Hunting With Buffalo Rifle

[Tanks]

I took my .500 MDM on a bear hunt prior to an elephant hunt. You can see the result here.

 

[Choupique]

I hunt everything with my hunt everything rifle, a .338 win mag

Meat damage on deer is far less than it is with a .270 using 130gr soft points. Same will apply to your 458 using bullets designed for much larger game. Do it!

 

[Altitude sickness]

Were you able to get at least one meal out your daily bag? Rabbits dressed and cooked properly taste really good!

I would do the same thing with my Whitworth 458 WM, if we could track rabbit's on snow here. 405 grain lead FNGC at moderate velocity.

Absolutely ! No meat was ruined. I actually sneak around and try to find rabbits sitting with my binos. And slowly sneak in for a shot. With either a traditional bow. Or in that case the .458

 

[Longwalker]

I've used a .450-400 3" for elk and moose, and .375 H&H for several elk, moose, and bear. And one whitetail deer. I think it's a grand idea to use a dangerous game capable rifle on smaller game close to home. Good training, effective, and doesn't destroy as much meat as faster smaller cartridges shooting fragile bullets.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

That sounds about right to me. A little bit of practice on a big bore goes a long way.
With me there are two additional considerations.

1. I am on not a rich guy, so I don't enjoy sending CEB or North Fork bullets down range to put holes in paper. Who does? I used to do it with cheaper bullets for practice but it just does not appeal to me.

2. I saw this blog as change for me to get my licks in of one of my favourite topics, recoil.
I believe that recoil can be partly dealt with through mental discipline. That what works for me.

Although in my old age (80) I have installed muzzle brakes in two of my big bores, don't tell anyone.

When I meet people on the range or on a hunting blog, who do not like recoil, I try to offer my opinions on the mental aspect of recoil. It often just pisses people off. So, I try some of my weird humour and that seldom helps either. However I still preach about the mental side of handling recoil.
I believe it is like any contact sports, you can learn to love the knocks and lumps.

I feel the same way about recoil as Yogi Berra felt about baseball,
"90 percent of baseball is mental, the other half is physical."
Happy hunting, Amigos.

Yogi was a gold mine for amazingly useful but also hilarious quotes