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.458 Winchester Magnum On A Mauser?


brian923

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okay guys, who of you have a 458 win mag on a mauser action. i was thinking about building one of these as i have yet to have a big bore rifle. dont know what i would use it for, but figured it would be cool. besides, why not?!?! so, how does the 458 win measure up in the mauser action? what types of velocities are obtainable?

 

also, would it be good to use an ADAMS and BENNET .458 win mag barrel, or is it better to splurge and get the shilin barrel instead. the reason i ask is that the A&B barrel will save about 100.00$. what are your guys experiances with Adam and bennet barrels? are they good??? thanks alot guys, brian.

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Sir,

 

Its been done many times before. Some say a M98 is just right, others advise against it because you can't quite seat the bullets out far enough to obtain maximum performance from the cartridge. Personally, I've thought about it, but decided instead to either buy one commercially made or build .458 Lott on an M1917 Enfield.

 

If you do decide to do it, go through with it, and don't like it, you can always rebarrel to something like a .375 Ruger or .338 Win Mag later. (That's provided you didn't doctor the rails too much for the .458). In my book, the choice is up to you. There certainly are better actions to build a .458 Winnie on, but its strictly your choice. -I'll still want to shoot it either way!-

 

On the subject of barrels: why not spend another $100 and get something with a name and reputation of quality? Some A&B barrels and really good, others are complete dogs and never shoot or come clean. Shilen, Douglas, Lothar-Walther, McGowan, and many, many others don't cost that much more in the grand scheme of things so why not get a barrel that you know won't be suspect right out of the box? As much as it costs to build and feed something like a .458 Win Mag, you might as well splurge on the better barrel.

 

That's my opinion...

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I have barreled one Model 98 to .458 Win Mag using an A&B barrel. The job was for another gunsmith who did the rail work, etc. As far as I know, the customer was happy with the results. The barrel looked OK, quite good externally and internally from what I could see with the naked eye.

 

The A&B's come with a better external finish than the Douglas barrels, but Douglas are normally quite straight, and a bit of work with a barrel spinner turns the outside into what they should have looked like from the factory. That said, Douglas are my favorite "decent" barrels followed closely by Shilen. No more shots than would be fired from a .458 in its lifetime, and knowing that the .458 is a close range gun, I would guess that an Adams & Bennet would be satisfactory.

 

The Model 98 mades a good platform for a .458, given extending the magazine to 3.4 inches.

 

Clemson

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If you do decide to do it, go through with it, and don't like it, you can always rebarrel to something like a .375 Ruger or .338 Win Mag later. (That's provided you didn't doctor the rails too much for the .458). In my book, the choice is up to you. There certainly are better actions to build a .458 Winnie on, but its strictly your choice. -I'll still want to shoot it either way!-

 

On the subject of barrels: why not spend another $100 and get something with a name and reputation of quality? Some A&B barrels and really good, others are complete dogs and never shoot or come clean. Shilen, Douglas, Lothar-Walther, McGowan, and many, many others don't cost that much more in the grand scheme of things so why not get a barrel that you know won't be suspect right out of the box? As much as it costs to build and feed something like a .458 Win Mag, you might as well splurge on the better barrel.

 

That's my opinion...

The 458 is a standard length cartridge and will work in a m-98 provide the mag length is opened to 3.34

The 375 ruger will probably need more rail work than a 458 winmag because it is the same diameter as the belt on the belted mags but with very little taper. (I just started work one yesterday!)

I'd have to agree with Clemson on barrel selection. Unless you are built like a gorilla, an A&B will last a lifetime.

 

 

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