Same Gun Two Calibres 375 H&H or 458 W.M.

Well said!

Awesome tribute to the one cartridge that can "do it all"!

BRAVO !!!

Ardent said:
Indeed, man do things get screwed up when quoting on the Internetz. Bell used the .303, 7x57 (described by him and other Englishmen as .275 Rigby, which is the bore (land) diameter of 7mm, groove diameter remains standard .284"), and other military chamberings of the day.

For this choice, hands down the .375. The trajectory is the same as a .30-06, and it offers a bullet weight range of 200grs to 380grs excelling with all of them. There is nothing you can't hunt with a .375, and while extremely stout for new shooters, the recoil is manageable. It has been used successfully in hunts numbering thousands on all the nastiest stuff there is from Elephant to Lion. Mine will have hunted three of the big five by the end of Feb if all goes to plan and the animals show up.

.458 is much more of a niche stopping cartridge, they still shoot reasonably flat despite what many would think and the .458 WM has reasonable recoil (for very experienced shooters, can be severe for newer shooters). It's a tool you'd do well to have if you hunt Africa annually, otherwise .375 is the hands down choice. The closest my favourite PH came to dying was stopped by a .375, his .458 was at home. He's quite a fan, as am I.

It's a pretty versatile gun.

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Well thanks bud, and hey I remember we spoke a few years ago on the phone before that rifle's first trip overseas. She's since gained a fair bit of experience, by numbers that there would only be around half her take I imagine. You just get comfortable with a rifle and suddenly it's all that feels right! :) It's never hunted with a scope on either, same deal, the system works.
 
Boomer said:
To my way of thinking a .375 is a general purpose cartridge, whereas the .458 is a niche cartridge. Should the day come that you can afford an elephant hunt, the .458, or even better a .577 NE is the correct choice. Elephant hunting today is more dangerous then in Bell's day for two reasons. First is that the style of hunting today is to confront the elephant, as most hunters believe they want the experience of making a frontal brain shot. This is far more dangerous than Bell's technique of shooting from behind, or even then making a broadside shot. The second reason that today's elephant hunting is more dangerous is due to the various cropping programs carried out across Africa. Done correctly, no member of a family group escapes, but the reality is that occasionally one does. They say an elephant never forgets for a reason . . . they never do, and an elephant that survives a cull is a sworn enemy of man for the rest of his life. Anyway, so much for elephants, the point is that the .458 is at its best as a close range thumper. Another component of the general purpose rifle is one's ability to shoot from all field positions, supported and unsupported. This can become a real challenge once you are dealing with .458 class recoil, where many never attempt to shoot other than offhand.

Don't dismiss the 9.3X62 out of hand, particularly if finances are tight. Tradex is a fine source of affordable Husqvarna rifles, and 9.3X62 brass is easily made from .30/06. Bullets in 9.3 are more affordable than either .375 or.458, particularly the Serbian made stuff, marketed under the Previ name. Interestingly, the Previ 286 gr bullets look very similar to the Lapua 286, but they sure don't cost the same. In order to get good you have to shoot a lot, but you can't shoot a lot if your components are too expensive.

My friend Doug tells me I'm too long winded, so I'll stop now.
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I agree with everything you said except the 577. It's a throwback to the days when bullets sucked, powder was sulfurous and you had a local fellow to carry your rifle for you because it was too darned heavy to carry yourself on a protracted march. As big as is sensible, particularly for a client, is a 500 NE, though the various 470/475 No2/500-465 are the best choices for both hunting and getting yourself out of the poop. Anything more is simply a pretentious affectation.
 
BigUglyMan said:
I agree with everything you said except the 577. It's a throwback to the days when bullets sucked, powder was sulfurous and you had a local fellow to carry your rifle for you because it was too darned heavy to carry yourself on a protracted march. As big as is sensible, particularly for a client, is a 500 NE, though the various 470/475 No2/500-465 are the best choices for both hunting and getting yourself out of the poop. Anything more is simply a pretentious affectation.
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Well you won't see a .577 or a .600 in my gun room anytime soon unless I found a mountain of cash that would allow me the luxury of spending $20/shot and a desire to own a custom #1 that would stand out in the crowd. I've shot a few double rifles now, and am of the firm opinion that I am lacking the gene that would allow me to appreciate them. I prefer one trigger, of respectable weight, with a minimum of creep and over travel, that feels exactly the same from shot to shot; so its bolt guns for me. Perhaps a .505 Gibbs, a .500 Jeffery, or a .510 Wells would be less pretentious. I still want a .460 G&A (.458 Ultra), except that at the moment I find that that my .458 does all I need from a .45 caliber rifle. We've been hiking around the Yukon for the last week or so and these hills have me feeling like a wimp, so maybe I'm not tough enough to handle a heavy kicker anymore either.:(
 
