parts to reload it, but haven’t yet. You actually can use a suppressor to hunt there, and I will eventually get one for the 458, so that is a great point that I didn’t even think of. The 45-70 would be a good option as well...

On my 458 AR I used a tromix barrel and upper with a Wilson comat bcg. Real nice setup...

Any thoughts on the socom causing too much or not enough damage to the animal? I would think I’d only have to worry about too much damage if anything...

 

[Spblademaker]

Interested
I have been batting around a 12.7x42 (generic beowulf) ar build and wondered if it too was used in bolt action. For me it is just for fun and my own cool factor.

I know Someone makes a 50 Beowulf in a 700 action.

Sorry. I was thinking 450 Bushmaster from Ruger. Though someone has to make the Beawulf. ?

 

[PrepareSmarter]

Any thoughts on the socom causing too much or not enough damage to the animal? I would think I’d only have to worry about too much damage if anything...

What is too much damage? I took heart shots successfully for years, but even with a lowly 308 there was some wasted meat. After much reading, I will be switching to double lung shots. There is very little usable meat in the lung area, so even a heavy hitting magnum won't waste much.

The slow and heavy bullets will cause less damaged meat anyway. I wouldn't worry about "overkill" in this situation.

 

[Atomic_Lobster]

Mossberg offers one
http:\\www.mossberg.com/product/mossberg-patriot-synthetic-28013/

 

[Nooch13]

So, the 308 bolt face is correct, but would i pair that with a .223 follower/box mag?

 

[Coffee_and_Pipes]

It looks like at least a couple places make a bolt .458. You might look at their sites for build ideas.

https://www.bishopammunition.com/458-SOCOM-RIFLES-s/76.htm

https://www.marsarmory.com/458socom

 

[Nooch13]

Pretty set on a tromix based build...

Remington 700 458 SOCOM 18" Barrel - Tromix Lead Delivery Systems

18" 1:14 twist Remington 700 barrel chambered in .458 SOCOM. Only available in stainless steel, but black finish is optional. This barrel installs

tromix.com

 

[BuildItYourSelf]

Might be worth a look at the ruger American in 450 bush.
I'm also form pa and alot of people have picked up these for bear. It's short, light, usually get one for under $400. And with a 1-4x scope it's quick to get a shot off in brush at a runner. Also a good gun for other purposes as well.

 

[RTH1800]

If it really is about killing deer and bears make your life easy. Get anything from 6mm-30 cal in a short action and drive on.

 

[fdkay]

So one of the state’s I hunt, Pa is still stuck in the dark ages and is bolt action only for big game hunting. I was thinking 458 socom would make a real good bear gun up there and was considering building one. I’d be lucky to get over a 100 yard shot and there is a lot of brush.

I’ve seen Tromix sells remage style barrels, but I haven’t seen go/no go gauges for 458 socom. I suppose I could head space it with a round, but I’m looking for input.

Also, I would think a short action with a 308 bolt face would be the right action to start with, no? What are your thoughts on the overall project?

They used to allow pump action as well, which is why the rem 760/7600 was so popular there.
How about the new .350 legend, can build on .223 bolt face?

 

[Mike Casselton]

If it really is about killing deer and bears make your life easy. Get anything from 6mm-30 cal in a short action and drive on.

The state requires straight walled cartridges.

 

[Nooch13]

Might be worth a look at the ruger American in 450 bush.
I'm also form pa and alot of people have picked up these for bear. It's short, light, usually get one for under $400. And with a 1-4x scope it's quick to get a shot off in brush at a runner. Also a good gun for other purposes as well.

I will take a look at this, thanks brother

 

[BuildItYourSelf]

Also another cartridge to look at if you do build a custom rifle would be the 45 raptor.
In my opinion it would be the best choice for a few reasons. Flatter shooting at hunting distances 200yds -. A 308 rifle will only need a barrel. Even a box mag will feed it with little problem and you retain the same capacity as the 308 you started with. And it's hard to beat a 230gr bullet at 2600fps. So more performance then the 450 bush or 458 socom in an easier to build rifle. Just pick up any old Remington 700 in 308 witch will be no problem finding, order a remage style barrel and headspace guage and your good to go.
This only really makes sense if you handload or at least have a friend who does and better yet loads 460s&w already (same dies used in 45 raptor). Better yet if you reload and have a knowledge or willingness to learn about case forming the brass is very easy to make. Trim a 30-06 to leangth, size it. Make sure the neck thickness is within spec or turn the case to size and you will have a case that will last a pretty long time.

However if a person isn't interested in hand loading or having a friend load then the present popularity of the 458 socom as well as large selection of ammo I can see why the choice would be that.

 

[Nooch13]

So if I do this, say on a Rem 700 308, which box and follower or dbm would I use, 308 or 223??

 

[deaddogs]

I run lancer 556 mags in my rock river they feed the 300grain ttsx pills the best I’ve found.. the pmags have a small “dividing lip or spine if you will” down the front center of the mag, and it interferes with the tipped bullets .
O and is a hammer on whitetails!!.. lol.

