Soon I would like to get back to hunting with a handgun. While I have used a S&W 44 mag in the past, I would like to get a FA revolver. This revolver will be used on BIG big game. Since I already have the 44 Mags, I was thinking of getting a 475 Linebaugh in the 6" bbl length. Handled one today and I like the feel better than the 7.5". I also think I like the express sights better for hunting. I feel if I need to go bigger than the 44 might as well go to the 475. What do you all think? The only disadvantage I see is thet there are no shotshells for the 475.

I've got a premier grade, 4 3/4 barrel, ported casull, it's my belly gun. I carry it bowhunting in backcountry, you never know when you might run into a buffalo stampeed.

I was a .44 mag. ruger man. The F/A to Ruger was like going from Vega to a Corvette. You won't be disappointed.

I kinda fell into a great deal and ended up with mine. If I ordered one I don't think I'd have it ported and I would have gotten the 6" barrel myself.

I mostly shoot hot L/C rounds but it is nice to know I've got serious power if I want to shoot the Casull rounds.

I know a guy that had Bowen Arms (www.bowenclassicarms.com)build up one of his .475s that he carried while bow hunting in Alaska. He felt his ...4"...barrel was shootable so I would think a FA w/a 6" barrel would be a pleasure. If you do order one get the .480 cylinder right away as it is much cheaper than getting it after production

Which model are looking at, the Field or the Premiere? If you are interested in the Field model, get the premiere adjustable sights on them right off the bat. On the other hand, this may be a moot point as the Premiere Grade will have it all anyway. When the FA was first written up by Brian Pierce a little while back, the popularity of the 475's went through the roof. When I tried to get one, ABSOLUTELY NO PREMIERE GRADES were available and I had to wait 8 months to get one and a Field Grade at that. The suggestion that you order a 480 cylinder with the gun definitely is the way to go as I had to send my 475 back to the factory to have one fitted. No doubt you will enjoy your new toy and I suggest that you throttle down your loads for practice. It will bite you even you've been shooting several hundred rounds through it. All it takes is a split second of inattention and the trigger guard will peel skin off your knuckle; it won't draw blood but let you know you screwed up. Have fun.

The 475 Linebaugh is the way to go,I have the
7-1/2" Field grade,shoots great very crisp trigger and plenty of power ,If you ever want to try some cast bullets I have about 15 moulds for the 475 cal w/load data, Sean

Gentlemen
Thanks for the info. I would get the premier 6" with a trigger job and the micarta grips. Won't the 475 cyl shoot 480 loads in a pinch? I do not think I would shoot many 480 loads, I would just load the 475 cases with a lighter load for practice. That way I would have only one type of brass. Is there an advantage to the 480 cylinder I am unaware of?

If really big game is on the ticket, go with the .475 Linebaugh. Mine is a Field grade with a 6" barrel, premier sights, and micarta grips. Even with the heavy loads, it doesn't recoil enough for me to justify porting. I can load this round from 850 to over 1300 fps with a 400+ grain bullet. Driving the 325s at higher velocities gives a more "whippy" recoil and the revolver acts more like a .454 Casull. I can also shot .45ACP cases as projectiles at over 1900 fps from my revolver.

A friend of mine has the 7.5" and kills whitetails at distances exceeding 100 yards regularly; the accuracy is there. I opted for the 6" barrel as I bought this revolver with Cape Buff on my mind and wanted to get a "stopping revolver".

As far as shotshells go, you can always use the gaschecks to make them up.

The main advantage to a 480 cylinder is the availability of 480's in the used gun and equipment market. There's a shitload of guys who go and buy 480 Rugers and find it to be too much gun. That's the way it was way back when S&W Model 29's were popularized by Dirty Harry. I used to get all my extra 44's and equipment at the used gun market. To address the of 480's in the 475 cylinder, it can be done, but I don't. I learned a valuable lesson many moons when I had a Mod 19 built up into a tack driving PPC gun. I used 38 wadcutters exclusively for quite a while then one day we decided to GET REAL and pop off some 357's during practice. Guess what, we all had stuck brass because the 38's had fire-etched the chambers. The 357 brass would flow into the etched part of the chamber and therefore stuck brass. No matter how much you clean your chambers, you will always fire-etch your cylinders with shorter cartridges.

You can always load you own shot shells with a gascheck over the powder, then add shot and an upsidedown gascheck on top. Give it a roll crimp and your in bussiness.

For pistol hunting I have FA 454 Prem. in 7.5" I put SOB scope mount and Burris 2X Pos Lock Scope on it.

As for a backup gun when hunting with my bow I have a SW 5" Perf Shop V Comp 44 mag w Fed GM 250 FPJ, which is the best 44 I have ever had.