FNX-45 High Power Caliber Conversions - Woods Defense Gun

18924 Views 54 Replies 15 Participants Last post by Tagger13, Jan 31, 2022

treillw

Discussion Starter · Jun 13, 2018

I am interested in the FNX platform for a woods defense gun. I have heard a lot of good things about the gun. I intend on using it for woods defense for 4 legged and 2 legged critters (Sasquatch).

I would like a round with more power than the 45 ACP. The 460 Rowland and the 40 Super conversions have caught my eye and I think it would be awesome if everything worked properly with this platform. I was really excited about everything until I made a phone call to EFK Fire Dragon today about one of their 40 Super Barrels.

The lady I spoke with on the phone told me that they don't have any 40 Super barrels in stock and that they rarely produce them because there is a very low demand for them and they end up sitting on the shelf for a year before they sell. They don't have any plans on making them anytime soon. She is keeping a list of people who are interested, so if you are interested give them a shout so we can get some made up.

I then started asking her about other options and asked if they ever made any 460 Rowland barrels and she said that they used to but they stopped. Why, I asked. She said because the round was really hard on their test guns and test shooters. It would crack the polymer frames and the shooters complained about the recoil.

Maybe it's just me, but I can't really see the gun kicking so bad that the recoil is unbearable. It's less power than a 44 mag with a comp - I would think it would be kinda mild; somewhere around a standard 45 acp maybe? Maybe they didn't have them setup with comps or buffers? Nevertheless this report scares me pretty badly that I would crack the FNX frame or cause some other damage. I was thinking about a conversion kit from 460 Rowland.com

I am also considering the Glock 20 in 10mm and the Glock 21 converted to 460 Rowland or 40 Super. There are a few cons with the Glock IMO though which make me like the FNX more: The glock has a worse trigger, lower capacity with the G21, and a huge grip.

Questions:
I was wondering if anybody had any positive or negative experiences with such conversions?
Any other suggestions on conversions or other platforms which may be good for what I'm after?
Anybody know where I may be able to find a 40 Super barrel for sale?
If you do have this conversion, was it hard to get it to function reliably? What did you have to modify/do to get it to work properly? What ammo were you using?
Are the EFK barrels quality?

Any help is appreciated!
Thanks!

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Pahani

· #9 · Sep 16, 2018

GCMCG said:
Range Report: FNX-45 w/ .460 Rowland conversion

I shot 50 rounds of "Johnny's 240gr magnum FMJ HP" from .460 Rowland.com. The gun functioned flawlessly using the .460 ammo, with no failures experienced. I checked every spent casing for signs of cracks or primer bulging and found none. I inspected the frame for signs of stress or damage and everything looked good. Recoil was stiff but very manageable due to the compensator. I also ran 200 rds of 45 acp through it using the stock recoil spring. .460 Rowland recommends removing the compensator for 100% reliability when using .45 acp and I can attest to this. I ran a few magazines of .45acp with the compensator and experienced a few failures to eject. Removing the compensator rectified the issue, with no malfunctions throughout the rest of my shooting. I will run a few hundred more rounds of .460, .45 Super, and .45 ACP through the gun over the next few weeks and give another update.

I was wondering if you have had further time to test this? I'm very interested in your impressions.

I will likely have the conversion done as well, but welcome every bit of extra info I can glean in the meantime

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Pahani

· #11 · Feb 16, 2019

Thanks for the update! I'm still procrastinating about sending my slide and barrel off for the conversion; however, I've already purchased 300 rounds of 460R, to MAKE myself follow through eventually.

Thanks for the tip on the Blazer 230g, I almost certainly won't want to go through even the minimal hassle of uninstalling the compensator to shoot "regular" 45ACP.

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Pahani

· #21 · Jul 19, 2020

FN47 said:
The 460 Rowland guys were able to send me a picture of the FNX45-T in FDE done as a conversion earlier this week. And I was sold. But then a buddy I convinced to buy a Springfield TRP in 10mm earlier this year told me he doesn't use it anymore and asked if I would ... so I got the 10mm no 460 Rowland to be sure though. Maybe yet some day

Aww, that's a shame. I *did* finally get my Rowland conversion done, but I'm not able to shoot much. Once or twice a year. I was hoping to see your own pics and impressions heh!

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Pahani

· #30 · Aug 23, 2020

FN47 said:
Welp, it's official. I ordered the FNX45 Tactical in FDE strait from 460Rowland. They say it'll ship in around 2-3 weeks, so a month from now I should be shooting the 255gr hard cast lead cartridges I bought for it. Finally ready to protect my family while hiking out west!!

FN47 said:
I'd add too the value of being able to change up the old line: I shoot a .45 because they don't make a .46

I asked every gun store I walked into (every couple weeks) for a year if they had any 41 magnums and all I found were a couple abused wheel guns. My understanding is that, in the way of muzzle energy/FPE, stout factory loadings (e.g. Underwood) of 10mm are more powerful than those of 45 super. And the same goes for both 460 Rowland as well as 41 magnum with the cartridges loaded to their capability are more powerful in FPE than those of 10mm. 460 vs 41mag is an interesting comparison. It seems without +p the 41 mag on FPE does not claim a title.

But I don't think it's as simple as FPE. The FPE has to transfer to the target and in the right places. I would think the 45 caliber of 460R over 41mag's ~43 caliber or 10mms 40cal would transfer that FPE into the target more quickly, with less chance to over penetrate and the bullet leave with energy still left not transferred. But, bears hearts beat very slow and they might not be deterred by flesh wounds/pain. I think the bear central nervous system as a target would be the closest to a reliable way to survive. To penetrate into the bear, would the .45" be the best choice or would it lose energy too quickly? I understand this is where sectional density comes in - the bullet may have to displace more tissue to penetrate but if it has a higher relative weight to the more narrow projectile it's momentum can penetrate. 10mm seems to top at 200gr. 460 can use 45acp bullets and plenty of 255gr hard cast around.

I got some of the 460 ammo already Here is a poor photo of Underwood 460Rowland 255gr flat nose hard cast next to their 45acp +P offering with the same bullet. You can see the 460 has a longer case (1.4mm) and also Underwood apparently doesn't have access to nickel plated 460R brass

Anyway I feel like I have an autoloading 41 magnum coming in the mail, and it happens to be inside the FN FNX45 Tac that I've always wanted. God Bless America!

Congrats! I still haven't been able to take mine to the range since I got the conversion done.....but I did order 460 ammo ahead of time, as you did, as a way to force myself to stop procrastinating and finally get it done heh.

Let us (or at least me) know what you think after you get some range time.

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