 

[Boxorox]

I realize this thread is a bit dated, but this project is definitely doable. I built a .458 SOCOM bolt gun for slaying hogs in the Southeast. The main reason was to suppress it and use 500-600 grain subs. A 600 grain sub produces 1,469 ft. lbs. of energy at the muzzle (1,050 fps) and loses very little velocity out to 400 yards. A 500 gr. sub produces 1,224 ft. lbs. at the muzzle, which is comparable to the supersonic MK262 5.56 round. The difference is the expansion of the projectile produces a massive exit wound about the size of a coffee saucer. I bought the headspace gauges from Manson Reamers per Tony Rumore from Tromix. The Rem 700 barreled action sits in a Hunter 700 stock and is fed from a modified .308 AICS Pmag. If you have any questions feel free to ask. FYI - don't bother with the Bishop Ammunition. They absolutely won't help and literally accused me of copying their idea and threatened me with litigation.

 

[iceng]

I've built a few, and building another this week. Ultimatum u300 action, Boyd's stock, magpul plastic bottom metal and 5 round magazine. Nothing really hard about it, any Smith should be able to do it.

 

[roostercogburn98]

350 legend is a smooth shooter. Been tinkering with mine and happy with it so far. Still a work in progress as far as the finish stages go but functions and shoots good

 

[Easy_E]

Built a 45 raptor 450 bushmaster and 350 legend all in 700 Remingtons they all shoot great . I could never get the raptor to feed right but it shot well .
The 350 legend is a sweet shooting rifle waiting for late doe season for some long range hunting.

 

[bigtimber]

Built a 45 raptor 450 bushmaster and 350 legend all in 700 Remingtons they all shoot great . I could never get the raptor to feed right but it shot well .
The 350 legend is a sweet shooting rifle waiting for late doe season for some long range hunting.

 

[bigtimber]

DId you have issues with feeding on the 350. I have a rem 700 in 300 blk and would like to rebarrel to 350. Any other issues you uncovered.

 

[Easy_E]

DId you have issues with feeding on the 350. I have a rem 700 in 300 blk and would like to rebarrel to 350. Any other issues you uncovered.

Getting the rounds to feed from Ruger mags is a pita . The front of the opening for the cartridge needs to be opened up so it can pivot up . It's right border line to being too wide and the rounds pop through .
If you can find the plastic AICS mags they are great .
I bought some Accurate 223 metal with the plastic liner and got them working so so but not perfect . Theres a rib that rubs the shoulder that needs to be removed . When I get time I need to heat the plastic and bend it to match the steel lips.
I will post what works and get video .

 

[bigtimber]

Getting the rounds to feed from Ruger mags is a pita . The front of the opening for the cartridge needs to be opened up so it can pivot up . It's right border line to being too wide and the rounds pop through .
If you can find the plastic AICS mags they are great .
I bought some Accurate 223 metal with the plastic liner and got them working so so but not perfect . Theres a rib that rubs the shoulder that needs to be removed . When I get time I need to heat the plastic and bend it to match the steel lips.
I will post what works and get video .

I was going to use the factory bottom metal. If the 300 feeds, so should the 350.......you agree?

 

[Easy_E]

I was going to use the factory bottom metal. If the 300 feeds, so should the 350.......you agree?

Yes I've done a few and they work just like the 300 blacks.

 

[ken4570tc in WY]

I realize this thread is a bit dated, but this project is definitely doable. I built a .458 SOCOM bolt gun for slaying hogs in the Southeast. The main reason was to suppress it and use 500-600 grain subs. A 600 grain sub produces 1,469 ft. lbs. of energy at the muzzle (1,050 fps) and loses very little velocity out to 400 yards. A 500 gr. sub produces 1,224 ft. lbs. at the muzzle, which is comparable to the supersonic MK262 5.56 round. The difference is the expansion of the projectile produces a massive exit wound about the size of a coffee saucer. I bought the headspace gauges from Manson Reamers per Tony Rumore from Tromix. The Rem 700 barreled action sits in a Hunter 700 stock and is fed from a modified .308 AICS Pmag. If you have any questions feel free to ask. FYI - don't bother with the Bishop Ammunition. They absolutely won't help and literally accused me of copying their idea and threatened me with litigation. View attachment 7192904

Good job on the .458! My 45-70 single shot Contender was a sledge hammer with Speer 400 grain flat nose bullets. 'A locomotive doesn't have to go very fast to knock things down!'

 

[BigPrince]

The state requires straight walled cartridges.

Don't want to get off topic but just curious, I had a friend move to PA this year and had planned to hunt up there over the next year/season. I don't see any straight-walled restrictions in PA? I see the 'manual action' requirement. Just wondering if I'm missing it. I've also got a Wilson Combat 458socom and appreciate the dialogue as I am interested in reading more about a bolt gun also.

