.458 Mannlicher Shonauer

[Rob404]

Thanks for the close-up of the Magazine Somehow I thought in would look more like the Savage Mod99 internal Rotary, How are the rounds rotated into position,also whats your opinion of the Soup Spoon bolt handle I need to Mod mine and always liked that classic Mannlicher look

 

[Red Leg]

You have one of the true classics. Barry Duckworth is one of Africa's most famous PHs, and he has used a Mannlicher Schoenauer .458 for most of his career. Have been looking for one for more than a decade. Congratulations on a wonderful rifle.

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Hallo Pondoro
Yes, Richard Harland`s book is one (three) of the best dangerous game hunting books I have read. I was so fortunate to met him and his wife , Brita a while back, they are very nice and good people. I don`t think there is any hunter that have shot more elephants , buffalo and other game than Richard Harland himself. His job was to cull /kill as many elephants/buffalo in the tsetse corridor..he used the .458 WM Mannlicher Schoenauer to cull large herds of elephants...I stand to be corrected , at one time he shot twenty eight elephants in a very short time ( three to five minutes, I need to read that specific article again, it was when the whole herd charged him and his tracker) he said the .458 WM Mannlicher with its rotary magazine did the trick...

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

Legendary rifle in legendary calibre.
I think you have a unique and excellent rifle Gert.
Congrats.
All the best .
Witold

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Thank you kindly Witold, I need to use this rifle a lot to enjoy it and shoot it, it was made to be use....so I will use it a lot in the future..shooting this rifle in big bore competitions gives me the opportunity to learn to handle big caliber rifles...At this stage I am capable in using the 404 Jeffery ,it shoots accurate and fast..I want to shoot the .458 Win Mag Mannlicher Schoenauer fast and accurate as well...

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

I envy you.
Good luck and all the best.
Witold

 

[siml]

Lovely rifle...

 

[Witold Krzyżanowski]

Lovely rifle...

I think the same.
Witold

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Update:
I did use the .458 Mannlicher Schoenauer (Win Mag) to shoot a BASA competition at the Ellisras Rifle Festival ...my good friend Herman Nel ( participant in the 1800 era black powder hunting expedition) shot the 458 MS for the first time in his life..he said he really enjoyed it...I did not shoot well myself and need to shorten the stock again...I am currently in the process to purchase a side mount scope base for the 458 MS to enable me to see better..I struggle to see the back v-express sight when aligning the front bead with the v-express sight..I do have difficulties to focus with my glasses when shooting open sights...

Herman reloading the .458 MS

Aiming :

Shooting:

He really enjoyed shooting the .458 MS....

 

[Gert Odendaal]

On this previous occasion I shot extremely high with the .458 Mannlicher Schoenauer , this past Saturday I took the .458 MS to the shooting range and shot about twenty five rounds to find my balancing point, body posture and made sure how the bead should be position in relation to the v-express sights...
I noticed that I tend to keep lining up to the right hand side and group on the right hand side.

My vertical line grouping is quite good..I worked on lining up more in a direct broadside posture and that corrected my grouping by moving it to the center of the target...problem solved, shooting open sights at twenty five to fifty meters is manageable for me, so a walk and stalk hunt with the .458 Mannlicher Schoenauer is on the cards for me...

 

[Fr8liner]

Hello Gert, what year was this rifle made/. have you any info on these and what to look for when comparing?
As mentioned last year earlier in this thread, by friend has one and we looking to value it.

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Contact the Collectors:
http://www.mannlicher.org/aboutmannlichers

They will probably give you a value. Keep in mind, a second hand value normally is determined by what the buyer is prepared to pay to get the rifle in his hands...only a new rifle has a price tag...
Regards

Gert

 

[Gert Odendaal]

My .458 Win Mag Mannlicher Schoenauer is a 1956 model, GK model. I had a proposition of $5000 to sell, I decline, since I will not be able to purchase another one...

 

[CAustin]

Gert,
I've only parted with a couple of rifles in my life. Sold them thinking I would not use one and the other just because a friend needed a better rifle.
I regret selling both now! So I understand your last post.

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Maybe it is because money really is not something important to me, everyone needs money, but money is not everything..it is pieces of paper with someones head/face on..a rifle like a .458 Win Mag Mannlicher Schoenauer you can handle , shoot , hunt with, re-load for , show it to someone who appreciate it..money you can only buy with...that is not much...

