Ok im at an impass, i am going to jump into the .500 club. I like single actions and have two F.A.'s one in .475, and .454. Both have taken many game animals around the world. I would like to increase the dia,weight and wound channel by going to the .50. How is the X framed Smiths holding up or is it too early to tell? Does any one have a .500 Linebaugh and what do you think of its power and penetration compared to the .475 325 grn hc at 1325?? Honest feed back would be apreciated. Thank you. Charlie

I am have a Bisley at John's shop being converted to .500 Linebaugh as I am posting this. I lean toward the single action for something that is a bit easier to pack. The S&W is a good bit heavier and not, in my opinion, as handy to carry around. Honestly though, the .475 has been found to out-penetrate the .500. Bullet weight differences are not too significant and the .475 has the better sectional desnity of the two. Like you though, I am wanting to increase bullet diameter a bit and nudge it over the half-inch mark.

I would have to say that if you like your FA in .475, you should like a Bisley in .500 Linebaugh.

Really depends what you want to do,the 500 Linebaugh is NOT a step up in power compared to your FA 475 Linebaugh,were as the SW 500 is a step up in power and diameter.The SW 500 is bigger and heavier but it needs to be considering the power and recoil it produces.
I have had 4 -SW 500 and just sold my FA 475 to get a 475 Maximum.
If you want to move up in power over the FA 475 Linebaugh go with the SW 500,if you want an over 475 cal to carry all day,but not more power ,but still plenty for all thin skinned game go with the 500 Linebaugh.

Sean

Absolute top loads from my 500 Linebaugh Redhawk with 410 cast bullets are 1600 fps. The Smith will out-run by a little more.

FWIW 475/480, the bullet diameters are the same.

The good thing about the Smith is (1) it's a lot more affordable than any other big fifty. (2) The extra weight handles heavy loads better.

The bad thing s are (1) The pistol is so large its awkward to pack (2) The extra power is wasted on this continent. Mainly just good for bragging rights.

If I were to do it over I would get a 475 Linebaugh and be happy. The 50s are great conversation pieces but offer nothing practical over a good 475. That may be true for the 480 too but I never shot one so won't comment.

There is also the 500 Linebaugh long

I don't mean to disparage the 500 smith fans, but to me, the big S&W is simply too big and bulky to consider it a hunting sixgun. I think of it as more of a novelty gun, albeit a very powerful one.

It really comes down to what type of gun you like, and since you have FA 83's in 454 and 475, I'd expect that you'd be more comfortable with a bisley in 500 Linebaugh. While it is true the 500 may not have quite as much penetration as the 475 (we're talking maybe a couple less inches after each have traveled 40=" in newsprint) there are very, very few animals that will keep a 500L's bullets inside of them.

It could also be an issue of bullets, a friend shoots 470 gr LFN's I cast for him @ 1250-1300 fps from his 500L, and he has never lacked for penetration.

FWIW 475/480, the bullet diameters are the same.

?? The 500 Linebaugh is .510
The SW 500 is .500
I am not sure what you mean??

Sean
.

I didn't accurately read the first post, was that a typo, did you mean 425 gr hardcast @ 1325 from the 475 vs 325 gr at that speed? 325 @ 1325 is a 480 ruger load, and a less than max one at that.

I'm thinking where the 500 should really shine isn't with the heaviest bullets going for deep penetration, rather with midweight bullets with a softnose at higher speeds, ie 400's @ 1500 fps for slamming white-tails.

quote:

Originally posted by Paul H:
I didn't accurately read the first post, was that a typo, did you mean 425 gr hardcast @ 1325 from the 475 vs 325 gr at that speed? 325 @ 1325 is a 480 ruger load, and a less than max one at that.

I'm thinking where the 500 should really shine isn't with the heaviest bullets going for deep penetration, rather with midweight bullets with a softnose at higher speeds, ie 400's @ 1500 fps for slamming white-tails.

Thanks Paul it was a typo that slipped by me. I thank you and the other members for their imput, all of it was taken into consideration. I think ill stay where i am at for the moment. After thinking how well the .475 does i guess it was just a i wanna instead of do i need more power than it delivers at hand gun ranges. I have killed every thing except Ele, and Rino with it,so i guess you dont need much more than that. Thank you all again. Charlie

If you really want more, then the 500 Long linebaugh is the answer, though I'd highly advise firing one before having one built. It would provide what you are after, but I don't think the std 500 would.

