Though a new member here I have been reading for quite a while. I am looking for any fresh opinions on the .450 Dakota. I would like to experiment with one but haven't the $$ to just order a new one from Dakota. Any thoughts about making up one "on the cheap," maybe using a CZ550 .458 Win or .458 Lott? Other possibilities? Anyone know a good riflesmith for such a project?

What about brass? Is Dakota brass readily available? Expand and re-form .416 Rigby brass?
Die sets?

Any helpful comments/suggestions appreciated. Thanks.

I had a custom .450 Rigby constructed and I would believe that the cost of a custom rifle would be more than the cost of a new Dakota. Perhaps you would do well to advertise for a gently used one.

There are a few semi-custom makers that could probably do the work for you on an existing .458 WM or Lott that would be well below the cost of a new Dakota. However, I do not remember their names. Others here will likely chime in and provide that information. I love the .450 Rigby and feel you'll really like the .450 Dakota as well.

Dutch

Find a 458 Ruger #1 and rechamber would be the cheapest route.

Have you considered a CZ 550 Magnum in 416 Rigby? All it needs is a trip to Wayne Jacobson at AHR for a take-off 458 barrel to be fit and rechambered to either the 450 Rigby or the Dakota version.. Little tlc here and there and you have one for much less than a Dakota. That's what mine was.

450 Dakota is s good cartridge, but basically a watered down 460 weathrby cartridge, per DG ormsnce wise.

Meant performance wise

It is basically the .450 Rigby. Great performance and will get the job done. A full blown Dakota will set you back around $12K but you can scale it back to a more streamlined $8K. Gently used versions will typically go for $10K +/-

Dakota quality fell after Don Allen, but has improved with the latest owners (Freedom Group/Remington).

Great cartridge; can be loaded from lite 45-70 to .470 Weatherby velocities. An easy conversion from any good feeding .416 Rigby. I did mine on a Ruger RSM; no action, magazine or feed rail work required, just a new barrel.

The 450 Dakota pre-dates the 450 Rigby, and I think the 450 Dakota is a better designed cartridge, to split hairs.
I have a 450 Dakota on a Prechtl-actioned Mauser Banner M98 Magnum, double square bridge, uncut with Mauser Flag safety and express sights only.
Holds 4 down in the box, functions flawlessly.
Hi ho!

I have also had a .458/.338 Lapua Magnum made from a CZ 550 Magnum in my early days with Rusty McGee, gunsmith.
The barrel came off a 460 Wby BBK-02 that got turned into a 470 Mbogo.
The threads were chopped off and barrel rethreaded for the CZ 550 Magnum, 23"-barreled "45/338 Lapua Magnum."
The 450 Dakota can easily be done on a CZ by a rechambering the .458 WinMag, least expensive route.









Great sights on that rifle.
It is a "parts gun" assembled from this and that. Fun.

You can do the same for a 450 Dakota and dress it up some more: New stock, safety, trigger, bolt handle, etc.
A CZ action can be made as good as a Dakota action. Ask AHR.

I know where there is a 450 Dakota built on a Ruger RSM. Also worth mentioning, is that the action is Serial #6. It has the original 416 barrel as well. PM me if interested.

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
The 450 Dakota pre-dates the 450 Rigby, and I think the 450 Dakota is a better designed cartridge...

The 450 Dakota can easily be done on a CZ by a rechambering the .458 WinMag, least expensive route.

That was my thinking. With .460 Wby brass at ~$80/box, who knows what for the Rigby, the Dakota seems ideal for a buffalo-shooter - unless you happen think 2700 FPS is really needed.

What you mention with the CZ is just what I had in mind so I will check into that and see if it looks workable. I kind of like "parts guns" myself - as long as they are safe and they work. Much as I admire the Dakota 76s, $10,000 is a bit beyond my reach for a "try & see" rifle. Maybe some day.

I have two 450 Rigbys. One is built on a Cz 550 Magnum action the other is one of the newer Dakota's. The CZ action has more bulk then the Dakota, in a pinch you could probably use the bolt as a dangerous weapon. As RIP said they can and are often used and well regarded as a platform for a DGR. The Dakota action almost seems delicate by comparison but is the slickest best feeding action I've ever handled. It feeds any flat nosed bullet I've put through it without a hitch. So I have two because I like them both, either choice is a good one.

quote:

Originally posted by H1262068:

quote:

Originally posted by RIP:
The 450 Dakota pre-dates the 450 Rigby, and I think the 450 Dakota is a better designed cartridge...

