spaniel

I think the popularity of the .50 goes back to the bullets available when ML started to gain popularity and sabots were introduced. I remember when .45, .50 and .54 versions of many models were available but then the .54 went away, then the .45 more recently.

Back then, what we had available was pistol bullets. There were a lot of jacketed pistol bullets available in the .44-.45cal range that could be shot out of sabots in the .50. None really for the .54 or .45, a .357 pistol bullet weighs only 158gr typically, certainly under 200. Even if you used them, they were not designed for the velocity and would not hold together.

So the .50 won out due to sabots and the available bullets at the time. Now, we have some really viable bullets for the .45 as the .40 bullets designed for MLs came out, but their time (the .45s) has passed. Perhaps if we see some good .357 high BC bullets come out that will change, but at this point it's a chicken-and-egg scenario, why develop a great .357 bullet when there are no guns out there to shoot it?

I can tell you if I was going to shoot RBs I'd go straight to a .54.

Breechplug

I live in N.Y. and 45.Cal's are legal here, but in all the years of Hunting I have never seen anyone with a 45.cal MLer. And if you think it's hard for you's to find 45.cal MLer stuff where you live just try finding it here.
It's more of a popularity thing also, if everyone shot a 45 than there'd be less 50cal stuff around, but the 50 is the most popular so that's the way it goes, there must be a reason for this as most shoot 50's.
(BP)



(BP)

oldsmellhound

I agree with pretty much what everyone else has said. I only have a .45, but I don't know anyone else who does - all my friends and hunting buddies have .50's. That being said, I don't regret my choice - I love shooting my .45, and have been able to find bullets without a problem, although I usually have to order them over the internet.

The .45 might have slight advantage on paper over the .50 when shooting .40 cal bullets, but it's probably not enough for anyone to notice in real-world shooting.

One advantage that no one has mentioned is with shooting light-recoiling loads. When working up a load for a kid or a recoil-sensitive person, a .45 is ideal. You can load a 158 grain .357 magnum bullet with 50 or 60 grains of powder that has almost no recoil, but duplicates a .357 mag load out of a carbine- plenty adequate for deer at close range.