In a month I'll be 86. I've two BG rifles left, a 12ga and two .22 LRs. The two BG rifles are a #1 Ruger in .458 Win Mag and a Tikka T3 Lite in 9.3 x 62. The .458 has Mag-na-ports and the 9.3 x 62 is in a shop for a slim-line muzzle break. I handload for each, and have handloaded all centerfire rifles I've ever owned, except one. The first I made handloads for was a converted M98 military rifle to .30-06. The second I made handloads for was a .22 Hornet. Since then I've run the course, pretty well, of most common rifles all the way to three in .458 Win. The most common bore for which I've made handloads is .458-cal., including ten .45-70s, plus the .458 Win Mags. The next most common has been in .300 magnums.
We only got enough elk in our province of Ontario for hunting purposes about a dozen years ago, and I've never gotten a license. But moose in the north and bears everywhere have commanded most of my hunting activities - not all.
But the thing about the .458 Win Mag is its versatility. At the range I've shot many loads of 500s at up to 2300 fps. But this fall season - for deer, black bear and wolf, my load is a 250gr Hornady MonoFlex at 2610 fps. About the same as a hot-loaded 1895 Marlin in .45-70. Recoil from my 10.6 lb Ruger #1 with Mag-na-ports is 23 ft-lbs, or about the same as a .30-06. Too heavy? Does 2 extra pounds make a rifle too heavy? Not if you're in good shape and used to it! Last winter I had a severe attack of arthritis that lasted four months. I could barely hold a cup of coffee! With prayer and good help from a specialist, I'm about 75% free of it!
So, I must be a real "he man"? Not really - in my prime I was 5'-9 1/4" in bare feet at 210 lbs. Today, I'm 5'-8.5" at 160 lbs, and about 86 years in this world... and parts of about 70 of those years in a hunting context of mostly Eastern Canada.
Bob
For more of my experiences and thoughts, you can read:
www.bigbores.ca