BigUglyMan said:
Watching the Old Man outpace you has your mojo wounded, doesn't it?
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Actually we got together a couple of times for coffee, but either we were on our way out, or he was, so we didn't have a chance to do much together. I have no doubt in the world that he would walk me into the ground and still be smiling. How he got that moose off that hill last year???!!!
 
c-fbmi said:
The 458 Win was designed by Winchester to compete with and give the same ballistics as the 470 NE in a compact bolt action rifle costing $200.00 instead of $20,000.00. It is designed to be used out to approx 50 mtrs as a stopping gun on heavy dangerous game and really has no other practical application, much like the 470 NE. It is not a versatile cartridge in any sense of the word, period.
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Phooey!:p

The .458 Win. is a very versatile & flexible cartridge for a great range of game. You can taylor handloads for anything from gophers at 200+ yds. (A s*#t load of fun.) to Cape Buff in close. One needs to set up their rifle to best suit the game hunted or targets fired upon. Casting your own boolits cuts the cost way down and when loaded well, accuracy and performance won't suffer, neither will your shoulder.

I used a .458 Mauser M98 sporter for a few years in the 70's as a 50 & 100 yd. Running Deer competition rifle at the Fish & Game club meat shoots. I did well with that rifle, and never left a shoot empty handed.
I did a far bit of small and medium game bombing with that gun as well as plopping a couple of deer. The rifle weighed 8lbs complete with a 1.5-4.5 Bushnell scope which is a managable weight to pack around huntin'.

I'm on my 4th. .458 now, a BSA actioned Herters U9. This one's a tad porkier than the Mauser was, but
I appreciate the extra heft of the beasty after shooting many rounds.

No knock against the .375 either as it's just as versatile to handload as the .458 and is superbly accurate
in a well set up rifle. I just have more fun with the large bores.:)

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BigUglyMan said:
Bovidator
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"Bovinator"... I believe. Good handle, I'll probably apply that...


SHELL SHUCKER said:
Phooey!:p

The .458 Win. is a very versatile & flexible cartridge... Casting your own boolits cuts the cost way down and when loaded well, accuracy and performance won't suffer, neither will your shoulder.
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So that would be like a 350 cast over 3 grains of TB... or are they just primer charged?
 
OP... you asked, so my opinion is that neither a .375 H&H or .458 Win is for you... not with your criteria (experience, game, budget, future plans etc...) There are a pile of great cartridges between your .308 & .30/06 and the .375 H&H... for "northern moose and bear" any of the .30/.338/.35 cal standard & magnums are more gun than you will need for your objective, and a significant step up from those you currently have... personally I think the "ladder approach" would be prudent... But if prudence isn't your thing then "have at er'!"
 
Dogleg said:
Bumped the count up to 23 last year... with a charging bull in a Mozambique swamp...
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If I was a theatrical Hollywood producer...

At the sound of the shot, the Buff skids nose first, in a swirling cloud of dust, to the very feet of our hero. In a breathtaking, "pregnant pause", the hero turns his dust streaked, sunglassed face to his PH as the sweat streaks reflect the crimson setting sun... He raises one foot and places it on the forhead of the Buff as it renders its final sigh, and little puffs of dust jet out of the beasts nostrils and swirl around our hero's legs... And in deep, serious, echoing tones he utters; "I AM the BOVINATOR!" (Of course in an Austrian accent)...
 
Dogleg said:
Bumped the count up to 23 last year, with a chunky sweeper in OZ and a charging bull in a Mozambique swamp. This year I'm going to get serious. Well, thats the plan anyway.;)
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Have you ever hunted the introduced buffalo of South America? Some of the dove hunting lodges offer it as an additional package with various deer/stag and 4 horned goats. Not sure what spieces of buff they are however
 
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