458 Lott / 458 Win Mag

[WestCo]

My brother-in-law has a 458 Lott that he needs a little reloading done for. Question is, do I need to get a 458 Lott specific full length die and seater die, or is it interchangeable with the 458 Win Mag? and same about the Lee Crimp Die, are they Lott/Win Mag specific? Also, is it necessary to crimp those rounds if just shooting them one round at a time during load development?

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I would have to guess for sizing brass you'd absolutely have to have the resizing die for the Win version. The bullet seating die....maybe you might get away with using the Lott version.

 

[Grumulkin]

1. Since I've never reloaded for a 458 Winchester Magnum I don't know if you can use 458 Lott dies to load for it but I doubt it.

2. The Lee Factory Crimp Die for a 458 Lott would not work for a 458 Winchester Magnum nor vice versa. I like Lee Factory Crimp Dies but I've not found them necessary for 458 Lott loading; the crimp function built into the seating die has worked fine for me.

3. If you are going to load rounds one at a time you don't need to crimp them but they may perform a little differently when crimped so I would load them as I would when they were to loaded in a magazine.

 

[Ray B]

Back when the Lott was gaining traction with magazine writers one of the selling points of the Lott was that the chamber was similar to the Win in the same way that a 357 Mag is similar to a 38 Spl- that being the sides were parallel and the only difference being the Lott was a quarter inch (or so) longer. If that was true, a die for the Win would work on the Lott in the same way a 38 Spl die works on the 357. It would be a matter of adjusting the die for the longer shell length for bullet seating/crimping.

 

[Grumulkin]

You must not ever have used a Lee Factory Crimp die. They are very case length dependent and one for a 458 Lott would not work with a 458 Win. Mag and vice versa.

 

[Ray B]

You're right. I've used a Lee Hand Loader for a .308 (not the Factory Crimp tool), but not in about 40 years. My loading for the 458 Win is with a Redding die set and the Profile Crimp die. I haven't tried them on the longer case, but as stated, based on what the writer wrote, they should work on the longer case.

 

[Grumulkin]

The writer wasn't talking about a Lee Factory Crimp Die.