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Hi: Anyone out there have a .458 Express. I have a Brno 602 in .458WM and this looks like an interesting conversion. Thank's

You can contact Prof Koos Badenhorst who designed the round at www.458express.com His website talks about American gunmakers who have built rifles for it. Perhaps he might know some of the users over here.

Good hunting!

IMO the 458 Express is the king of the .458s..It will shoot about any of the rest of the 458 caliber ammo btw....If I was going to the trouble to own a .458 then I would opt for the 2.99 case or just purchase cylinder Belted Mag cases and load them. It is 2.99 to allow for enough trim to even them out I suppose as the factory straight case are supposed to be 3.00

The caliber makes a lot of since to me and that is what the rest of the .458 calibers should have been in the first place, again IMO and it is certainly argueable. I am convienced, at least from my point of vue, its the best. I can't come up with anything negative about it short of some pretty vile recoil, but again it can be loaded down, thus less pressure. I would load it to 2300 FPS and feel pretty secure in my shorts.:)

A PH friend in South Africa is convinced it is the way to go there. It handles the Somechem powders better than the Lott and will use any kind of ammo. He has traded his 450 Rigby for one.

Well now, does this mean that someone wanting a .458-Express can not have their model 70 Winchester, which has been rechambered for the .458-Lott, can not simply have such a rechambering to the .458-Express?

Would the magazine box of the model 70 cause this to not work because of perhaps box length? Than you!

Tonk (and gunbug):

1. With the ordinary Model 70 box magazine, you can't load cartridges with a COAL longer than 3.34 inches. With a CZ550 you can. You would have to modify the magazine box with a Model 70 and probably a CZ550.

2. Before you do this conversion, check out the amount of freebore in your .458 Winchester. My Model 70 is surprisingly long. You can seat bullets like the TSX, which has three grooves for crimping, much further out than you would think, especially lighter bullets. Why bother to convert?

3. What do you want to do anyway that you can't do with a 500 gr. at 2200 or a 350 grain spire point at 2700? The latter has 5700 fp of muzzle energy. Both are easy to achieve in an ordinary .458. Why bother converting at all?

If I had a Lott then I would not consider the conversion..If I were building myself a 458 then it would perhaps be the 3" version..If I had a .458 Win. then I would rechamber it to the Lott or the 3 inch version..If I wanted to load it down to 2100 or 2200 then I would be shooting it at much less pressure, but 2300 to 2350 FPS really does make a buffalos liver quiver, he will shake like a dog pooping a peach seed and won't make many tracks as a rule. Hit in the head with a 500 gr. solid at that speed it will always get the brain and always seems to take out a bunch of spine behind his head.

Recoil is the only objection with the Lott or the 3 inch version IMO....and that should be a consideration.

It is pretty simple to open the M-70 box and lengthen the throat for a 3 inch version of the .458...

Ray,

I don't understand why you would bother to rechamber a .458 Win. to the Lott. IIRC, Hornady factory loads only give the Lott 50 fps over the Win., presumably at the same maximum pressures. Hardly worth the effort, I would think.

2200 fps is no trick with the Win. Or you can shoot a 450 grain flat point solid that actually penetrates deeper than Woodleigh-shaped 500 grain solids. I shoot mine at 2250. I don't know if I can get 2300 or not. I never thought I needed to try that.

The Lott will give the same velocity at lower pressure, but why do you care, provided pressures don't exceed the SAAMI maximum? With modern powders, like Hodgdon Extremes, the pressure doesn't increase as the temperature rises anyway. My 2350 fps cases practically fall out of the chamber after I fire them.

One of my drills is to load four rounds and shoot as fast as I can, offhand, at 25 or 30 yards, trying to keep everything in a 6" circle. I would rather have the shorter bolt throw of the .458 Winchester.

Thank you gentlemen for your expertise on this subject! I guess I will just keep that rechambered .458 Win mag a rechambered LOTT, since I dont' want to fool around with gunsmiths and box work on my rifle. RECOIL is another issue I suppose and right now that LOTT has all I need in that department.

"cylinder Belted Mag cases" If you say Bertram, I'll puke and drop any thought of building a .458 express, what brand or who makes these cases?

If you write BELL in, that cylinder .375 brass is only 2.85".

3sixbits,
I had Hornady in mind...You will never see any Bertrm brass in my shop! I would rather be gilflurted and stringhaultered than shoot one Bertram round through one of my rifles..:)

Indy,
You know I am not going to change my mind! I prefer the Lott because its a better round any way you cut it! I can load it down to 458 Win velocity and have less pressure, but why would I do that? I'd rather have the extra gas..:)

Ray,

Yeah I know that.

But it's sorta like never hunting elk with a 30-06 because the .300 Magnum is a better round.

