I may have been lead astray.. I was told that the two rounds can both be shot in the .458 lott with the supposition it would work fine.. . Im going to start with reduced loads to get use to my (now on order ruger .458 lott mark 2 heavy barreled rifle). I also ordered some 500 grain soft nose hornadys and .458 dies.. Hopefully i can get some decent groups with this combination.. 2-3 inches at 100 yards would be fine with me.. I read tonight that the lead angle (not the metal) is slow and extended for dirty bullets hunting dangerous game.. Am i headed for accuracy troubles with the longer lead and the shorter .458 cases? anyone shooting lighter jacketed bullets or any kind of cast bullets out the lott using .458 win cases and haveing any success?. Another question, im thinking of buying a lead sled for working up loads at the bench, is there any limit i should put for weight on the sled so i dont break the stock?..what model do you like? any help with any of these questions will be appreciated.. . . thanks dave.

There are theoretical issues with accuracy shooting 458wm rounds in the Lott chamber. I don't believe you will ever notice a difference. the friggin holes are big enough to hide it, even with calipers. Surely no issue with game, and no issue with any shooting not for competition.

But, there are also reports that there can be fire etching at the case length of the wm rounds in the Lott chamber, and that is the more troublesome issue, imo. If so, and I do not know first hand, it might lead to feeding or extraction issues.

If you use a lead sled to sight in, finish your sight in holding the rifle with your forward hand resting on the bags and holding the barrels and your rearward hand firmly holding the grip, with only a bag to support the toe. I have experienced point of impact change using a lead sled or similar, since it does not allow to barrel to rise as much as it will off hand, or on the sticks...

JPK

JPK

For reduced recoil loads try 350gr.hornady & 400gr.speer start loads

http://data.hodgdon.com/main_menu.asp

My plinking and practice load is.

68.0gr IMR 4895 w/ a 405 REM, 3.53COL. I get 2112fps with it. This is in Hornady 458 Lott brass.

Keith

I have a half dozen or more 458 Lotts, but to be honest I never felt the need to test or try 458 Winchester in the Lott. It is my understanding that when Jack Lott designed the 458 Lott at the time it was a "wildcat" issue, being able to shoot 458 Winchester in the Lott was a plus at that time. Say you were on a trip somewhere, ammo gets lost, misplaced or what have you. You could always pick up some 458 Winchester (maybe) and carry on.

Today with the 458 Lott legitimized and widely available that is not so much of an issue.

I'm with JPK-I don't think you would have too much of an accuracy issue if you did. I can say from experience that a similar situation occurs with my 50 B&M Long and 50 B&M Super Short. To prove a point I can shoot the Super Short in the Long chamber--but accuracy does suffer quite a bit. But the super short is a full .60 inches shorter-so there is a lot of bullet jump to contend with in that case. Double the bullet jump in the case of 458 Win and 458 Lott.

If it were me, since 458 lott brass is so easy and available I would just download 458 Lott to suit your purposes.

Scratch the lead sled, I have tried that at the request of some of my pals and despise the thing.

Hogkiller and Bearhunter looks like good suggestions to me too.

Michael

"But, there are also reports that there can be fire etching at the case length of the wm rounds in the Lott chamber"

Something similar to habitually shooting .38 Specials (especially lead bullets) in a .357 Mag revolver. Alot of crud and bullet metal building up between the space left from the .38 to the end of the .357 chamber.

quote:

If it were me, since 458 lott brass is so easy and available I would just download 458 Lott to suit your purposes.

That's the best advice I've heard. Leave the .458 usage for emergencies only.

+1 on Hornady's Lott brass. You can't wear the stuff out and the price is reasonable.
I haven't bothered to try .458 WM in my rifle either. I'll test that prior to doing a DG hunt but thats in the future.

I've owned a #1 in 458 Lott with NECG peep sights for ~ 3 years - and have more than a thousand rounds down the tube. Some observations:

1) I've shot both 458 Win Mag & 458 Lott, with no significant differences in accuracy to 100 yards.

2) It seems Lott brass is easier to get than Win Mag brass. Why bother with the WM brass?

3) Jamison brass gives me hard extractions at full loads. Hornady brass seems to do fine. I do use Jamison brass for my practice loads, and they hold up fine.

4) My practice load: 35gr SR4759 with a Speer400gr FN. Brass 2.77-2.775 inches. Velocity ~ 1495 fps. Easy on the shoulder, you can fire it all day.

