I own a .458 win. mag. in one of the old(tang safety) ruger 77. I have to say that as long as you shoot offhand and dont try and fire a whole box of 510 grainers the recoil is quite tolerable, more like a heavy push than a punch. With 300 grain bullets it feels like shooting a 308 and is quite effective on a whitetail. With molded round balls ive used it to shoot rabbits and even quail.