OK Guys: If i ordered a Freedom Arms in 45 Colt, Would i be losing a whole lot in performance when using stiff loads of heavy cast bullets in a 5.5 in. barrel? I read in Handloader by Ross Seyfried, that the 45 Colt is capable of much more than manufactures claim as far as brass strength and pressures. Would i be crazy for ordering a FA in 45 Colt with it's additional chamber room as opposed to a 454 in it's factory trim? Please help me as i have had a few 44 mags and a 45 Colt Ruger, But never anything high end. I like heavy cast bullets. Swede96.

Swede96 If I was going to hunt ONLY with the revolver I might have to have the 7.5 inch bbl... But if I was also going to carry it for a backup/auxilliary hunting piece I would go with the 5.5 inch bbl. The PAPER Ballistics will be higher with the longer bbl., but I do not think with heavy cast bullets there will be much, if any FIELD difference. Why not get both a 454 and a 45 Colt cylinder?

I would go for the FA 45 Colt as it is the best production revolver out there. As for the barrel lenght, it does not make much difference between a 5.5 in and a 7.5 in. If you look at some of the serious custom hunting revolvers from master gunsmith like Bowen or Clements then you will notice that most of them are made of 5.5 in barrel. Good luck. Cheers! Ming

Didn't know you could by a FA 83 in only 45 Colt? Always thought you "had to" get a 454, then order a .45 Colt cylinder as an extra option, unless your name was Ross Seyfried? You might not be able to shoot the lighter bullets as fast as a 454 case, but with the heavier bullets, I think they are really close! Dennis

"ming" I think I have to disagree with you that barrel length makes no difference. Barrel length will have an effect on accuracy. A rifle is inherently more accurate than a handgun simply because it allows the shooter to obtain a truer sight picture. The angle of error with the shooter's view of the sights will be less as barrel length increases(more correctly the distance between front and rear sight).
Therefore a 7 1/2 inch barrel length in the hands of the average shooter would be more accurate for them than a 5 1/2 inch barrel length. If locked into a vise, yes they could shoot the same group.
CDW

Hey, that FA .45 is one classy wheelgun.

Iron sights- the .45 is the classy way to go. I agree the longer sight radius of the 7 1/2" barrel does make the gun much easier to aim- but I'll stick to 50 yard shots or so. Not a limitation in my region. The FA is a tack driver- the accuracy is there, if you can do your part.

Scoped- may as well get the .454! You can put some steam under a 240 grain xtp Mag, and get yourself a log or some shooting sticks, and reach out to over 100 yards. The weight of the scope will soak up recoil, and quite a bit, from my experience with Contenders.

Either way, good choices. The hardest decision is when both choices are great!

Pete

[ 07-11-2002, 08:27: Message edited by: stinkeypete ]

I know this isn't a direct comparison, but my experience with the 480 leads me to believe that the 45 is a better choice then the 454, because the smaller cased 45 will produce superiour accuracy with reduced and medium level loads, and I also think that the 45 colt offers all the killing that a 45 caliber revolver is capable of. I think the 454 is good for the egos that have to have the fastest baddest round, but for the hunter, a 5 1/2" 45 colt is darn near perfect. Well, my choice would be a 5 1/2" 480, but I'm kinda funny that way

The .45LC in a Ruger is certainly a versitle cartridge from light cowboy loads to serious hunting ammo. With the larger diameter, you can acheive higher energy levels than a .44mag at lower pressure. There is some good data for the heaver bullets at http://www.hodgdon.com/data/frame.htm

Also some good reading about the Ruger throat problem at http://www.45throatdoctor.com

I like the 335gr LBT GC with 'Lil Gun in my Blackhawk Bisley for deer hunting. With a bullet almost 1/2 inch in diameter, expansion is not a big issue

I like the idea of a 454 with a 45 cylinder. Just about perfect choice. Good luck

Brian