5) In the future, I'd like to experiment with some Trail Boss & cast bullets.

Full load 458Lott at the bench will give you that post car-wreck feeling, which I personally enjoy. You however, may not.

*Update*
I was asked about my reduced load, here is how I developed it:
I started with the Speer #13 manual, data for the 458 Win Mag & the 400gr FN bullet. Their maximum load for SR4759 was 30gr for 1445fps, so I started there with my 458Lott. I'm not in love with the 400gr Speer, I just happened to get a bunch on the cheap. When I run out, I will probably renew my research with the Remington 405gr. I always hear good things about that bullet, and they are (relatively) cheap to shoot.

My data (from 10 shot strings):
30gr = 1293 fps; average deviation 17.6 fps, extreme spread 112 fps

33gr = 1425 fps; average deviation 7.52 fps, extreme spread 34 fps

35gr = 1493 fps; average deviation 6.1 fps, extreme spread 22 fps

Needless to say, the 35gr load was the most accurate.

Interestingly, efficiency went from 49.55 ft-lbs/gr @1293 fps to 56.6 ft-lbs/gr @ 1493 fps. This is a 14.2% increase in available energy.

I stopped at 35gr, because this was close to the old 45-70 and that was my goal. There were no apparent pressure signs. You may choose to use this data, but be careful and start conservatively. Doing the research is half the fun!

Back in the old days I made 458 Lott brass from either 375 HH or 416 Remington. The 416 was the better brass--but I could not wear the stuff out either way. I have one 458 Lott that has over a 1000 rounds thru it too. When the Hornady brass hit the market that was the end of making brass for 458 Lott!! I find the Hornady brass reasonable priced-available-and again you can't shoot it enough to wear it out. If you are doing light loads in that 1500 fps range the brass will last forever!

My lotts have been retired since the B&M series rifles so they don't get the work out they used to get. Keep a Lott a Lott---A Winchester a Winchester! I see no great advantage to shooting Winchesters in the lott--other than just to see if they do go bang! I am also of the opinion that you probably won't hurt the rifle by doing so, but I don't see the point in it these days.

Michael

I use a 500gr gas checked lead bullet for practice. I either use Hornady Lott brass or Hornady Basic Belted brass that's been sized and trimmed to Lott specs. I just dropped the load I use for jacketed bullets about five grains and the cast bullets hit to the same point of aim with enough authority to make me think it would work for hunting most animals on this side of the pond. And it's still fun to shoot.

I am awaiting delivery of my first 458 Lott, in the mean time, I contacted Johan Loubser @ Accurate and he suggested the following reduced loads.

Has anybody used these?

Caliber: .458 Lott.
Barrel length: 24”
Powder: Accurate -- 5744.

Bullet weight: 300grains.
Low load: 47.0 grains (1900 – 2000 ft/p/sec).
Max load: 68.0 grains (2600 – 2700 ft/p/sec) Max pressure!!

Bullet weight: 350grains.
Low load: 44.0grains (1800 – 1900 ft/p/sec)
Max load: 63.0 grains (2450 – 2550 ft/p/sec). Max pressure!!

Bullet weight: 400-405 grains.
Low load: 42.0grains (1750 – 1850 ft/p/sec)
Mid range load: 52.0grains (2025-2125 ft/p/sec)
Max load: 61.0 grains (2300 – 2400 ft/p/sec). Max pressure!!

Bullet weight: 460 grains.
Low load: 40.0grains (1600 – 1700 ft/p/sec)
Max load: 56.0 grains (2100 – 2200 ft/p/sec). Max pressure!!

Bullet weight: 500grains.
Low load: 38.0grains (1500 – 1600 ft/p/sec)
Mid range load: 46.0 grains (1800-1900 ft/p/sec)
Max load: 54.0 grains (2000 – 2100 ft/p/sec). Max pressure!!

He also included "reduced loads" for
-375 H+H
-416 Rem Mag
-404 Jeffery

If anybody wants them let me know.

the question arrose, why shoot win mag in the lott.. the answere is cast bullet, and jacketed bullet load availibilty, and velocity variables.. All the data ive seen for the lott is max powder loads with big bullets.. Now today ive seen the aa reduced loads, but that powder is almost impossible to get. I renew my search and try to find some.. dave