My brother has one he told me it was the most miserable recoiling rifle he ever has gotten..mb
I always wanted a 450-400 and didn't want to pay up for a double. I found a deal on new No.1 years ago and bought two boxes of Hornady factory ammo. My dad and I took it out and shot it. It was the hardest recoiling rifle I've ever shot. I think I shot it twice and he shot it once. I took it by a Cabelas the next day and they gave me more in trade than I paid for it.
I had a No. 1 in .458 at the time that was not nearly as bad as the 450-400 and I loaded the .458 hot. Given the velocity and 400-grain bullets, I expected recoil would be similar to a hot-loaded 45-70 No. 1. It was not.
To this day, I don't know why it kicked so hard, though it was the lighter version.