 

[CAustin]

Maybe it is because money really is not something important to me, everyone needs money, but money is not everything..it is pieces of paper with someones head/face on..a rifle like a .458 Win Mag Mannlicher Schoenauer you can handle , shoot , hunt with, re-load for , show it to someone who appreciate it..money you can only buy with...that is not much...

Well said sir!

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Update: After a long spell of contemplating what to do with my .458 Mannicher Schoenauer regarding a scope fitting, with all the pro`s and cons of what scope base/rings will work, financial input to acquire a set of scope bases/rings which are out of my financial capability, and advice from members not ot scope a .458 Win Mag caliber.....I rejected the idea of fitting a scope on my .458 Mannlicher Schoenauer. I then worked on the next best option, to fit a functional ghost ring...

I went to Johan Greyling ( gunsmith/mentor) to take apart the .458 Mannlicher Schoenauer `s bolt apart and to examine the cocking piece sleeve. I noticed I have extremely few millimeters of metal to drill and tap without altering the cocking piece sleeve and maybe damage it.
Decision:
We decided the best option I have is to make an exact duplication of the cocking piece bolt sleeve mantel ( the en-longed shiny piece of metal usually metal checkered that rides on the cocking piece)
The bolt only from the top:

Notice the piece of metal between the bolt handle and safety. That is what house the safety pin...it is hollow and does not have metal to drill and tap. Dove-tailing the sides of this piece is also not viable.
Bolt sleeve mantel from the top:

This is where I want to attach/soft solder the ghost ring`s base onto.
Cocking piece sleeve from the side:

I have narrowed my search down to a ghost ring sight used on the Marlin type of rifles....

Here is another type of ghost ring I can fit , instead of drill and tap I can use Brownell`s High Force solder to soft solder it as well...

I did converse with a person on another forum whom is extremely knowledgeable in building miniature/scale Mannlicher Schoenauer rifles as a hobby , to get his input and ask him to design an aperture sight for me along these examples I uploaded .

Members , as always your input is more than welcome in this regards...keep in mind the telescope option is redundant...anything in regards to a ghost ring is more than welcome..I am sure you will agree that it is sound advice not to scope this rifle as some of your members had indicated previously...
I am of the opinion that the location of the ghost ring sight will favor my ability to see a better /improved sight picture, since it is near my eyes and a long distance between the ghost ring sight and the front sight/bead. I will remove the island v-express sight ...

 

[Gert Odendaal]

I really would like some opinions regarding this type of ghost ring I want to fit, I will not duplicate the Marlin ghost ring, only using it as an idea to work on..my ghost ring needs to move left to right by dove tail and up/ down with threads..it will only be as long as the cocking piece mantel, the same shape as well....I am in the process to get hold of another Mannlicher Schoenauer bolt , to use it`s cocking piece sleeve and preserve my cocking piece sleeve...

 

[Gert Odendaal]

Maybe , I should not say , I will never fit a scope, since aging eyes is a sickness everybody accouter somewhere along the line in your life....but then it will be a last resort to enable me to see what I am shooting at...

 

[nztimb]

I would first sugest that you run a straight edge from the top of your front sight and over the rear sight as it sits now and check what distance you have under it as it passes over the cocking piece sleeve. (providing of course that the rifle is zeroed in using the existing open sights) This will dictate (ie, be center of the aperture) what type of aperture set-up you may make that will work with the existing front sight and not have the need to lift your face higher off the comb than you would for the stadard open sights. I have made a number of aperture sight set-ups this way and it is surprisingy effective to get the required heights etc this way
It should then be a simple process for you to machine a base similer to this one with the dovetailed insert so you have windage and the screw type aperture stem that will allow for the elevation. If you do the measurements correctly from the existing sights then you should be able to set things up so that a first time fit will not only look good and be very close to zero at centered on the windage (visually pleasing) but also with the elevation stem set at the lowest point so that it is zeroed for the minimum distance you would have your open sight zeroed for. I would probably zero for 50 meters so you would be good to go for shots out to 150 meter (if needs be) but for the more normal 25 to 75 meter shots you would be right on the money.