458 win mag

DGY

DGY

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 98.1%
51   1   0
Good evening all, I just acquired a 458 win mag, a bit of a project rifle… and I want to know what are your favorite powders, bullets and possibly load data if you want to share them. I don’t need such a big bore rifle, but this one was a decent price and a really good looking rifle, so I thought why not maybe the wooly mammoth will make a come back at some point in our neck of the wood…
What do you say?
 
Right now I’m using hornady 350gr round nose with accurate 2015 powder. The accurate powder seems to be clean burning.

It’s a very versatile round everything from
Whitetail to elephant with appropriate loads.
 
Picked mine up a 'few' years ago and still have it. A M-70 Winchester Super Express. My best accuracy on paper has been when using a combo of the 500gr Hornady RN and IMR 4320.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
Don't care to post load data, as considered safe in my rifle(custom rifle, built on Mauser action), only. May not be, in others. But,these are some of my choices: Reloder 7, for 350 grain bullets, including: Barnes-X, Hawk, and Hornady. IMR 3031 or Varget, for 400-grain bullets. Remington and Hawk. Varget, for 500 grain Hornady and Woodleigh bullets. Velocities ranging from about 2100-2400 fps.
SR 4759, XM5744, IMR 3031 and Varget for lead bullets, ranging from 400-500 grains. Velocity range: 1500-1800 fps. All very accurate. Remington brass. Bullets cast from either straight wheel weight lead, or Lyman #2 alloy.
As noted in previous posts, there are other powders that deliver good accuracy and performance in the .458. These powder selections offered best performance in mine. Along with antiqueguy, I am also a fan of the 350-grain Hornady RN bullet. Likely shoot more of these, than any other type or weight. Very versatile bullet and good terminal performance on game. Also shoot their 350-grain flat point cousins, in 45-70.
Be sure to check your rifling pitch(twist). Many .458's will be 1 :14". This results in decent accuracy with 350-400 grain bullets. Best: 500 grains.
 
Last edited:
Alex McKr said:
Don't care to post load data, as considered safe in my rifle(custom rifle, built on Mauser action), only. May not be, in others. But,these are some of my choices: Reloder 7, for 350 grain bullets, including: Barnes-X, Hawk, and Hornady. IMR 3031 or Varget, for 400-grain bullets. Remington and Hawk. Varget, for 500 grain Hornady and Woodleigh bullets. Velocities ranging from about 2100-2400 fps.
SR 4759, XM5744, IMR 3031 and Varget for lead bullets, ranging from 400-500 grains. Velocity range: 1500-1800 fps. All very accurate. Remington brass. Bullets cast from either straight wheel weight lead, or Lyman #2 alloy.
As noted in previous posts, there are other powders that deliver good accuracy and performance in the .458. These powder selections offered best performance in mine. Along with antiqueguy, I am also a fan of the 350-grain Hornady RN bullet. Likely shoot more of these, than any other type or weight. Very versatile bullet and good terminal performance on game. Also shoot their 350-grain flat point cousins, in 45-70.
Be sure to check your rifling pitch(twist). Many .458's will be 1 :14". This results in decent accuracy with 350-400 grain bullets. Best: 500 grains.
Click to expand...
Accuracy with shorter bullets is generally bc of the throat more then the twist I’d say that is if you have a standard Sammi chamber. Shorter bullets have a jump in the throat. The standard Sammi .458 win mag has a .468 throat so to not cause pressure spikes with steel jacketed bullets(hornady DG series type) or brass/copper solids.

This can lead to short bullets having a jump and not starting square in the bore. I’m more then satisfied if I can get a pie plate at 100 yards. it being 150 or so yard cartridge it will put it in the boiler room on most game animals. I haven’t tested it on game just yet but I bet even with the hornady it could be close to head to tail on a black bear.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
antiqueguy:
You can confidently expect your Hornady 350 grain bullets to do their job well. At the short ranges most black bear are taken, you won't have any problem placing the bullet where it needs to go. I have yet to recover a bullet from any game taken. Complete pass-throughs, every time.
 
Alex McKr said:
antiqueguy:
You can confidently expect your Hornady 350 grain bullets to do their job well. At the short ranges most black bear are taken, you won't have any problem placing the bullet where it needs to go. I have yet to recover a bullet from any game taken. Complete pass-throughs, every time.
Click to expand...
I had concerns after what clay did to it I still have the chunks somewhere.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
Johnn Peterson said:
Picked mine up a 'few' years ago and still have it. A M-70 Winchester Super Express. My best accuracy on paper has been when using a combo of the 500gr Hornady RN and IMR 4320.
Click to expand...
Forgot to mention, an opportunity to pick up an exact copy of my M-70 Winchester Super Express in 458WM, but this one is in 375H&H, 'presented itself'.:) Being weak willed, I couldn't resist. Now, all I need is a LITTLE luck in Lotto 649 to help me get them both some field experience,;) in Africa.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
I like 2230 with heavy bullets, its good for some extra speed . Prefer 450 A Frames above all others on buffalo.


Somewhat easer to find is 4895 for the heavies, and 4198 for bullets in the 350 range.


You will find that most listed max loads for the heavy bullets can be translated into “all the powder you can get in the case and still seat a bullet”. Thats not load data or advice but is the way it turns out much of the time. Historically the .458 struggled for velocity, and compression issues. Some of the factory ammo is pretty anemic.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
Dogleg said:
I like 2230 with heavy bullets, its good for some extra speed . Prefer 450 A Frames above all others on buffalo.


Somewhat easer to find is 4895 for the heavies, and 4198 for bullets in the 350 range.


You will find that most listed max loads for the heavy bullets can be translated into “all the powder you can get in the case and still seat a bullet”. Thats not load data or advice but is the way it turns out much of the time. Historically the .458 struggled for velocity, and compression issues. Some of the factory ammo is pretty anemic.
Click to expand...
My starting load of 67.5gr of accurate 2015 is pretty much up to the base of the bullet. It also proved to be accurate enough. I may try some 4064 behind those 405gr cam pro bullets I have an old lyman manual that lists that. I imagine if I drove them fast enough and they hold up the flat point might just mushroom over a bit will have to do a wet pack test.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DGY
This rifle will most likely be used in the winter for wood bison, so a little compressed load won’t matter at -25 -40c!
 
DGY said:
This rifle will most likely be used in the winter for wood bison, so a little compressed load won’t matter at -25 -40c!
Click to expand...
It might if the compressed loads push the bullets back out the point they don’t fit in the magazine or chamber.. I usually run out of case room before I ever see high pressure. Some dandy loads rivalled the Lott but the bullets pushed out in short order. That wasn’t a huge deal if Iwas using them the next day for test purposes. For what its worth there was a noticeable difference in impact on buffalo, and you could see a difference in expansion on AFrames. With the hotter loads I’d get the Swift base bulge and the normal I didn’t.


It was enough for me to switch or to Lott, which would get the same speeds as the hot 458 without the compression issues, and could surpass it handily with ease. Its an easier cartridge to load for, there are so many right powders that fit easy.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom