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

The DGS is the third generation of Hornady solids.
It is an improvement, but ...
In MIB tests it performed unreliably,
sometimes penetrating as well as a CEB brass FN,
sometimes not.

Our SWAG is that the meplat diameter is marginal at about 60% of caliber on the DGS.
67% to 68% is the optimal meplat based on results with CEB (brass) and North Fork (copper) monometals,
both of which are big-boringly reliable for solid performance.

If the DGS swerves it fishtails, can flatten its tail and stop short and off course.
Very disturbing, this, from an elephant shoulder:



Amazing that such a thick steel jacket around the lead core in the tail can flatten like that.



Remember,
DGS not so good.
DGX-Bonded good.
CEB Safari Solid best solid.
404-gr Shock Hammer best soft.

Q: What is the Hornady factory DGS ammo for .458 WinMag good for ?
A: Checking chronographs for reliability.

In my limited experience with elephants (1 bull and 4 tuskless) the CEB BBW #13 SS penetrates in straight line fashion and breaks whatever bone is needed along its path.

This based on the 0.510” 570 gn @ 2175 fps, 0.423” 400 gn @ 2500 fps, 0.458” 450 gn and 500 gn both @ 2400 fps - all brass Safari Solids. Haven’t felt a need to try any other solids for elephants but I know that a few others may work as well.

My 458WM arrived today. It’s nothing fancy, just a Ruger 77 RS ‘79 model that looks unfired. Scope is an older vari-x iii 1.75-6x32 that’s been through the custom shop for a heavy duplex reticle. I’ve got 300 PCs of virgin Win brass and (150) 450gr tsx and lots of cfe-223 to get me started.

Being that it’s a shorter action I doubt I can shoot the hotter loads that some of you guys are but should be fun anyways for elk and bears in the timber here.

Nice rifle, congratulations!
3.4" action should get bullets moving right on along.

I just acquired one just like that :-) I've been loading on the light side of things - 45-70 level loads. Haven't even shot it yet!

MallardAddict,

Like Sir Larry said, 3.38" COL and 2500 fps with the 404-gr Shock Hammer
makes your rifle a 300-yard Elk Killer.

You need a Sir Name for The .458 Winchester Magnum Square Table.
Knighthood awaits you.
We have a Sir Larry already, but no "Sir Curly" nor "Sir Moe."
Come on man, humor us and pick any Sir Name you like, we will just try to avoid duplications,
but if a Sir Name is already taken that you insist upon,
we can add "The Second" or "Of (insert locale)," etc.

Sir Thomas,
Good man !
Life happens.
I need to shoot some more too, most fun whenever it happens.

I have this old .470 Capstick that would make a nice .458 WM+ by re-barreling:



I might be able to reduce this 10.75-pounder to a 9-pounder with the proper barrel.
Even lighter if a B&C stock is used, with the proper barrel for balance.
Alas, since it was made to feed well with .470 Capstick, I need to try .458 WM+ dummies first ...
make sure it retains and feeds.
Anyway, here is a walnut stock bedding example that is recommended for the .458 WM+,
more powerful than a SAAMI .458 Lott. Marine-Tex done by an excellent gunsmith:













The only thing this stock lacks is a grip bolt of steel allthread inserted under the grip cap
and angled toward the rear pillar, embedded in epoxy:

The SAAMI .458 Lott is sappy, sappy, sappy.
There. I came right out with it.
The truth.

If it’s not already taken Sir Matt will do just fine.

I got (175) 450 gr TSX’s pretty cheap from a local shop and have plenty of 4198 and cfe223 to atleast get me started.

I got 2298 with the 450TSX with a case full of AA2230

Sir Matt,
Save the H4198, best for 250-350-grainers.
CFE-223 is excellent with 500-grainers.
Should be about perfect for the excellent 450-gr TSX too.
Will review my data after domestic chores are done.

I don't have any load data for CFE223 in the 458 Win mag, but I have a lot of it

Is it literally a matter of a new barrel if one has a M70 NH Classic 300 Win Mag?

Should be all it takes.
I did that to a 7mm RemMag, and it fed fine as frog hair, a .300 WinMag ought to do as well or better.
Glad to do it to a 7mmRemMag, would hesitate on a .300 WinMag merely out of loyalty to the WinMag line.

Oh yeah ...
The 450-gr TSX is a great bullet if you do not have a 404-gr Shock Hammer.
I still have not beaten AA-2230 and AA-2460 with either of those bullets for top speed,
though there are many powders yet to be tried.
Heavily compressed H4895 might do it, but that is a bit of a bother.
Other powders can clean the bore and might be more temperature independent,
and the ball powders do pack better, etc.
Really, anymore than 2300 fps MV with 450-grainers is gravy anyway.
That might be possible with CFE 223,
and I hope Sir Matt will try it and report here on chronograph results ...













Here is a medium speed load with compressed H4895 and the 450-gr TSX,
loaded with long COL, so seating depth is about like the Hornady RNSN above:



Compare the Alliant Varmint powder to CFE 223,
both with same rifle, same day, same 500-gr RNSN at 3.480" COL,
Varmint is faster with less powder too.

Here is a list of my favorite powders for the .458 WinMag,
add to this Winchester STABALL MATCH with about same burn rate as Win 748 (#137)
which is on the slower side, close to CFE 223 in the list:

CFE 223 is a super powder in cartridges like the 400 Whelen with heavy bullets.
Here is a Sir Jerry load:





CFE 223 might be the powder to use for 600-gr and heavier (!) bullets in the .458 WinMag.

If you load the 450-gr TSX to short COL about 3.340"
you ought to have room for about 65.0 grains of CFE-223 without compression.
I say start there and work up to no more than 105% Loading Ratio/Net Fill.
Use a drop tube like Sir Jerry did in the 400 Whelen.
He got 68.0 grains of powder in the smaller case with a similar COL and seating depth relationship!

Please do tell of any results with CFE 223, please.
I'll add it to my list of loads to try with 450-gr TSX.