The 450 Dakota can easily be done on a CZ by a rechambering the .458 WinMag, least expensive route.

That was my thinking. With .460 Wby brass at ~$80/box, who knows what for the Rigby, the Dakota seems ideal for a buffalo-shooter - unless you happen think 2700 FPS is really needed.

What you mention with the CZ is just what I had in mind so I will check into that and see if it looks workable. I kind of like "parts guns" myself - as long as they are safe and they work. Much as I admire the Dakota 76s, $10,000 is a bit beyond my reach for a "try & see" rifle. Maybe some day.

A .458 WinMag CZ 550 Magnum rechambered to 450 Dakota is definitely workable.
1. Open the bolt face.
2. Tweak the feed ramp and rails.
3. Rechamber the barrel.
4. Reinforce the front of the magazine box by soldering a flat piece of steel on it.
5. Now do all you can to properly bed and reinforce the stock. See 416Tanzan's thread about stock reinforcement for a Boyd's laminate stock.

The .458 WinMag box on the CZ is non-ribbed and +3.8" internal length.

My only hesitation was that the barrel seemed a little thin, at 0.670" diameter at the 25" muzzle,
but the Mauser Banner SIGARMS M98 Magnum in 450 Dakota has the same barrel muzzle diameter and is 25" long also.

Here is 500 Mbogo No. 2 done by rebarreling a .458 WinMag CZ, since .510-caliber bullets don't work in a .458-caliber barrel,
bolt face was opened up from .458 WinMag to .416 Rigby size:



Since the above picture was taken, the trigger has been changed to a Timney,



and a Wisner drop floorplate was added, though that only added about 0.1" to depth of magazine.
It holds 4 down in the box with more room to spare than before with same 4-down in box.
The CZ 550 Magnum has a pocket plate as factory standard.
The safety is an Ed Lapour 3-Position Winchester type.
Rusty McGee reinforced the box front and made it feed nicely.



Wisner pocket plate and trigger guard assembly that added so little, and the two .458 WinMag boxes, after reinforcement as above and below,
the boxes from top and bottom views:



Barrel is 23" long, Pac-Nor 1:9" twist, stainless No. 6 Sporter contour.





Don't forget that standard CZ 550 Magnum rings are as stout or stouter than anything out there,
even if you paid $2000 for custom rings and bases.
That alone makes the CZ have value.

The same rings and integral bases shown here,
on the forerunner BRNO ZKK 602, with Quick-Detachable-Quick-Detachable Lever, QDQD Lever Rings,
carry the lever in your pocket:





But don't let me corrupt you ...

some very nice rifles shown here, eh?

Entertain purchasing a new Win Mod 70 in 458 Win and re-chamber it. I have done it with two rifles I very much like the stock dynamics more than acceptable trigger which if desired can be replaced with a Timney. After two I would do another in a heart beet.

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
some very nice rifles shown here, eh?

Functional and affordable is nice.
Full out aesthetic they ain't.

Zephyr,
Turning an M70 Winchester .458 WinMag into a 450 Dakota?
That is a much bigger and more expensive project than starting with a CZ 550 Magnum.
It is rumored that the old Winchester Custom Shop made a couple of .416 Rigby M70 rifles.

Keeping the C.O.L. to 3.6" with something like the 45/.338LM would be a much sounder approach, but it is an oddball wildcat.
Maybe .458 Lott would be better.
I do have a .500/.338LM with Sunny Hill drop bottom metal on an M70 Winchester, only 3.6" C.O.L.:

Could you build a 450 Dakota on A RUM Mod 70? Or is that more suitable for a 404J based cartridge?

Cheers,
Chris

The RUM M70 is just a .375 H&H length action same as the .458 WinMag that has a spacer blocking the back of the box.
The .500/.338LM (12.7x68mm Magnum "49-10") pictured above has a windowed RUM box and the Sunny Hill drop floor plate.
You would have to open it frontward for a longer box, for a 450 Dakota or .416 Rigby.
I do not like that idea.

For ISS, another nice 450 Dakota:

Rip Thanks for the reminder it was late at night and I was thinking 450 African when I read the post....
Lovely Mauser

That is a pretty Mauser!

So the ultimate consensus among you folks is that the Model 70 is not a good idea and that the CZ550 is the only likely (relatively inexpensive) choice for the .450 Dakota cartridge?