how good is the .358 Winchester?

I'm with Takujualuk with regard to thin skinned, fast, agile and dextrous game. Use the smaller calibres for this hunt. Fast, light and devastating to soft tissue is just the trick. Yes I like the .270 Winchester. Thank You Jack O'Connor.

I believe muzzle velocity can not be obtained to provide sufficient bullet expansion on thin skinned game. Not a quick kill on soft tissue. However I'm sure there are a few combinations with the righ handload that can work just fine under the right conditions. I still se the .338 Federal and .358 Winchester as timber cartridges for larger boned game like black bear.

If you're talking .30-06 wildcats - thats a different story. I'm a big supporter of the .338-06 and 35 Whellan.

Takujualuk said:
Well I had a 358 for several years in the Arctic and Northern Saskatchewan and I was very disappointed with it. In almost every respect the 308 Win was better.
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Well - You really need to get some shooting practice... 308 should have less recoil than the 358 due to the lighter bullet, and you can get half decent mil surp 7.62 to practice on the cheap. If you get ambitious, you can relaod to mexican match standard, or completely roll your own.
Borrow your buddies 30-06 and take it to the range. See how you like the recoil. A lot of folks cant handle the 30-06 without flinching - I find it difficult to shoot regularly, and I'm 6 ft 200 lbs. This should help you make your decision.
Displaying my personal bias - you should pick up a 6.5 X 55 mauser based sporter, and shoot the sn*t out of it. There are a pile of them around these days (thanks Tradex), the recoil is very manageable, fantastic range of bullet weights, and shoots flatter than most 30 calibre rifles.
 
Well the 358 Winchester is almost as good as the 9.3x57. Which is a very good cartridge for deer,bear,moose,cariboo,elk,etc. Even heard of a few getting very good results on wild boar with it too.
 
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