458 Lott, should I go custom??

[Honeybadger]

Guys, I own a 458 Lott in a Ruger No. 1, and I love the caliber. I am thinking of adding a bolt action in this caliber to my collection. My question is this. Should I spend big bucks for a fully custom rifle, or would an off the shelf rifle in this caliber give me everything I need?? How good are the off the shelf CZ's?? I plan on drilling the stock and adding some weight, I like a heavy rifle, but do they feed and extract with no hang ups, could I stake my life on it?? Would 6k-8k be a waste on this caliber. In a gibbs or jeffery I'd for sure go the extra mile, just to make sure the gun actually functioned properly, but I feel like the Lott may feed and eject flawlessly off the shelf, just cause of the nature of the round. What do you guys think?? Also, I was thinking of stepping up to the Jeffery, but is the price of reloading components, and the specialty equipment I'll need really worth it?? Is the performance of the Jeffery on game really that much more noticeable than the Lotts?? Please educate me guys.

 

[tarbe]

There are some guys on here who can make direct comparisons between 500gr .458 and 570ish gr half inchers on game. I am sure they will be along shortly!

I can paraphrase;

The bigger guns are more effective if you can shoot them accurately and you use equivalent premium bullets.

For clients, first shot accuracy is key.

"Charge stopping power" is usually the realm of the professional (ie things have gone south and need to be sorted, NOW).


Tim

 

[Hogpatrol]

What's your budget? Off the shelf versus custom, you could be looking at from two to four thousand dollar difference. My vote is for a factory rifle.

 

[lwaters]

I think your right about the Lott feeding and ejecting better. The same for the 416 Rem. I hear a lot of problems with some of these reworked rifles. Actually feel the Ruger No. 1 is safer them some of that stuff.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Guys, I own a 458 Lott in a Ruger No. 1, and I love the caliber. I am thinking of adding a bolt action in this caliber to my collection. My question is this. Should I spend big bucks for a fully custom rifle, or would an off the shelf rifle in this caliber give me everything I need?? How good are the off the shelf CZ's?? I plan on drilling the stock and adding some weight, I like a heavy rifle, but do they feed and extract with no hang ups, could I stake my life on it?? Would 6k-8k be a waste on this caliber. In a gibbs or jeffery I'd for sure go the extra mile, just to make sure the gun actually functioned properly, but I feel like the Lott may feed and eject flawlessly off the shelf, just cause of the nature of the round. What do you guys think?? Also, I was thinking of stepping up to the Jeffery, but is the price of reloading components, and the specialty equipment I'll need really worth it?? Is the performance of the Jeffery on game really that much more noticeable than the Lotts?? Please educate me guys.

If you have $6-8K to spend, I’d be calling AHR and getting an upgraded CZ that will be flawless and as pretty as a custom.

See the Lotts on this page:

http://americanhuntingrifles.com/available-now/

 

[Honeybadger]

I'd have no problem shooting a half incher accurately. I am just wondering if it's worth it. The 458 is far more versatile for me, no doubt. I'd love to drop the cash on a rifle from AHR. But if a factory CZ would be just as reliable, I'd be tempted to just order one up as a "working mans rifle", throw some weight in the stock, and call it a day.

 

[matt85]

i would also recommend having AHR build you a 458 Lott.

the budget way to do it would be to buy a CZ 550 in 458 lott and have AHR do his #1 or #2 upgrades. but personally i would recommend having him build you the gun from the ground up. and a tip from someone who has owned one of Wayne's rifles, get the upgraded checkering its fantastic looking and worth every penny of the $400!

-matt

 

[Shootist43]

Honeybadger I suggest rephrasing your question to something like.... "Do CZ550s in 458 Lott feed properly and function right out of the box?" If all your answers come back yes, you have your answer. If the answers are mixed, you are back to AHR for one of their upgrades. The idea of a local "smith" being able to fix a CZ feeding problem is a lot of hooey. At least it was in my case, but than I had issues with a 404 Jeffery not the 458 Lott.

 

[Honeybadger]

@matt85

I think I'll go ahead and go that route. I've always wanted a truly nice custom rifle. It will be a few months till I call him again and put in the order. I actually spoke to him about this last week. I'm gonna go with the quarter rib and either a scout scope from leupold, or his red dot set up. I like the idea of just sticking with irons, but let's face it, red dots are much faster when the chips are down. I'll definitely go for his upgraded checkering as well. What do you guys think I should go with for barrel length?? I was thinking of sticking with 24".

 

[Shootist43]

Ask Wayne what he thinks. In all reality what more do you get from a 25" barrel?

