Exclusively hunting with Winchester cartridges?

[Daktari]

I wanted to know if hunting with Winchester cartridges specifically the Winchester .405 in lever action and Winchester .458 Magnum in bolt action would be effective for Big Five hunting? I am partial to the Winchesters and wanna see if they would get the job done. Also the fact that many double rifles cost as much as a safaris has inspired the thought.

 

[Daktari]

 

[Hunter-Habib]

Doable, yes. But why limit yourself needlessly on a whim ? With the .458 Winchester Magnum & fresh hand loads/custom loads that are loaded to at least 2100 FPS… you’ve got nothing to worry about against the Big Five. If you reduce the bullet weight to 450Gr-480Gr while accomplishing a velocity above 2200 FPS, then you’re only making things better.

With .405 Winchester, I would not use this caliber for frontal brain shots on bull elephants. I don’t care what younger generations of hunters say, but a .411 caliber 300Gr bullet traveling at 2200 FPS is NOT a good recipe for such a critical shot on such a dangerous big game animal. But other than that, with properly loaded ammunition… I‘d be okay with tackling the lion on bait (but not via stalking), leopard on bait (but not over hounds), Cape buffalo & also the hippopotamus in the water (but not on land).

P.S: With a safari being such a costly affair as it is, why think of false economy when considering the proper tool for the job (which is a very important criteria in your success) ? A .416 Remington Magnum is also an incredibly wise big bore caliber choice, for which rifles can be built/acquired for not a lot of money.

 

[Daktari]

@Hunter-Habib thank you sir! I'm very thankful to receive advice from someone as knowledgeable as yourself. I was thinking .405 for the lion and leopard and .458 magnum for elephant, rhino, and buffalo. What advantage would the .416 Remington magnum offer compared to the .458?

 

[Rare Breed]

You are correct Hunter-Habib is without question one of the most experienced amongst us!!! When he speaks I listen!

 

[matt85]

@Hunter-Habib thank you sir! I'm very thankful to receive advice from someone as knowledgeable as yourself. I was thinking .405 for the lion and leopard and .458 magnum for elephant, rhino, and buffalo. What advantage would the .416 Remington magnum offer compared to the .458?

The 416 RM is a more flexible cartridge. It will make for easier shots at longer ranges and greater tissue damage all while having less recoil.

Having said that, there is nothing wrong with the 458 WM. As @Hunter-Habib said, load it with a good 450gr bullet at around 2200fps and it should be suitable to take all of the big 7.

 

[318AE]

This has been pretty well covered here in other posts. Decades of field experience has shown that a sectional density of 3. and a muzzle velocity of 2150 or better is reliably effective.

The 405 is a great cartridge, that comes up short in sectional density with its most common 300 grain bullet. Its nostalgia as a lion cartridge is unmatched.

The 458 continues to suffer in some circles from the reputation garnered by some compromised, compressed factory loadings in the 60s. It’s an adequate, but marginal cartridge for getting a .3 sectional density bullet at 2150 fps. Modern bullets and powders help a lot.

If Winchester had introduced the M70 African with a Lott length cartridge, we may have never seen the resurgence in the vintage nitro express cartridges we’ve seen.

Do you have pictures to share of these Winchesters?

 

[C.W. Richter]

All 416s can do 2450 ft per second Plus so any 416 will get the job done better. The bullet is longer and trimmer so it has a higher sectional density and tends to penetrate better. For that matter a 375hh will do a better job than the cartridges you mention. You'll just have to settle for a bolt action or double in lieu of lever. But if you're a fanatic I think Doug turnbull's guns went to Africa but as said above there are much better cartridge selections. If you like four five eight you should consider a full length 375 cartridge in 458 Ackley Wyatt or Lott form as they gain 300 ft per second over the WM and it makes a big difference at distance

 

[Hunter-Habib]

@Hunter-Habib thank you sir! I'm very thankful to receive advice from someone as knowledgeable as yourself. I was thinking .405 for the lion and leopard and .458 magnum for elephant, rhino, and buffalo. What advantage would the .416 Remington magnum offer compared to the .458?

Daktari, the pleasure is mine & I assure you that I’m just a very average guy.

Now, onto your question. Let’s take Federal Premium factory loaded ammunition as an example, to put matters into perspective. Let’s assume that your quarry is bull elephant.

These are the ballistics for their 500Gr Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solids for the .458 Winchester Magnum

Buy Safari Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid for USD 231.99 | Federal Ammunition

Shopping for the Safari Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid - Learn more about the latest Safari Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid and other hunting or shooting gear at Federal Ammunition.

www.federalpremium.com

Now, these are the ballistics for their 400Gr Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solids for the .416 Remington Magnum

Buy Safari Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid for USD 212.99 | Federal Ammunition

Shopping for the Safari Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid - Learn more about the latest Safari Trophy Bonded Sledgehammer Solid and other hunting or shooting gear at Federal Ammunition.

www.federalpremium.com

The 400Gr bullet of the .416 Remington Magnum at 2400 FPS will out-penetrate the 500Gr bullet of the .458 Winchester Magnum at 1950 FPS. As a matter of fact, 1950 FPS for a 500Gr bullet is akin to the velocity of a black powder firearm in my humble opinion. For a frontal brain shot, you’ll need all the penetration that you can get.

The .416 Remington Magnum is also more versatile than a .458 Winchester Magnum and can be better used for plains game (should you insist on bringing only one rifle to safari). Recoil is more manageable, too.

In my humble opinion, if you want to take only one rifle on a mixed bag safari and elephant happens to be on the menu… then, the .416 calibers are the most ideal class of weapon for everything. .404 Jeffery and .425 Westley Richards are good choices too. But brass, bullets & especially factory loaded ammunition for these calibers are not the easiest things to source these days post Chinese virus.