.458 Lott too much for North American Big game?

[Neophyte]

I’m thinking of adding a .416 Taylor to the 6.5 Creedmoor, .338WM, .375 Ruger battery.

There’s no such thing as too dead. Coues deer with a .416 Taylor should be interesting. It would make the .338WM and .416 Taylor a good two gun combo.

A .458 caliber on whitetail deer should be outstanding. 45-70 works well on those critters too.

 

[ldmay375]

I’m thinking of adding a .416 Taylor to the 6.5 Creedmoor, .338WM, .375 Ruger battery.

There’s no such thing as too dead. Coues deer with a .416 Taylor should be interesting. It would make the .338WM and .416 Taylor a good two gun combo.

A .458 caliber on whitetail deer should be outstanding. 45-70 works well on those critters too.

Heck yes. If have them, or want them, use them. As to the 416's, I am a big fan.
I like the 458's also. 45-70, 458 Winchester, and 458 Lott.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

so ive been hunting small and medium size game for years, and would like to make the jump to some bigger game animals( Moose, Bear, Nilgai, Buffalo).....

now i have rifles in damn near every caliber up to .375HH.....and i am more than confident .375 will take any game i plan on hunting.....but would i be better served with a .458 (or other .4xx caliber)? or would that be "too much" for anything in N.A.?

right now im leaning towards a CZ550 in .458

thanks for the help

If you want someone to talk you out of buying a new rifle, you've come to the wrong place. If you already have a .375 H&H, you most likely won't find any advantage in a .458 Lott. But...the .458 Lott is a hell of a boomer! Who wouldn't want one? Anyway, maybe you'll want to go and hunt an elephant one day and a Lott would be just the right rifle!

 

[rifletuner]

I hunt with large bore rifles in Australia the majority of the time. These are what I like to use just because I love the rifles and prefer to get out and use them at every opportunity. I generally use lighter for calibre bullets, but not always. People who have never tried using bigger bores seem to think the animal will disintegrate into tiny pieces, but thats far from the case.

I used my 450 Ackley (ballistically identical to the 458 Lott) to hunt wild pigs in northern Australia. I mostly loaded it with 400gn Woodleigh RNSN bullets, but did also use 500gn bullets after getting back from a Cape buffalo hunt just to use up the left over ammo.

My son does the same. As soon as we finished his 458 Win build, we developed a load using Barnes 300gn TTSX bullets and took it deer hunting.

 

[Northern Shooter]

My 458 WM works great on our local bear and moose, can't imagine the Lott would be any different.

 

[skydiver386]

I hunt with large bore rifles in Australia the majority of the time. These are what I like to use just because I love the rifles and prefer to get out and use them at every opportunity. I generally use lighter for calibre bullets, but not always. People who have never tried using bigger bores seem to think the animal will disintegrate into tiny pieces, but thats far from the case.

I used my 450 Ackley (ballistically identical to the 458 Lott) to hunt wild pigs in northern Australia. I mostly loaded it with 400gn Woodleigh RNSN bullets, but did also use 500gn bullets after getting back from a Cape buffalo hunt just to use up the left over ammo.

My son does the same. As soon as we finished his 458 Win build, we developed a load using Barnes 300gn TTSX bullets and took it deer hunting.

Nice looking critters there, but those beautiful rifles catch my eye just as much.

 

[Huvius]

If you reload, the 458 Lott or Windbag are perfect for just about every game animal in North America.
Think round balls at under 1000fps up to 500gr plus projectiles of every description at express velocities.
I used my Lott as a test mule for light 350gr cast and jacketed as well as cast heavies, paper patched and bullets I made from spent 45ACP brass as well as the usual DG bullets.
I sold that rifle - a stainless No.1 because values got high enough to let it go but I have a heavy barreled No.1 in 458WM (1976 model) which will fill that slot.

 

[rifletuner]

Nice looking critters there, but those beautiful rifles catch my eye just as much.

Thanks mate. Life's too short to hunt with an ugly rifle

 

[Gemsbok45]

That 458 Lott is a nice caliber. Why not. For years I carried the 416 Rem in a Model 70. Plenty big. Get around enough Elephants and that CZ 505 Gibbs made me feel better. Big bores are fun go have some!