Except the .300 Magnum buys about 300 fps. The Lott only buys 50 fps as loaded by Hornady, maybe 100 (I don't recall) for a careful handloader.

If the .458 Win. can penetrate an elephant deeply enough when fired from ever which way angle that makes sense, not to mention a buffalo, why bother to change? Personally, I would shoot whichever one I had at the time. But I wouldn't spend any money to change one into the other.

[quote=atkinson]3sixbits,
I had Hornady in mind...You will never see any Bertrm brass in my shop! I would rather be gilflurted and stringhaultered than shoot one Bertram round through one of my rifles..:)

Och Soooo, H&H basic from Hornady? It's 3.00"?

The thing about Bertram is the cost for one shot on a piece of poor quality to start with brass. I was only burnt once on that crap, never again!

I've been thinking of doing a funny with a pre-64 scratch built barrel on and H&H action, with all the proper roll stamps and proper ctg stamp. I figured that should really confuse a few folks, using and H&H action. A .458 barrel not stamp Winchester magnum but stamped instead .458 Express, should get some head scratching going.

Very late to the party ... but the 458Express has a clone in the 458AR. Shoots as fast as a Lott in a standard length action using cheap as chips 300RUM brass shortened. As with all wildcats there's a price to pay, in this case its the custom dies plus the fiddling forming brass. In the States though your lucky in having headstamped 458AR brass available. I've had a 500gr at 2230fps from a 22" barrel with absolute mild pressures and a mate runs his with a 400gr at 2550fps.
Cheers...
Con

Con, I just spoke with Jeffe today. I'm working on putting together a 470AR. Actually just gathering up brass and dies as yet. Trying to decide between the Mark X action I have, or selling it to buy a Ruger to build on. Leaning toward the Ruger.

David

What on this earth could a man need more of, when you can get 2230fps with a 500 grain bullet (as long as the bullet is right for the intended job at hand)?

400 grainers at 2550fps is as good as it gets and gives all a man could want or need. What total weight is your rifle with the 22" barrel?

I see you live in the land of my favorite bullet maker (Woodleigh).

IndyCA35....I also caught that 50fps gain on the .458-LOTT over the .458 Win mag and was hoping it was some kind of a mistake!
Quite frankly I was told prior to rechambering to the LOTT, that it would pick me up at least 125 fps velocity. So what really gives with this LOTT business anyway? Now all the hipe I have read on the LOTT, it seems to me that most people would not even think about a rechamber job for the sake of a miserly 50fps.

NOW IS THE HORNADY MANUAL WRONG OR WHAT?

Guys,
Regarding the 458AR (458AccRel in Australia due to that scary 'AR' accronym for Assault Rifle), there are 3 in Australia now all built on C/M Ruger actions. All 3 required nil feed work ... just fit the barrel and away we went even with flat-nosed 405gr Remington pills. Rifles hold 2+1 although there's a bit of secret squirrel work going on at the moment to produce a custom steel floorplate to give 3+1 capacity in the Ruger. Mine runs a 500gr Woodleigh at 2230fps (that was the fireforming load and I didnt feel like going further!), a mate runs a 400gr at 2500fps (that load made me sell the 416Rigby), the third owner has played with cast loads at near sub-sonic levels and the 400gr pills.

My rifle weighs exactly as does a CZ550 I had in 458Lott, but has a heavier contour to make it muzzle heavy. Its comfortable enough that I still have the Ruger bumper bar recoil pad fitted ... its definately easier than the CZ550 was to handle, I think there's something to be said about a bit of muzzle weight.

Whilst I run my 458AR at a sedate 2230fps ... I can still push it for another 150fps if I feel that way inclined but my experience has been that the rifles really 'wake up' when you go beyond 2200fps. In many ways I now understand that the Brits had it right with a 500gr at 2150fps maximum, the next 100fps tends to hurt. One day I'll build another even lighter just for shooting a 400gr at 2400fps as an all-rounder, I reckon a 9lb rifle would be adequate.

Best bit about the 458AR ... I shoot it using opened up once fired 300RUM brass (twice annealed to prevent cracking) that costs but 25c each!! I honestly reckon its the best 45cal cartridge beyond the 458WinMag when a standrad length action is all you have to use. In a CZ550, the extra magazine box length would provide you the option to use Barnes monolithics, but I prefer the shorter action overall.
Cheers...
Con
PS: Just as a side note ... I got confused originally between the 458 Express (3") and 458 African Express which is the 458AR's closest cousin dimensionally. Either way ... a 500gr at a comfortable 2200fps makes a prtty good all-round Big stick.

I hope this link will help folks with pictures of this .458 A
R. Ctg.

Link