ok, i quit dragging my feet today and bought a big bore. the action is pretty smooth, trigger is decent, and the wood is pretty. i had gander mountain install a decelerator pad without cutting the stock, the new pad is about 3/8" thicker. i also ordered reloading equipment, brass, bullets, and dies. i remember someone posting about using 405 grain remington bullets for cheap practice loads. can anyone recomend a load that will give 2100 to 2200 fps with mild pressures? i am looking forward to getting my teeth rattled in the next week or so! any help appreciated.
James

James,

Congrats on the new rifle

I really like my RSM Rigby and love my RSM Lott. Good going on getting the decelerator pad. It will make a big difference compared to the factory crap.

Starting with the Rem 405s at 2100-2200 should give you a nice baseline and you can go from there. The Lott is a great round and I enjoy it very much.

John

James,

Excellent choice of caliber!

Another powder option is H4895. I've gotten good results from 65-70grs under RCBS's 45-405FNGC cast bullet. Should be just the ticket with the 405 Remingtons and be on the high side of 2000fps.

Funny to consider it as a "plinking" load as it's right on the heels of the .416s! Fun to shoot nevertheless.

Cheers!

PWS

Hello,
Believe you will like the rifle a great deal and as others said, got my loads from Hog Killer and have been pushing them up a bit and accuracy is very good indeed. Welcome to the RSM Club! I started with the 458 Lott and then came along the 416 Rigby, then came along the 375 HH, and someday will go for the 338 Lapua.
Obviously I like them and had to shuck some other gun cabinet queens to accomplish this, but no regrets. Good Luck!

if hornady had 416 rigby brass on the market, that would have been my first choice. components are cheaper and easier to find for a 458 lott. thanks for the help.
james

Gentlemen,

I have a question on the acronym "RSM". I've handled and shot the Ruger M77 Mark II Magnum in .458 Lott (using both Lott and .458 Winchester rounds), .416 Rigby, and .375 H&H. All were MOA rifles. A handsome rifle and a value. I have only seen "RSM" on this website. RSM is not on the Ruger website description. What does "RSM" stand for? Ruger Safari Magnum?

Thanx.

Buliwyf,
the box that my rifle came in shows-
Catalog Number: M77RSM MKII
458 LOTT

james

Thanks James. My friend that has a RSM told me the same thing today after I posted.

For my purposes I'm gonna say it means Ruger Safari Magnum simply because I like the sound of it....

Bulliwyf,
Ruger Safari Magnum is probaly what RSM means. It sounds good anyway!
james

one other question i forgot. loading manuals seem to be short on data for the lott. nosler,sierra,lyman, and i believe the last hogden (sp) manual i bought and can't find. i'm thinking of buying any shot you want for lott data plus the other reference data in it. should i just get the hornady book?
james

Just get the Horniday book. "Any Shot You Want" is too limited to A2 bullets, which are an odd weight.

JPK

James,

Not to argue with JPK, but I have both the Hornady and A2 Any Shot You Want manual and I like the A2 manual. The Barnes manual also address larger calibers but it is directed towards Barnes bullets.

You might contact Woodleigh, I've heard they are considering a reloading manual and also the various powder manufactures have excellent data but not much discussion about the cartridge.

My plinking load is actually:

Hornady brass
405gr Rem
68.0gr IMR-4895
215 Fed primer
oal- 3.53"
vel./24" 2112fps

Keith

well, i took my gun to my B.I.L. house and shot a few rounds through it. i was expecting to be placing an add this evening- used RSM Lott for sale, 19 rounds of ammo. shot only once. excelent condition! i used the 69 gr. of IMR 3031 and 405 gr Remington bullets. i believe my 300 Wby kicks worse than this load does. a solid shove but not as fast as the 300.
at about 40 yards i hit about 6 inches low using the standing leaf rear sight. really cool. 500 gr bullets at 2300 fps would be a whole different story. thanks for the load data and advice guys!!!
james

that would be a great way to shake the loose dust out of the tobacco shed!

Rich
DRSS