 

[Honeybadger]

Yeah, probably nothing. I'd like to go shorter, like 22". But I think I'd regret it in the long run. The rifle would probably be a little faster handling, but it would definitely suffer some performance loss in terms of FPS, at least I'd think so.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Yeah, probably nothing. I'd like to go shorter, like 22". But I think I'd regret it in the long run. The rifle would probably be a little faster handling, but it would definitely suffer some performance loss in terms of FPS, at least I'd think so.

Not likely enough to make a difference. Developing a load with a somewhat faster burning powder will help overcome that effect. My .458B&M has a mere 18" barrel. It's super fast pointing. I use a very fast burning powder and have ballistics between a .458Win and a Lott.

 

[Honeybadger]

Hmmmm, interesting. As I am NOT going to use a break, or even have the rifle set up for the option of one. Wouldn't recoil with a short barrel of say between 20" and 22" be much more snappy, muzzle rise comes to mind, am I wrong??

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

Hmmmm, interesting. As I am NOT going to use a break, or even have the rifle set up for the option of one. Wouldn't recoil with a short barrel of say between 20" and 22" be much more snappy, muzzle rise comes to mind, am I wrong??

Yes it would for sure. But perhaps one of those mercury recoil reducers in the stock would be a good option. Talk to Wayne about it. I know he told me many of his clients shorten the barrel to 22" or thereabouts.

 

[Honeybadger]

Yeah, I plan on having the rifle specced out to come in at 12lbs. I like a heavy rifle, so I'm sure it would be pretty mild recoil. Which will be nice actually, it will make extended range sessions a lot of fun.

 

[IvW]

Guys, I own a 458 Lott in a Ruger No. 1, and I love the caliber. I am thinking of adding a bolt action in this caliber to my collection. My question is this. Should I spend big bucks for a fully custom rifle, or would an off the shelf rifle in this caliber give me everything I need?? How good are the off the shelf CZ's?? I plan on drilling the stock and adding some weight, I like a heavy rifle, but do they feed and extract with no hang ups, could I stake my life on it?? Would 6k-8k be a waste on this caliber. In a gibbs or jeffery I'd for sure go the extra mile, just to make sure the gun actually functioned properly, but I feel like the Lott may feed and eject flawlessly off the shelf, just cause of the nature of the round. What do you guys think?? Also, I was thinking of stepping up to the Jeffery, but is the price of reloading components, and the specialty equipment I'll need really worth it?? Is the performance of the Jeffery on game really that much more noticeable than the Lotts?? Please educate me guys.

There is a significant difference not only in design between a 458 Lott and a 500 Jeff but also in field performance on large DG, especially when you need to stop them.

To each their own and also take into consideration that there is a big difference in the needs of a visiting client rifle and a PH rifle.

Call me old school but I do not like a belt on a DG cartridge, neither do I like a straight walled case on a DG cartridge.

The step up from 458 to 510 offers a 25% bigger hole.

The 458 Lott with a 500 gr bullet at 2400 fps gives 5872 ft-lbs of energy, the 500 Jeff with a 600 gr bullet at 2468 fps gives 8117 ft-lbs of energy, even with a standard 570 gr at 2507 fps it gives 7957 ft-lbs.

The ammo and even reloading components for the Jeff will be significantly more expensive and hard to come by. With the rebated rim you need it to feed properly.

With the short neck you also need to have some experience if reloading.

24 inch barrel would be ideal.

The 500 Jeff is not for everybody, but it is one of the most powerful and devastatingly effective cartridges for use on DG ever made.

If you cannot handle the recoil and shoot it well you will be better off with a Lott(provided you can shoot it well). Many a PH uses a 458 Lott, if hunting a lot of elephant, the 500 Jeff would be a better choice...

The 500 Jeff is a great cartridge if you can handle it...

 

[Honeybadger]

Recoil is no problem

 

[colorado]

If you go for a CZ in 500 Jeffery definitely have Wayne build it for you. They are notoriously hard to make feed and function, but Wayne will make sure it works. He can put a recoil reducer or two in the stock too if you'd like it heavier. I bought mine from the CZ Custom Shop and it cost me about half the price, but I had to send it back to CZ twice, have Wayne work on it as well as my local gunsmith, Kevin Weaver. It's lovely now in looks and functions flawlessly, but there was a lot of angst. Mine weighs 12 lbs with scope and recoil is fine off hand, off the bench it is "sporty". I shoot 570g TSX's at 2300 fps. I can tell you at 2500 fps the fun index becomes low. Love the 500 Jeffery! Target below is sub .5" 3 shot group center to center at 50 yards.

 

[Von S.]

The hell with the recoil.

It isn't like you'll be firing like your trying to get off the beach at Normandy.

I am a big believer in not dicking with something when you shoot it. Knock it down and be done with it.

 

[Bullthrower338]

Take a look at the Kimber Caprivi, great rifle also MRC offers the 458 Lott. AHR is a great way to go for not a lot more money than the above.