The 458 Winchester Magnum is a caliber that many shooters dismiss as being purely for those heading for Africa, Australia or Alaska. But in fact for a shooter who reloads their ammunition it can be used with light bullets for a wide range of hunting applications, and for enjoyable target shooting.
Fast Facts
- While the 458 Winchester Magnum is primarily thought of as a dangerous game caliber primarily for use on African or Australian game it is in fact a very flexible cartridge.
- Light bullet loads for the 458 Winchester Magnum start at 250gn, with a Barnes 250gn TSX FN bullet able to be driven from 2,683fps up to a crisp 2,952fps according to Hodgdon and ADI load data.
- Light bullet loads in the 458 Winchester Magnum can transform it from being a hard recoiling buffalo stopper to a moderate recoiling deer and pig cartridge.
Why would someone purchase a 458 Winchester Magnum rifle and then shoot light bullet loads in it?
The first man to climb Mount Everest was New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and when he was asked why he did it he replied “Because its there”.
So perhaps there might be 458 Winchester Magnum owners who choose to load light bullets in their rifle simply because it can be done.
Perhaps, but I think there are some good reasons why one would purchase a 458 Winchester Magnum rifle with the intention of using lighter bullets in it: why? Because the 458 Winchester Magnum is an amazingly flexible multi-purpose caliber: it can be thought of as a super 45-70 – or a 45-70 on steroids.
But that being said it can be comfortably loaded down to 45-70 levels or up to pachyderm busting levels. So it can be loaded for deer, pigs and other medium to big game: and if you desire to go occasionally to a place where the critters are bigger, tougher, and might have designs on your demise, then you can do so with the same rifle, a rifle you become highly practiced with.
To get the best out of your 458 Winchester Magnum you need to be a reloader, and when you are it opens up a world of potential that is not possible with factory ammunition.
The reloading manuals often simply assume that the 458 is for buffalo on up and only offer heavy bullet loads suitable for large and dangerous game. But some are more imaginative.
For example:-
- In the Hornady Handbook of Cartridge Reloading 9th Edition there are loadings offered for their 300gn HP, 350gn Interlock FP and RN, along with their 500gn DGS and DGX.
- In the Norma Reloading Manual No.2 the Hornady 350gn RN is listed along with 400gn Swift A-frame FN along with the expected heavier dangerous game bullets.
- The Sierra reloading manual lists their 300gn FN.
- The Lyman Reloading Handbook 49th Edition lists the 300gn Sierra FN and the 350gn Speer SP.
- Speer provide load data for the 458 Winchester Magnum and their 350gn SP (Click here).
But to really start to appreciate the light bullet possibilities of the 458 Winchester Magnum, I think the best place to look is the load data provided online by Hodgdon and their Australian supplier ADI (Australian Defense Industries – Thales).
Hodgdon and ADI start their load listings with the 250gn Barnes TSX FN, and list the 300gn Barnes TSX and TTSX BT, the 350gn Speer SP, and 400gn Swift SP.
In addition to those jacketed bullet loadings they also list a couple of light cast bullet loads for enjoyable plinking practice with your 458.
- You’ll find the Hodgdon load data if you click here.
- You’ll find the ADI load data if you click here.
Its well worthwhile to spend a bit of time looking through those listings to grasp just how flexible a 458 Winchester Magnum is.
Rifles for the 458 Winchester Magnum
If you have a 458 Winchester Magnum rifle already and have a yearning to dust it off and go get some enjoyment out of it then using lighter bullets can allow you to take it out deer hunting or use it for target practice or coke can plinking.
If you are planning to buy a rifle then one issue that many will want to consider is rifle weight. Production 458 Winchester Magnum rifles are typically made to tip the scales around the 9lb mark: which is perfectly sensible given the recoil level heavy bullet full power loads generate. But if you plan to use your 458 with light bullets then there are light weight rifles available.
One of these lightweights is the Serbian Zastava M70 bolt action which can be ordered with either a 22″ or 24″ barrel, and which weighs an easy to carry 7½ lb.
I’ve had the opportunity to shoot one of these in 458 Winchester Magnum, and I own one in 9.3x62mm. The 458 proved to be lively to shoot but completely controlable thanks to the excellent Monte Carlo stock design. My 9.3x62mm is likewise very comfortable to shoot and has the same Monte Carlo stock style as the 458.
So it is reasonable to expect that a 458 Winchester Magnum Zastava M70 would prove to be quite comfortable to shoot with light bullet loads: and at 7½lb very comfortable to carry into the woods.
Zastava also sell their M70 as a barreled action so the owner can have a custom stock fitted.
Conclusion
The 458 Winchester Magnum is a caliber that many shooters dismiss as being purely for those heading for Africa, Australia or Alaska. But in fact for a shooter who reloads their ammunition it can be used for a wide range of hunting applications, and for enjoyable target shooting.
If you are going to keep shots down to 200 yards or so then the 458 can be a good choice for pretty much anything that you might want to use it for.
Picture Credits: Feature image at the head of this post is a current model Winchester Model 70 Safari Express rifle – picture courtesy Winchester. All other pictures as individually credited.
Jon Branch is the founder and senior editor of Revivaler and has written a significant number of articles for various publications including official Buying Guides for eBay, classic car articles for Hagerty, magazine articles for both the Australian Shooters Journal and the Australian Shooter, and he’s a long time contributor to Silodrome.
Jon has done radio, television, magazine and newspaper interviews on various issues, and has traveled extensively, having lived in Britain, Australia, China and Hong Kong. His travels have taken him to Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan and a number of other countries. He has studied the Japanese sword arts and has a long history of involvement in the shooting sports, which has included authoring submissions to government on various firearms related issues and assisting in the design and establishment of shooting ranges.
