50 BMG Reloading: Getting Closer to the Goal

Well, I’m one step closer to reloading for the 50 BMG. This week I got in a shipment of Hornady A-MAX 750 grain match bullets. WOW! these things are HUGE. Check out how big the projectiles are compared with a full .223 Remington cartridge:

Hornady-XTP-750-Match-vs-.223-2000

Just for fun, I decided to compare the weight of the .223 cartridge compared with the 750 grain Hornady projectile, here’s what I came up with:

Hornady-XTP-750-Match-vs-.223-on-scale-1200

750 grains / 168.7 grains = 4.45 times the weight!

If we compare the projectiles alone, we have:

750 grains / 52 grains = 14.42 times the weight!

If you study the ballistics and shooting practices, 50 BMG is more like dealing with artillery than it is like shooting traditional rifle ammunition. That’s what makes me intrigued and excited about shooting and reloading 50 BMG! Unfortunately, the cost is also more along the lines of artillery (sort of 🙂 ).

Let’s compare the cost of the projectiles:

  • 52 grain match bullet: ~$150. / 1000 = $0.15 each
  • 750 grain match bullet: ~$50 / 20 = $2.50 each

Comparing the cost we have:

$2.50 / $0.15  = 16.7 times the cost

BUT: If you have shot 50 BMG you know that the “experience” of shooting a round can be WAY more than 16.7 times the cost of shooting a single .223/5.56 round. Some times you need to feel the “blast wave” from a 50 BMG muzzle brake. Some times you need to feel your eyeballs rattle in their sockets. If you’ve had a tough week in the office or on the job site, you can’t put a price on what it feels like to unleash that kind of power. It’s an experience that’s best shared with friends.

Shooting 50 BMG at the Ultimate Reloader outpost with friend “Jim the Plumber”

It’s also great to have you all (the readers/viewers on Ultimate Reloader) to share all of this with. So as I plan out the content and my own personal goals with 50 BMG, I’ll keep you all updated regularly, and will have some great stories and videos that I’ll be sharing. Just like the cartridge itself, this is going to be epic! If you have anything in particular you’d like to see, please leave a comment and I’ll put it “into the hat”.

Thanks all, and “happy shooting”.
-Gavin

3 thoughts on “50 BMG Reloading: Getting Closer to the Goal”

  1. Looking forward to a process video on reloading for the .50 BMG…also “unloading” them at the range. The .50 is a beast!

  2. Fired hundreds if not thousands of rounds from Ma Deuce in the Marines, never from a bench or shoulder fired rifle. I can imagine the fun factor.

  3. For fun shooting and the non-serious target shooting, I’ve been reloading the .50 BMG with the military pulls and they vary quite a bit in weight, but for serious target and sniper shooting use the A Max 750 gr bullet from Hoanady, and when I weight these, they are all right on at the 750 Gr mark. Recently shot a clover leaf, 3 shot group at 200 yds and could cover the three shots with a quarter. Anyone else loading for the .50 BMG?

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