458 Win Mag. Magazine & Mag follower problem.

[Baryngyl]

I bought the following 2 items from Midway.

Savage Arms Magazine Box 458 Winchester Magnum Stainless Steel
Product #: 476779
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/476779/savage-arms-magazine-box-458-winchester-magnum-stainless-steel

Savage Arms Magazine Follower Assembly 458 Winchester Magnum
Product #: 779347
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/779347/savage-arms-magazine-follower-assembly-458-winchester-magnum

They do not fit together, the follower is to wide at the front to fit into the magazine, Midway says it's the right one that I should call Savage.
Anyone have any ideas?
It is to wide by about 1/16 inch I would say, do I just file it a bit and see if I can make it work or should I try to get Midway/Savage to replace it?

It is new in the package yet but with having to move 2 times in the last year and a ton of other stuff going on, it has now been almost a year since I got it from Midway.

Michael Grace

[handirifle]

Well since it's been a year, they might not take it back, dunno. But, having said that, are you sure the follower is wider, it is the mag well slightly smaller up front? Sounds like a silly question, BUT, there is a very real possibility the mag got a little squished somehow, not unheard of. Can you measure it? If it just a minor difference, just tweak the magazine a bit to make it fit.

Also, make sure the follower is going in the correct way, ie, front towards the front. They are easy to mix up. The tolerances on these things are not precise at all, so unless there is a 1/4" difference or worse it should be no problem "adjusting" it to fit. These things are really a pretty flimsy metal, but they are not exposed so they do not need to be heavy duty.

I just bought a magnum setup for my long action and honestly, I went back to the '06 setup. It took some minor tweaking and not only does it feed the 338Wm well, it feeds the '06 brass better than before. The new magnum mag was too narrow, to allow the brass to slide through it. The new setup was for blind mag, which I WAS going to convert to, but after tweaking my detachable mag setup, I changed my mind.

I decided not to adjust the blind mad parts, until I decided I would really need them.

[sharpshooter]

You have the correct follower, it must be fit to the mag box. The .458 wasn't made in any large quantities, so a standard follower was hand fitted to the tapered magazine box.

[BradB]

You have the correct follower, it must be fit to the mag box. The .458 wasn't made in any large quantities, so a standard follower was hand fitted to the tapered magazine box.

The 458 follower I bought from midway last year must have been pre-hand fitted cause it fit the 458 mag box perfectly out of the package and yes, it was tapered more than a standard magnum follower. ;D

[Baryngyl]

See if I can get these pics to show up right.

This is just to show them in the correct orientation.
http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz263/Baryngyl/458mag-follower1.jpg

This shows how much to wide it is, you can see on the right the width of the ledge.
http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz263/Baryngyl/458mag-follower2.jpg

The next 2 just show how the follower will not fit into the mag, you can not tilt/twist it into full position.
http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz263/Baryngyl/458mag-follower3.jpg

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz263/Baryngyl/458mag-follower4.jpg

I guess I will just file it down and try it, it was only $12.00.


Michael Grace

[handirifle]

Yup like I said some "tweaking" may be in order.

[Baryngyl]

But when they call it for the 458 Win Mag and charge $3.00 more for it, it should fit right.

Michael Grace

[handirifle]

But when they call it for the 458 Win Mag and charge $3.00 more for it, it should fit right.

Michael Grace


One would tend to think that, but if Savage didn't give out specifics on the sizes they (resellers) may assume there is no difference between models.

You will lose no strength by filing to fit.

[BradB]

Definitely the wrong one, the correct 458 follower doesn't have the cutouts on the sides of the follower.

[Baryngyl]

Isn't there a post somewhere on here that shows all the mags and followers?

Michael Grace