 

[Rickmt]

If it’s legal,go for it! To each his own.

 

[dogcat1]

Shoot what you can handle and shoot it well.
The .458 Lott is fine if you can handle it. Good luck and I hope your dentist is on speed dial.

 

[mgstucson]

There is always the "Beware the hunter with only one gun, he probably knows how to use it." argument. Some say use your big gun on everything so when the time comes and the chips are down in a life or death situation, everything is second nature. Full bore 458 Lott rounds can detach retinas though, if shot in long sessions, so you do have to be careful.

I read what an African PH wrote who only owned and used 3 rifles, 3 Win. Mod 70's, tricked out with finish, stocks, bedding, barrel lengths etc. all matching. The calibers were 30-06, 375 H&H, and 458 Lott. With all 3 rifles having nearly identical stock geometries, trigger pulls, safety mechanisms, etc. it was almost like shooting the same rifle with different loads. The biggest difference being the difference between the stand action and the magnum actions. The 30-06 loads and 375 H&H loads were chosen for nearly identical trajectories at normal hunting ranges, and of course the 458 Lott was usually a 100 yards or closer option, so trajectory was not an issue. He used the 30-06 hunting everything except large-bodied game. He used the 375 H&H hunting large-bodied game and speed training at the range with the long magnum action. He used the 458 Lott ONLY on dangerous game. He shot regularly enough with the 30-06 and 375 H&H to keep shooting skills sharp. He only fired the 458 Lott 10 times per year in the off season right before the start of season over 2 or 3 range trips. 2-5 shots per range trip for a total of 10 shots, just to make sure everything was functioning properly. The only other time he fired the 458 Lott was on the job usually at dangerous game.

That sounds like a very prudent approach to me for several reasons, on several levels, for a person who could be called on to save lives in an instant, with a rifle, reacting entirely on muscle memory and autonomic nervous system response (which is what every human does in a life-threatening situation with no warning.)

Personally, I have hunted exclusively for decades with a 30-06 and 180gr loads for everything from 40 pound javelina to bull elk approaching 1000 pounds. The largest dangerous game I could encounter is a 300 pound black bear or a 100 pound mountain lion. These animals are lethal to be sure, but rarely encountered. I have never felt the need for more gun.

 

[grand veneur]

One rifle is not enough for everything you can hunt and shoot worldwide. It's certainly possible to shoot a lot of game with a large caliber rifle like a 458 Lott, even smaller game species, but you quickly reach certain limits, especially when it comes to shoot at longer distance. However, you only need a maximum of three rifles and one shotgun for hunting worldwide. Over the last decades I have an opinion about what is needed, but there are different and also individual concepts. This explains why discussions about calibers and cartridges never reach a common consensus.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

One rifle is not enough for everything you can hunt and shoot worldwide. It's certainly possible to shoot a lot of game with a large caliber rifle like a 458 Lott, even smaller game species, but you quickly reach certain limits, especially when it comes to shoot at longer distance. However, you only need a maximum of three rifles and one shotgun for hunting worldwide. Over the last decades I have an opinion about what is needed, but there are different and also individual concepts. This explains why discussions about calibers and cartridges never reach a common consensus.

I agree. As traveling with more than two long guns can be problematic, I have pretty much narrowed down to matching .300 Win Mag and .458 Win Mag at least for Africa. They are both on Mark X actions with Model 70 type safeties and Timney triggers. It he handling and fire controls are identical, and I do.not believe that there is any mammal anywhere that one of these two rifles would not be a good choice. Now I just need to figure out how to take my SxS 12 ga. and CZ .22.

Of course, since I live in the US two rifles is just not enough ;-). I have two in .30-06, a 7 Rem Mag (my usual deer rifle), and a nice little 7-08 in in stainless and synthetic for the rainy weather common to where I live. But if I had to I could get by with just the .300 and .458.

 

[Doug Hamilton]

There is always the "Beware the hunter with only one gun, he probably knows how to use it." argument. Some say use your big gun on everything so when the time comes and the chips are down in a life or death situation, everything is second nature. Full bore 458 Lott rounds can detach retinas though, if shot in long sessions, so you do have to be careful.

