Description
The Bergara B-14 HMR 450 Bushmaster takes a straight-wall hunting cartridge and puts it into a rifle built around match-rifle bones. The HMR stock has an aluminum mini-chassis molded into it, so the action beds against metal rather than plastic and the 20-inch barrel floats free. Bergara backs the whole thing with a sub-MOA accuracy guarantee, which is not a claim you often see on a .450 rifle.
The Molded Mini-Chassis
Most synthetic stocks flex, and flex is why groups wander. Bergara’s answer is a full-length aluminum mini-chassis molded into the HMR stock, which gives repeatable bedding without the cost or bulk of a full chassis system. The barrel is free-floated the entire way, and the stock adds an adjustable cheekpiece plus length-of-pull spacers so the rifle can be fitted to the shooter.
Bergara B-14 HMR 450 Bushmaster Barrel and Cartridge
The 20-inch barrel is 4140 chrome-moly steel in a No. 6 taper, finished in Graphite Black Cerakote and cut with a 1:24 twist to suit the heavy, wide-diameter bullets .450 Bushmaster uses. The muzzle is threaded 11/16×24, the standard pitch for the cartridge, so a brake or a suppressor goes on without an adapter. Bergara makes its own barrels in Spain, which is the reason these rifles shoot the way they do.
Why .450 Bushmaster
Several states restrict deer hunting to straight-wall cartridges, and .450 Bushmaster is one of the best answers to that rule. A 250-grain bullet at around 2,200 feet per second hits hard inside 200 yards and drops game decisively. It is also a good choice for hogs and black bear in thick country where shots are close and a big hole matters more than a flat trajectory.
Specifications
- Model: B-14 HMR
- Manufacturer part number: B14S356C
- Caliber: .450 Bushmaster
- Action: bolt action
- Barrel: 20 in., 4140 CrMo steel, No. 6 taper, threaded
- Barrel twist: 1:24 in.
- Muzzle threads: 11/16×24
- Capacity: 5 rounds, AICS pattern detachable magazine
- Trigger: Bergara Performance Trigger
- Stock: Bergara HMR molded with integrated mini-chassis, adjustable cheekpiece, length of pull spacers
- Finish: Graphite Black Cerakote
- Accuracy: sub-MOA guarantee
- UPC: 043125016136
Trigger and Bolt
The Bergara Performance Trigger breaks cleanly and adjusts, which matters more on a heavy-recoiling rifle than on a mild one, because a creepy trigger encourages a flinch. The two-lug bolt runs on a sliding plate extractor and a coned bolt nose that guides fat straight-wall cases into the chamber without hanging up, and the oversized bolt handle is easy to find with cold hands or gloves.
Why Buyers Choose the Bergara B-14 HMR 450 Bushmaster
Straight-wall deer rifles are often built to a price, with soft barrels and stocks that flex. This one is not. You get a Bergara barrel, a chassis-bedded stock and a genuine accuracy guarantee in a cartridge that a lot of hunters are legally required to use. The weight, starting at 9.5 pounds, is welcome here as well, since it takes most of the sting out of a heavy bullet.
Who Should Buy It
This is the rifle for a hunter in a straight-wall state who is tired of settling, for anyone chasing hogs or bear in thick timber, and for the shooter who wants a .450 that will actually hold a group at 150 yards. Mount a durable low-power variable, sight in with the exact load you plan to hunt, and be prepared for the rifle to shoot better than the cartridge’s reputation suggests.
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