My personal thought is, if the 475 isn't enough, then it's a job for a big rifle, not a job for a bigger pistol. I also think when one gets beyond a nominal 3# revolver with a 7 1/2" or shorter iron sighted barrel, then the whole point of hunting with handgun is lost.

I do understand how the I wanna bigger one deal works though, which is why my first 458 lott was sold to build a 500 Jeffrey, and then I ended up getting a second 458 built. Unfortunately I haven't had the time to get either past the barreled action stage to complete them.

The 500 Linebaugh with a 525 grain hard cast WLN @ 1125 fps will pennetrate a least as well and according to Buffalo Bore more than the 475 Linebaugh 425 grain in thier penetration box. Look at the field photo's and stories on http://www.buffalobore.com of an 1850 pound Bison I took with the 525 grain bullet I have used the lighter wieghts in the 500 and was not satisfied with the penetration I have owned a 475 since 1987 and believe that the 500 with the 525 grain WLN is a step above the 475 for very large game althogh both or adequate

Where can one find loading data for the 525s and have you tried Kellye Schlepp's (Belt Mountain) brass bullets?

I have not tried the Belt Mountaim bullets Jack Huntington can help with load data for 525 grain bullets @ 530-268-6877.

quote:

Originally posted by 475/480:
FWIW 475/480, the bullet diameters are the same.

?? The 500 Linebaugh is .510
The SW 500 is .500
I am not sure what you mean??

Sean
.

I misunderstood your post to say that the 500 SW was a step up in diameter from the 500 Linebaugh. That said, I was also uninformed about the 500 SW. I thought it was .510 also. Live and learn.

I'm not sure about Buffalo Bore, but John Linebaugh will tell you that the .475 will penetrate more than his .500. The sad thing is Linebaugh popularized the .475 and .500 and now you have Smith and Ruger capitalizing on it with their new cartridges which really are an out and out copy, in spirit if not a physical copy.

While the popularity of John Linebaughs rounds has lead to commercializing similar rounds by the majors, this has had no negative impact on John, probably quite the contrary. As far as I know he has more work than he can do and a year or more backlog. Making more folks aware of mega bore revolvers makes for even more folks becoming aware of his guns.

Neither Ruger or Smith make guns that fill John's 3 p's or power, portability and practicality. The ruger 480 does have most of the power, and the practicality as it is the least expensive over 45 bore, but it certainly doesn't have the packability (I'm not counting their abomination 2 1/2" snubbie). The smith 500 has the power in spades, but is too heavy even in 4" guise to meet the packability criteria, and price wize you could say it's practical.

Just as Volkswaged didn't put Mercedes out of business, John Linebaugh, Freedom Arms and other big bore sixgun shops will get more sales by the majors popularizing mega magnums, not less.

Thanks for the perspective, Paul. So true. There's a poster in reloading asking what 385 gr load is best for Grizzlies in a 500 S&W. Is it me or should cast bullets under 450 grains be discouraged for something that kills, bites and maims?

I utterly concur. I'd been planning to reply to that post that me thinks in 50 cal, you start at 450 grs.

I own two S&W 500 Mag's, and they are just some power houses. I think you would not be dissatisfied at all with a 500 Mag. I have well over 2000 rounds fired in them and not one problem. I shoot a lot of 440 to 575 gr. hot loads in both of the 500 Mags I have. One is a 4 inch and the other is a 8 3/8.

Elgin Gates had the SuperMag line planned out in the '80s, of which he had a .45 caliber round. John has the .475 and .500 Linebaugh Longs which is fairly close in performance with the .500 S&W. I've fired both the Linebaugh Long and S&W, both are a handfull when loaded to potential. In fact, a friend of mine cracked a finger bone from recoil on a LL. The LL are built on the Ruger .357 Max frames and are reaching the edge of John's three P's. Dustin is working with John now and they have the backlog down to about seven months, but are very busy. I don't think the S&W cartridges have hurt them.

quote:

Originally posted by jstevens:
I'm not sure about Buffalo Bore, but John Linebaugh will tell you that the .475 will penetrate more than his .500. The sad thing is Linebaugh popularized the .475 and .500 and now you have Smith and Ruger capitalizing on it with their new cartridges which really are an out and out copy, in spirit if not a physical copy.