I read what an African PH wrote who only owned and used 3 rifles, 3 Win. Mod 70's, tricked out with finish, stocks, bedding, barrel lengths etc. all matching. The calibers were 30-06, 375 H&H, and 458 Lott. With all 3 rifles having nearly identical stock geometries, trigger pulls, safety mechanisms, etc. it was almost like shooting the same rifle with different loads. The biggest difference being the difference between the stand action and the magnum actions. The 30-06 loads and 375 H&H loads were chosen for nearly identical trajectories at normal hunting ranges, and of course the 458 Lott was usually a 100 yards or closer option, so trajectory was not an issue. He used the 30-06 hunting everything except large-bodied game. He used the 375 H&H hunting large-bodied game and speed training at the range with the long magnum action. He used the 458 Lott ONLY on dangerous game. He shot regularly enough with the 30-06 and 375 H&H to keep shooting skills sharp. He only fired the 458 Lott 10 times per year in the off season right before the start of season over 2 or 3 range trips. 2-5 shots per range trip for a total of 10 shots, just to make sure everything was functioning properly. The only other time he fired the 458 Lott was on the job usually at dangerous game.

That sounds like a very prudent approach to me for several reasons, on several levels, for a person who could be called on to save lives in an instant, with a rifle, reacting entirely on muscle memory and autonomic nervous system response (which is what every human does in a life-threatening situation with no warning.)

Personally, I have hunted exclusively for decades with a 30-06 and 180gr loads for everything from 40 pound javelina to bull elk approaching 1000 pounds. The largest dangerous game I could encounter is a 300 pound black bear or a 100 pound mountain lion. These animals are lethal to be sure, but rarely encountered. I have never felt the need for more gun.

I think a .30-06 with good 180s is a fine choice for anything in Lower 48.

 

[jlb1036]

you can always load it with 350-400 grs bullets like barnes X

 

[thriller]

so ive been hunting small and medium size game for years, and would like to make the jump to some bigger game animals( Moose, Bear, Nilgai, Buffalo).....

now i have rifles in damn near every caliber up to .375HH.....and i am more than confident .375 will take any game i plan on hunting.....but would i be better served with a .458 (or other .4xx caliber)? or would that be "too much" for anything in N.A.?

right now im leaning towards a CZ550 in .458

thanks for the help

No such thing as too much…. Necessary probably not but not too much

 

[jstanfor8]

so ive been hunting small and medium size game for years, and would like to make the jump to some bigger game animals( Moose, Bear, Nilgai, Buffalo).....

now i have rifles in damn near every caliber up to .375HH.....and i am more than confident .375 will take any game i plan on hunting.....but would i be better served with a .458 (or other .4xx caliber)? or would that be "too much" for anything in N.A.?

right now im leaning towards a CZ550 in .458

thanks for the help

You're probably better off sticking with the 375 or maybe get 416 if you want something a little bigger just for fun--but if you get a 458 Lott--you gotta hunt buff etc. in Africa and maybe consider a 460 Weatherby loaded somewhere between the Lott and Weatherby factory load.

 

[analog_peninsula]

A 300 grain ttsx at 2600 fps doesn’t kick much and can sanely be fired from a supported position. I’ve got detachable scopes, and have one set up for full tilt 500 grain loads and the other set up for 300 grain mid range loads. While I haven’t hunted the rifle yet, everything seems to be working as expected. Maybe not the most convenient option for a pronghorn hunt, but I wouldn’t hesitate to using the setup out to 250-275 yards, which was the original intent.

 

[woodsrunner]

I don't know why you'd want anything larger than a .30-06 in North America unless you are mountain hunting or other long-range or hunting in grizzly country. In which latter case a .375 H&H is enough gun in my books, though some in brown bear country i am told carry a .416. (I live and hunt at home in a veritable nest of grizzlies and carry a .375 H&H, iron sights.) As for being overgunned, the only time i have felt overgunned in hunting was shooting some marauding varmints (fox and coyote) on the farm with the tiny .204 Ruger. Broadside, it left grapefruit or larger sized exit holes, ruining pelts, almost blowing the smaller fox in half - disgusting little round, i sold the gun. If your gun is doing that, it's too much gun. I'da been better off with my .375 H&H on 'em i don't doubt. If you love shooting the Lott and there is not great damage to game, dead is dead, can't be more or less.