Opinions are of course at least as prevalent as certain orifices, and it's surely a fact that everyone does have them, but I find it bizarre to listen to the 458 bashers. I had thought that that had settled down a bit.
Even when the 458 was first introduced, many questioned why it was designed with the short case when the action would clearly handle the 375 length case. One more than suspects it was part of the sales pitch of the recently introduced family of short magnums--something we're repeating today and apparently buying into with even shorter and fatter rounds. Still, one can only keep making the short case point so many times before it's just boring and pointless....the 458 Mag is what 'tis.
It undeniably had some problems early on with powders used, presumably as an economy measure and with some atrocious bullets. However, the problems were largely solved long before Internet Bwana Simbas leaped onto the 458-is-barely-more-effective-than-a- popgun-hobby horse based mostly on a couple of articles by Jacques Lott which set the stage for a stampede of the herd of individualists.
Would it have been a more versatile cartridge with a full length case? Undeniably---but it wasn't made that way. As it is, it's still more gun than most shooters can handle effectively.
Of course, when the 458 came out, folks treated it like it was little short of a shoulder fired field piece with as much damage to the shooter's shoulder as down range. Only the gods know how folks in mid-1950's would have responded to a 458 on the full length 375 case. Certainly the wildcat 45's had their following but it was surely too small for a major company to make a profit on. I reckon we were all weaker souls back then given all the folks today who shoot the Lotts, G&A's, and even the big 500 bores on 460 Wby cases and even larger bores with precision and speed.
It also really shouldn't need pointing out that most folks were taking the 458 Win to task for it's lack of velocity compared to the old 450-470 Nitro rounds using chronographed results from the 458 compared to the paper ballistic figures of the old Kynoch rounds without bothering to observe the blue sky in those latter figures.
Simple fact is, whatever folks have to say about it, the 458 Win carved out a major niche in the big bore field. It certainly helped the 458's progress that Kynoch discontinued production of the NE rounds for a while and 458 magazine rifles were readily and inexpensively available as was the ammuntion. As far as it's power, though, and most folks ability to use it effectively, one has to put a fair bit of credence in the professional hunters -- Finn Aagaard being one of the most notable--who preferred hunters to use a 375 for larger game since they figgered it was about the max calibre that their average hunter could learn to shoot decently with.
I certainly don't see folks on the ranges I frequent who handle recoil well even with service weight handguns and 30 calibre rifles, much less serious heavy bore rifles. Don't get me wrong, I like plus-40 bore handguns and rifles, but an awful lot of us kid ourselves about being able to use them effectively. It's all the more interesting with African game, since most sport hunters can't afford to shoot what was originally meant by Big Game and will use essentially stopping rifles for elephant in the bush to kill buffalo and lesser critters.
Personally, I wouldn't carry one of my 416's, 458's, or my one 470NE to Alaska---certainly not anything larger, but I'd surely be happy on a serious bear hunt in the alders to have the likes of Phil Shoemaker with his pragmatic, ugly 458 standing ready to handle an unexpected emergency. Somehow, I don't think any sane person would find him or his rifle wanting.
Cheers,
