458

Jeebus, any bear left? I use a 150gr .308 for black bear. Longest run I've had is about 30m

I take mine hunting for deer, haven't connected yet. I've shot a few with my 375 and they were no more. Or less dead than with the 30-06 or the 30-30. Lots of guys use 45-70's and when they're loaded to full honk they aren't too far off from a 458 win. Is it necessary? Nope. Will it do the job? Yup. So long as the person shooting it does theirs. It doesn't explode the game, destroy all the meat or cut the game in half. For folks who own them opportunities where they genuinely need a big bore are few and far between, but really the same goes for a .338 or a .300 mag or lots of the guns folks use. Even a .308 is more than necessary for deer.
 
For me a deer gun is a 25/06 or something in 6.5/284

I got the 458 for cape buffalo and grizzly Bear when the time comes. It's a black bear and range gun until then. Maybe swamp donkey to if I get the urge
 
It doesn't hurt to get some miles on the big boomers on ordinary game before taking it on what might be a once in a lifetime buffalo hunt. That doesn't work out for me very well because a .458 just isn't much of a prairie gun. For someone who hunted deer, moose and bear in the bush it would work. No doubt some genius will find fault saying that some greenhorn thinks he needs a .458 to kill a deer, but if you don't there will be someone else who is critical about the greenhorn who showed up with a "new rifle". Never mind that the "new" rifle probably has more rounds through it than the guide has ever seen.

The point, if any, is that a hunter may have his own reasons for using what he uses. Those reasons may have nothing to do with being best, or appropriate, or versatile. It could just be that he wants to.

Theres thousands of elephant guns sold for every elephant hunt taken. Its a pretty safe bet that most of them are being used for something else. Most are just range toys.
 
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