big bore choice?

Wulfgard try a 375 H&H or 375 Ruger, you will find that it is an enjoyable big push rather than the fast slap. Be careful though, the very next purchase will be in the over .40 club
 
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From L to R:444 Marlin for comparison, really old 450 Kynoch,450 Rigby,500 Jefferey,505 Gibbs. Picture a 460 Wby. Mag. without the belt and you have the 450 Rigby.
 
Another big bore rifle to consider - the Ruger No.1 45-70 which is capable of impressive performance. Mine has a lengthened throat and is capable of firing a 500gr bullet at 1900 fps, 400gr at 2200 fps, 350gr at 2400 fps or a 300gr at 2600 fps. Compact and relatively lightweight.

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45-70 Ruger No.1-S with Bushnell Legend Ultra HD 1.75-5x32mm


Also good performance from the 45-70 Handi-Rifle. This one also has a lengthened throat and is capable of firing a 500gr bullet at about 1750 fps. It's a mild pressure load with Reloder15 in order to prevent extraction problems since the spring ejector doesn't provide much extraction power.

Like most 45-70 rifles it has a 1:20 twist which might be a bit slow to properly stabilize 500gr bullets. 3 shots group about 3" off the benchrest at 100 meters with the Woodleigh 500gr PP SN bullet.

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45-70 Handi-Rifle SB-2 with Leupold FX-II Ultralight 2.5x20mm

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Handi-Rifle 500gr / Re15 load

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Handi-Rifle 500gr 3 shot group at 100 meters
 
I'd say that's good enough. I never really pushed my 45/70 with heavier bullets. I got the 350 gr Hornady to 2000 fps but the regulations were way off. I dialed it in with 400 gr silver cast flat nose at 1550/1600 fps. 25 yards they stack in a figure 8. At 100 yards I have 4" vertical spread between my barrels. Front is on at 100. Back trigger is good for 150 yards

I use it when I bait for bears or follow a wounded one up
 
It will certainly do for short range hunting. My 458 Win. Mag. and 458 Lott are 1:14 twist, typical for these calibers, and shoot tighter groups than that with 500gr bullets. Using the 400gr Swift A-Frame bullet at 2000 fps MV I nailed an Elk at about 200 meters with my Handi-Rifle. Nice thing about it is that it's a take-down and stows nicely.
 
hawk-i said:
416 Remington magnum vs 458 win mag for Bison, Grizzly hunting.
Overkill maybe but why not.
Which one and why?
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Although it's not a true big bore, one of the 375magnums (H&H or Ruger) would be a better choice.

Less recoil, more components, cheaper to buy and shoot, lighter rifles, etc, etc.
 
I have a 375 H&H Magnum Sako 85 Kodiak and it's a really great all-weather hunting rifle. Current hunting load is the 300gr Accubond at 2300 fps which is near maximum. However, my custom 350 Remington Magnum actually outperforms my Kodiak because it fires a 310gr bullet at 2450 fps. The Kodiak would be perfect as a 416.

Recoil of the Kodiak is noticeably lighter than my 416 Remington Magnum which I load with a 350gr bullet at 2450 fps. 416 = more destruction. ;)

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375 H&H Magnum Sako 85 Kodiak with Leupold VX-2 1-4x20mm

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the 458's and 416's don't really give up much in range when used on bison, moose and grizzlys . A 458 win with a 350gr at 2600 is perfectly fine out to 300 yds as is a 416 with a 300x @2700. Are they needed,maybe not but if you own them why not use them ....most are deadly accurate ..
 
Slamfire said:
I have a 375 H&H Magnum Sako 85 Kodiak and it's a really great all-weather hunting rifle. Current hunting load is the 300gr Accubond at 2300 fps which is near maximum. However, my custom 350 Remington Magnum actually outperforms my Kodiak because it fires a 310gr bullet at 2450 fps. The Kodiak would be perfect as a 416.

Recoil of the Kodiak is noticeably lighter than my 416 Remington Magnum which I load with a 350gr bullet at 2450 fps. 416 = more destruction. ;)
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Not doubting your load but I have to ask is that 300gr Accubond velocity right = I used to load my Sako Hunter lV in 375H&H with 300gr Partitions @ 2450fps.

The more I look into the 416 Rem the more I like it.

I load my 21" barreled 375RUM with 350gr bullets @ 2450fps.
 
There is nothing in this world that you couldn't hunt with a 375. 270ttsx or 300gr solids.
I'd pick a nice 22" barrelled one that weighs about 8.5lbs scoped.
 
Camp Cook said:
I load my 21" barreled 375RUM with 350gr bullets @ 2450fps.
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The 416 Rem. Mag. is more efficient than the 375 RUM. It can drive a 350gr bullet at 2700 fps with less powder than the 375 RUM uses to get the same speed with a 300gr bullet. And with 2" less barrel length. Plus it has about 25% more cross-sectional area = more shock.

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Slamfire said:
Limitation of the Kodiak's 21-1/4" barrel. But it sure is a handy and pointable rifle with that short barrel. Too bad they don't make it in a 416.
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Thats almost exactly the same barrel length as my Hunter lV was.

I'll pass on the 416 for now just don't have time to mess with another rifle.

Last bigger bore rifle/load combo I've been working on is my shortened to 22" barreled stainless T/C Prohunter in 375H&H loaded with 250gr TTSX @ 2600fps.
 
The 416 Ruger utilizes a standard length action. Has slightly less case capacity than the 416 Rem. Mag. but for the same barrel length gives up only about 100 fps muzzle speed. With the Hogue stock my Alaskan Hawkeye is a really great rugged all-weather hunting rifle.

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Slamfire said:
The 416 Ruger utilizes a standard length action. Has slightly less case capacity than the 416 Rem. Mag. but for the same barrel length gives up only about 100 fps muzzle speed. With the Hogue stock my Alaskan Hawkeye is a really great rugged all-weather hunting rifle.

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The really interesting bit is almost cut off at the bottom but if you read the small print you see where the differences lie. The Ruger and Remington versions duplicate the traditional Rigby load in a narrower action (and shorter if you're a Ruger fan). But when you look at the pressure you can see that the Rigby is doing this at a pressure that it, for lack of a better term, just off the idle. Should you so desire to turn the volume up in a modern action like the Ruger RSM (which Ruger had to discontinue to motivate people to buy the Hawkeye) you can duplicate the performance of the Weatherby without having to shell out a premium for the Weatherby name (brass alone is a frightful price). If you were really wanting to be conscious you could substitute 338 Lapua brass for the 416 Rigby and have the advantage of the strengthened web area in the Lapua brass (I've never sectioned new production Rigby brass to see if it all has the thick web that the lapua does).

The Weatherby and Rigby are really in another league. And I'm not convinced that a normal person really wants or needs to play that kind of ball.
 
in really hot weather the rigby makes sense ... lucky that most of our country is not that hot ... 416 works great on bison in the winter and pretty sure if you can handle the 416 ruger is good to go ... i still think a big bore is above that ...
 
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