Last summer after letting a black bear get away, my friend and I thought of the perfect rifle. (isn't the next rifle project always the perfect rifle?). In this order, we wanted a short, small, light, and powerful bolt action rifle for the close brush hunting in Southern Oregon.



I bought a 300 WSM Win 70 Classic, and ordered an 14"T 16.25" long CM PAC-NOR barrel. I wanted the brass to be easy to make, so I took the 300 WSM case and blew it out to 458. The headspace is the same as the 300, so it is offically a 458 x 300 WSM. I ordered the dies from Hornady. Their custom die man is Lonnie. He said I should name it the 458 Noveske, so I did. They have the print, and will make them for you for $98.50, shipped. The chamber dimensions are quite simple. The body is a 300 WSM, the neck is .487" dia and .460" long, and the throat on the 660 is the same as a 458 Lott. The case neck is .400" long. The 458 Noveske holds one grain less water than a 458 Win mag, according to the brass I have here.



The first rifle weighs 6.5 lbs. It is 36.625" long, with a 13.625" LOP. I shortened and thinned the forend, and dished out the buttstock. It has a XS rear sight, and a HiViz front.



Now for the ballistics. I have posted this before, but here it is again. Remember this is a 16.25" barrel. A longer barrel will give faster velocities.



300 Nosler Partition, 69 gr. IMR 4198, 2578 fps



300 Barnes XFN, 68.5 gr IMR 4198, 2612 fps



350 HDY FP, 62 gr IMR 4198, 2360 fps



400 Barnes Original SSP, 73 gr WC-844 (H-335), 2099 fps.



I have since built a second rifle on a Rem 660. The barrel is the same length, the LOP is 14", and it has a XS sight, and a NECG masterpiece banded front. The barreled action is off at McMillian getting a Model Seven stock put on it. I am treating myself to somebody else's stock labor. I'll post pics of it when it is done.

John,

Will this round handle 500gr. bullets? Have you tested for velocities with the 500 grainers?

George

It will be a little bit before I can test the 500 grain bullets. the first rifle wasn't throated for them, and I have about 6-8 weeks before I see the rife that is off at McM. It is throated for the 500 grainers.

.450 Marlin anyone?

damn close, I like the mini shoulder though

John--Do you or any others need a short barrel in 458
caliber...Off of an early 458 WIN
Ruger 77, 22 inches long..Just thread and chamber for your
short 458s..Rifling in good condition,50 bucks..Ed.

I thought this might be worth a chuckle or two. Note: The following is SATIRE from www.realguns.com. I do like the idea of the .458 WSM (.458 Noveske).

-Bob F.

Winchester's long awaited .450 WSM

In keeping with the current trend of "short and stubby is good", Winchester will release a .450 WSM as a replacement within the market niche that rendered the .458 Winchester obsolete. The .450 WSM has got gun writer's buzzing, early comparisons to even Weatherby's 224 Rocket indicate the .450 WSM has a distinctive muzzle energy advantage.

Stuffed with a 500 grain Woodleigh WeldCore bullet, in an effort to conserve the almost non-existent case powder capacity, compressed loads of IMR 3031 yield 2034 fps through a 20" barrel. Winchester's G M, J. P. Sloem Downs indicated, "Through a very diligent engineering effort, we've been able to under perform yet another entire group of existing cartridges, there's no stopping us now. We are now looking at the other end of the spectrum, and considering a .17 WSM for a Fall 2003 release".

The first gun chambered for the new cartridge is a Winchester Custom Shop 20" barrel version of the Model 70 Compact Classic. At 6 lbs, scope and sling included, the new Safari Compact is anticipated to be a attention getter. The 87 ft/lbs of recoil, and enough muzzle blast to start a forest fire, only add to the gun's personality.

I would sure like that barrel ..$$ in monday's mail ok ? Just need an address to send it.....45nut

45nut--Sorry John already got it this afternoon.Ed.

Heck it was worth a try...Thanks for the reply Ed. Keep me in mind if something else surfaces would you ? 45nut@mynra.com