30-06!!!!! the .458 is way to much! gun /recoil / expense/ weight . the -06 has way moe range, more than adequet knock down power, you can find ammo ANYWHERE, if you want more knock down power @ moderate range (for bear), simply go to a heavier bullet . the .458 is going to limit you in range, cost, availability of ammo, etc. the .458 was created for african dangerous game, where you MUST kill. or be killed at close ranges! i own a 45-70, and believe me, there is more than enough recoil from that with a hot 400 grain load. the .458 win mag is going to be a handfull to shoot. it may even instill a flinch from shooting it. you definately do not want that. you can't kill what you can't hit, and if you flinch every time you shoot it, you will have to be at very close range to hit anything. when i first shot my dad's .300 h&h magnum, @ 12 years old, i had to quit shooting for a couple of days because the recoil / report scared me into flinching. when i got my own 300 win mag, many years later, those thoughts came back. fortunatly, i had reloading equipment, and i downloaded ammoo to 30-06 levels for a while to get used to it, then gradually stepped up to full mag performance. now, there is no problem. now i would like to shoot some real monster guns, not own them, but shoot them. 50 bmg, 460 weatherby mag. 700 nitro express. etc. i kind of get off on abuse nowadays. weird, maybe, but there is no sence denying who you are!
