Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Express Rifles and Big Bores Only The great 458 Winchester. Everyone should own one at least once

bcelliott,

That is a very good question.
I prefer the 450-gr and 500-gr monometals at higher velocities than with the 550-grain cup&core,
Some will swear by their 550-grain cup&core-bonded Woodleigh at 2100 fps from the SAAMI .458 WM.
I bet they are not just being profane.
As long as the bullet is not a monometal copper or brass bullet exceeding 1.6" in length, no worries, just my SWAG.
The overwhelming consensus is that the 500-grain solid of any type at 2100 fps is optimum for elephant pass throughs at 25 to 50-yard range.
Inside of 25 yards they might penetrate less, especially noted in the days of the RNFMJ solids.
Something about a bullet getting better stabilized 25 yards down range, and lesser velocity means less tissue resistance.
Maybe the FN solid overcomes some of this close-range instability, and might be better at higher velocity than the old RN.

With the RNSN at 2100 fps, a 550-grainer has more momentum and KE and will drive expansion better at same velocity as the 500-grainer.

Yet Richard Harland reported great things with 450-gr solids at 2300 fps for elephant hunting with the SAAMI .458 WM

Finn Aagaard reported the first generation X-Bullet of 400-gr weight and no more than 2300 fps from the SAAMI .458 WM
was more devastating in wound channel volume and penetration depth
than any other 500-gr soft he tested in his artificial media,
and Phil Shoemaker verified it on big brown bear and such live game.

Bill Bagwell reported that the cast FN .458"/ 480-gr at just under 1300 fps would pass through game routinely,
bison at 75 yards, through both shoulders,
and deer-sized game at 300-yards.
The slow bullet generates less tissue resistance, and at such velocities the cast lead does not over-expand, penetrates deep.

It is not a stretch to think that a 450-grain FN monometal solid at around 2300 fps
would be ideal for either elephant or blue whale with a SAAMI .458 WM+.
The 500-gr TBSS with bronze FN and bonded lead core (1.400" bullet length for 500-gr weight)
at 2300 fps might be the best of all possible worlds,
in a magic wand like a .458 WM+, at lower pressure than can be done with a .458 Lott.