Here's what my .500 Smith and Wesson does at 25 yards with 650 grain bullets:



http://www.hpphoto.com/servlet/LinkPhoto?GUID=3387e297-18ad-5cec-3707-c18a14e91c56&size=lg

http://www.hpphoto.com/servlet/LinkPhoto?GUID=5b2375ba-7155-6208-7f40-525113372c0e&size=lg



Damn, I love this thing.



Just joined a new club that has 100 yard handgun points. I'm itching to try it out.



Here are some bullet pics that are in the posts below:



http://home.hpphoto.com/servlet/LinkPhoto?GUID=38518e4a-5e7f-745d-47ba-2e2d513ad552&size=



http://home.hpphoto.com/servlet/LinkPhoto?GUID=6bf047ed-31e8-1f4e-7cfa-4a31147139a8&size=

That's some nice shootin and a very large boolit to boot. I've only tried up to 500gn bullets in my 45-70 BFR and they get real interesting real fast as the velocity goes up.

yup, yup, that is lovely. I want to see some 50 and 100 yd ones now. Wish I could afford one!

Damn Ya!

I've been telling myself that 454 Casull is big enough and that I have no need for the big S&W but that is some tempting evidence that you're posting!

Nice shooting.

where do you guys get the 500grn+ bullets

I used a mold from Mountainmolds. It's a 650 grain bore-riding flat point with an 80% meplat and a gas check. I designed it for max penetration by casting them from an alloy like Lyman #2 and using a large meplat.

Here are some other bullets:

Full size (about 380K)

Small (under 50 K)

L to R:

Cast Performance 440g. CP says they are heat treated, but they are not. They are just water dropped. That's why I'm using a harder alloy for mine.

My 450 grain LBT-style with 80% meplat.

My 550 grain bore-rider.

My 650 grain bore-rider.

A loaded .454 cartridge for comparison (using a 335 grain Saeco bullet).

I was thinking about selling some of mine, but they'd be too pricey for most. I cast the 650's from a single cavity mold and the reject rate (using Lyman #2) is about 50%. There are many variables that come into play using such a large mold and hard alloy. It's much trickier than using straight WW. It' probably takes me 2-3 hours to get 100 pristine bullets cast, sized/gaschecked/lubed. If I use some of the rejects (less than perfect fillout, perhaps some inconsistent wrinkles, frosty shrunken patches, etc.) I could double this number, but I wouldn't sell them.

The smaller ones, like the 450 and 550, cast very well with few problems. I think 550 is the cutoff for easy casting.

www.mountainmolds.com

They are excellent semicustom molds at a steal of a price.

I agree with Lar45,Dan does make very good moulds,they produce good bullets quickly,very little breakin time.
Sean

How much do those 650 gr bore riders stick out of the cylinder? Those are some long bullets.

Also, looks like you have quite a crimp on that 454 case!

Shiiiiiittt! you fella's must have some darn tough woods critters over there to need a 650gn pistol bullet!
Let's see sabre-toothed squirrels or grizzly-sized prarie dogs
In Aussie, we are limited to 38cal; lord I miss the big ones

Yeah, I crimp the crap out of them. Same for these heavies in the .500. The bullets jump out of the case under recoil and lock up the cylinder if I don't crimp like this (especially on my FA 454--the distance between the meplat and the top of the cylinder is minute).

Even though the .500 recoil is not as sharp as my FA, the bullets jump easier because of the greater mass.

what vel are you getting from the 650s?

It will actually take a 725 grain bullet, but the performance starts to drop off due to reduced powder capacity. The nose on a 725 is the same size and the 650.

Here's a pic of the 650 loaded, compared to the same 454 load and the 650 unloaded bullet:

http://home.hpphoto.com/servlet/LinkPhoto?GUID=38518e4a-5e7f-745d-47ba-2e2d513ad552&size=

The 650 is uncrimped because it is a heavy load that hasn't been tested. I take the crimp die and press with me to the range and I'll crimp them as I shoot them. This way, the bullets will pull easily in the event the loads are too heavy, and the brass hasn't been worked unnecessarily.

I have yet to hunt with this setup; it's just fun getting all I can out of big guns.

It would be cool to pop either a grizzly or African game. It's got the power and penetration for both.

I've gotten 1163fps with the 650. But it can still go more. I've got the ammo loaded just gotta get to the range and try it out.