I realize that is Linebaugh's claim and with the 435 grain class bullets he is correct I have tried the Buffalo Bore 435 grainers on 1000 lb and under and they are totally lacking in penertration I was the first to request the the 525 grain load from Buffalo Bore and they will penetrate amazingly If you will lok at the results of Linbaugh first pemetration test seminar you will see that the deepest penetration was acchieved with a 495 grain shot from a 500 Linebaugh. John Linebaugh some how believes that the 525 grainer's are too large although I do not agree with his thinking

I played with the 525's, but couldn't get them to stabalize out past 25 yards in my gun. I gave up and had a shorter 500 gr WFN mold made up.

with simular weight bullets at the same speed a .475 will outpentrate a .500 but thats obviously due to section density. the .475 has to displace less material. With bullets of simular sectional densitys the pentration is very simular. Johns loading data for the .500 is purposly kept on the mild side. Step it up to .475 pressures and its definetly a step up in power over a .475. Anyone of the three is a great gun for hunting if you keep in mind that your still on the light side of 4570 rifle ballistics. I lesson taught to me when i shot a buffalo last year with the .500. I figured that big powerful hard kicking .500 would flatten anything and just the opposite occoured when hit through the chest with a 450 grain bullet the buffalo continued to graze! The smith is a great gun its to big for my tastes but at least allows someone who wants a true big bore to get into it without a big cash outlay. Bottom line though is that all three are almost exclusively used with cast bullets and thats the great equalizer. Pushing cast more then 1300-1400 fps is more detrimental then helpfull especially shooting truely big game becasue once a bullet deforms penetration goes to hell and thats how a cast bullet does so well it punches a hole through just about anything.

quote:

Originally posted by Lloyd Smale:
Johns loading data for the .500 is purposly kept on the mild side. Step it up to .475 pressures and its definetly a step up in power over a .475. I lesson taught to me when i shot a buffalo last year with the .500. I figured that big powerful hard kicking .500 would flatten anything and just the opposite occoured when hit through the chest with a 450 grain bullet the buffalo continued to graze! The smith is a great gun its to big for my tastes but at least allows someone who wants a true big bore to get into it without a big cash outlay. Bottom line though is that all three are almost exclusively used with cast bullets and thats the great equalizer. Pushing cast more then 1300-1400 fps is more detrimental then helpfull especially shooting truely big game becasue once a bullet deforms penetration goes to hell and thats how a cast bullet does so well it punches a hole through just about anything.

Did the bullet exit the animal? which 500 Linebaugh or Smith? The one that I shot with the 525 grain @1125 fps from the 500 Linebaugh exited the animal and he instantly started to stagger and was done with one shot. Just currious? which type of bullet LBT,Kieth stle or jacketed?

500 linebaugh 450 lfngc out of a ballistic cast mold cast from 5050 ww-lyno. Bullet penetrated completely. He was dieing and didnt know it. I put two more through the boiler room both of them gave complete pentration. On the third shot blood poured out of his mouth like it was comming from a garden hose he staggered and fell at the third shot. I guess my point is that everybody thinks these big guns will just flatten animals and thats not the case. Ive seen a few more buffalo shot with .50s both linebaughs and alaskans and the results were simumlar. It gives me new respect for the men who shoot cape buffalo and other dangerous game with them. There is definately time for something to stomp you before it realizes its dead even with a percise shot! I forgot the actual article i read in a shooting rag about the same thing. But the author stated that because the gun recoils so hard and makes so much noise that you think you have some kind of invinsable cannon in your hand that will flatten a dinasour. But what you basically have is a gun that is about equal in power to a black powder 4570. a powerful gun in its own respect but far from invisible! Another good example of it was rabbit hunting last year at camp with the .475 with 400s at 1000fps. I shot 5 rabbits that day and only one died instantly! The other 4 made it at least 10 feet before dieing. Not much differnt the the reaction youd get shooting them with a 38 special. Handgun bullets kill by putting a hole through an animal and having them blead out. Granted the bigger the hole the faster that happpens. But i get a kick out of people who think that because they shoot a 500 smith there going to deck a deer faster then someone shooting a 44 mag! In the field it just doesnt happen. Where the big guns come into there own is on big boned animals those big heavy slugs if cast out of a proper alloy will amaze you as to how much bone they will break and how much penetration you will get.

Makes good senes to me. Having enough gun and proper bullet to penetrate properly is also a key factor, they certainly are not magical as some think