450Bushmaster.net

Hello all! I did some searching but did not find the answer yet. I have a 16 inch 450BM with carbine gas. It cycles great with 2 or 3 rounds in a magazine. With 4-7 rounds, not as great. The rounds appear to not get stripped from the magazines. Sometimes if I manually pull the charging handle back and let it go again at full force, it will move the round the rest of the way into the chamber.

I have 4 different brand magazines setup for 450BM. I have polished the feed lips of the mags and that does seem to help. Without polishing the feed lips, the rounds really dig into the feed lips and scar up the brass. Some mags do work better than others.

I do own 4 different AR's in 223/5.56. I've never ventured away from a standard weight buffer. But it seems like a heavier buffer would have more energy to strip the round out of the magazine and into the chamber? Am I mistaken? Heavier buffer worth a try?

I've spent many thousands of $$$ recently stocking up on reloading supplies for all of my various firearms and freeze dried food because of the upcoming election and riots. I'm willing to buy a heavier buffer if you guys think it will help. But if not, I'm done spending money for a while. Lol. Thank you!

Most 450b mags I have seen come with entirely too much spring force. The more rounds you stack, the harder it is to strip them. Consider removing the bottom cover and cutting off enough turns so that with only 1 round in, there is just a little more upward lift than necessary to keep it in position to strip. In some mags, that can be over half the total turns! It works miracles. Obviously, only mod one and see how it works out for you. I converted many 556 mags to 450b with the addition of a single stack follower. Every one of them required removal of spring turns, polishing the lips and cutting a half moon in the front.

Hoot

Thanks Hoot! I did cut one of the springs a small bit. But you're most likely 100% on the money... Thinking through it, I probably did not cut nearly enough. I'm going to try this today!

Another question, have you guys ever modified the follower to actually allow it to tilt more on purpose? I have some clear Lancer mags. It seems like if I could get the follower to tilt nose down a bit, it wouldn't push the front of the round up so high in the air. I know most good followers are advertised as anti-tilt. It just seems like some tilting may benefit the 450bm round. Thanks!

nose high isnt a follower issue, its more than likely a feed lip angle/width issue.

I had great luck with the Hex Meg and a 3-D printed follower from eBay. I also removed a little weight from one of the buffers by drilling small holes in it. It seems to function well and throws brass at 3-4 o’clock. Bca 16” upper.

I made this video a few years ago regarding the 450 bushmaster magazine.

https://youtu.be/L29stF3IyOw