Just having acquired a .458Wn and just having converted it to .458Lott before even firing it I must say I do not understand the argument. For a lousy $75.00 I have both. Can anyone give me a good reason why I or anyone owning a .458WN should not have done the punch out? I now have two rifles for the cost of one. What the hell is wrong with that?
Here are several:
1. You don't have two rifles. The two cartridges are basically like peas in a pod. It's like having a .243 and a 6mm Remington. If you ever have a shortage of ammo in Africa, you will probably find .458wm easier to get anyway.
2. What about magazine length? You might have to lengthen the magazine for the cartridges to fit. If you don't, why not just save your $75.00 and use another groove on monolithic bullets? Have you ever measured the freebore on a .458wm? You'll probably run out of magazine length before you run out of chamber length.
3. What about feeding? You might have to rework the rails. Or you might not. .458 feeding can be touchy. For instance, flat point solids work fine in my M70 but jam up in my PH's M70.
4. In general, .458 Lott reloading is more touchy. Unless you shell out for an extra length press, it's kind of difficult to fit the case and the bullet in it. Longer cases are also more prone to collapse slightly if you use too much lube, have them a bit off center, etc.
5. Firing .458wms in a Lott chamber may not be very accurate due to all the freebore you are adding.
6. Do you know anyone who would buy a .300 Winchester magnum and have it rechambered to a .300 Weathereby before even firing it? I didn't think so.