 

[bna5017]

PA does not have any straight wall cartridge restrictions. Ohio does, a lot of western PA guys have bought straight wall cartridge rifles to hunt Ohio.

 

[BigPrince]

PA does not have any straight wall cartridge restrictions. Ohio does, a lot of western PA guys have bought straight wall cartridge rifles to hunt Ohio.

I figured that might be the answer and thinking of doing the same next year also. Wanted to make sure though. Thanks.

 

[bna5017]

Make sure you take a look at the out of state license cost for Ohio if you aren't a resident. I know that deterred a lot of people in 2019.

 

[iceng]

Here's a build we did for a customer, and a load Dev round for another rifles (not this one).

 

[Powder_Burns]

Southern Ballistic Research plumbed this one for me awhile back. 20” bbl on a Savage short action. Never got around to finishing the build, plan was to use an XLR chassis and feed the rounds from AICS mags with a spacer installed. I would show better pictures but I’m locked out of my photobucket account and the rifle is in Florida.

 

[XLR308]

The 338federal would be everything you need and more and ideally suited for a short action with standard bolt face.
It is a very efficient round and does pretty damn well in shorter barrels with plenty of energy with bullets in the 180-200 grain range.

 

[ken4570tc in WY]

If you’ve got the money, and this is what really interests you, go for it.

Having said that, is there any reason you’re considering .458 SOCOM over a .45-70? Do you own or plan on getting a .458 AR? It seems that the thing .458 has going for it is that you get a semi-auto option that mimics a hard-hitting, existing cartridge. Also, the .45-70 cartridge is straight-walled, which some restrictive states require (I don’t know about case length restrictions).

On Midway, .458 ammo starts at $2/round, but .45-70 starts about $1.50-1.70/round. You would also have an easier time walking into a shop and finding some kind of .45-70 than you would with the .458. If you reload, this would be less of an issue, of course.

As far as follow up shots go, I’m a smaller-framed guy, so any benefit to me of a short action would be eliminated by recoil.

If you were interested in shooting suppressed, .458 would give you off-the-shelf options a .45-70 wouldn’t, but if your state won’t allow hunting with a semi-auto it seems like they would be opposed to suppressors.

Thinking things through is half the fun of the process. Enjoy, and keep us updated.

A correction to your statement, Henry now has a 45-70 side gate lever action with threaded muzzle for a brake or suppressor!

 

[MrSmith]

There is something kind of cool about a big hunk of lead flying down range subsonic suppressed.

Yes, there is.



Thank you,
MrSmith

 

[Burning sensation]

I’m

I realize this thread is a bit dated, but this project is definitely doable. I built a .458 SOCOM bolt gun for slaying hogs in the Southeast. The main reason was to suppress it and use 500-600 grain subs. A 600 grain sub produces 1,469 ft. lbs. of energy at the muzzle (1,050 fps) and loses very little velocity out to 400 yards. A 500 gr. sub produces 1,224 ft. lbs. at the muzzle, which is comparable to the supersonic MK262 5.56 round. The difference is the expansion of the projectile produces a massive exit wound about the size of a coffee saucer. I bought the headspace gauges from Manson Reamers per Tony Rumore from Tromix. The Rem 700 barreled action sits in a Hunter 700 stock and is fed from a modified .308 AICS Pmag. If you have any questions feel free to ask. FYI - don't bother with the Bishop Ammunition. They absolutely won't help and literally accused me of copying their idea and threatened me with litigation. View attachment 7192904

I’m working on a similar build with the same purpose in mind - shouting hogs with 500 grain subs at close range. How has your rig worked for that?

 

[bachelorjack]

Im interested in pics of aics mags modified for 458 socom.

 

[Powder_Burns]

Was literally going to make a 0.5” spacer out of legos and epoxy it to the rear of the magazine, trim the follower to fit and leave enough clearance at the feed lips for the bolt. Didn’t get that far to account for the spring. I think I could have made an ar-15 mag spring work. The project is shelved for now, life got in the way and the rifle is over 2000 miles away.

 

[Dobbs02si]

Yes, there is.

View attachment 7313081View attachment 7313082

Thank you,
MrSmith

What is this? It looks like .510 in a rum case?

 

[iceng]

From memory a 510 whisper is a 50 cal in a cut down 338 lap case, with a turned neck / step, loaded to long action / 300winmag length.

https://www.shop.ammo-one1.com/510-Whisper-Wildcat-750-SCF-One-Cartridge-not-a-Box-WR510Whisper750grCF1.htm

 

[MrSmith]

What is this? It looks like .510 in a rum case?

You have a good eye. A work in progress.

Thank you,
MrSmith

 

[Dobbs02si]

I would love to rent a reamer from you if one exists. Started playing with powders yet?

 

[MrSmith]

PM'ed.

Thank you,
MrSmith

 

[elitesniper223]

I built a 16” Remage with a Tromix 10 twist for subsonic / suppressed use. This thing packs a major punch with a 500 Grain Maker Bullet!

 

[bachelorjack]

How accurate are you finding that Tromix barrel?