The Accurate Reloading Forums
Re: Your favorite big bore revolver, no .357 magnums
13 November 2004, 03:02
N E 450 No2Re: Your favorite big bore revolver, no .357 magnums
My favorite is a S&W 4" 44 Mag. My wife and I always carry one while hunting. I even took one to Africa.
[Did not take one to Canada though
]
While I have had excellent results with Elmer Keith's loads[250 cast SWC with @ 10 grains on Unique or 21 to 22.5 gr of 2400], lately I have just been to busy and lazy to reload, and used mostly factory loads. I carry 2 Speer shotshells followed by 4 of the Speer 270 Gold Dot at the deer lease, When in Grizzly Bear country I use Garretts Hammerheads, or Federal Cast Core. In Africa I usually loaded 2 Speer 270's followed by 4 Garretts.
12 November 2004, 12:20
crackyflipsideMy personal favorite is my BFR 45-70
12 November 2004, 13:34
tontoRight now I have a 629 custom deluxe smith with an 8inch barrel in 44mag.
Ive taken javelina ,bobcat ,wildebeast ,blesbok and springbok with mine.
I hope to get a 500mag next just need to find a good deal on one.
12 November 2004, 15:01
GeorgeSMy Ruger Bisley .45 Colt.
George
12 November 2004, 15:32
mbogo37541 Magnum S&W Model 57 with 8 3/8" barrel. Most accurate factory revolver that I have ever personally seen (mine would do 1.5" to 2.5" at 100 yards on my better days back when I could still see the iron sights clearly, and was shooting metallic silhouette matches).
Jim
14 November 2004, 18:06
KevHI,
NONELL,that is some nice engraving on them guns,Kev
12 November 2004, 16:01
crackyflipsideI have never shot a 41 magnum, what does it feel most like?
12 November 2004, 16:03
BlackHawk1Ditto on the .41 Rem Mag. Can't have just one...
- 6.5" Ruger Blackhawk
- 7.5" S&W 657 Classic Hunter
- 14" T/C Contender
12 November 2004, 16:07
DPhillipsHamilton Bowen 500 Linebaugh conversion on a Ruger Redhawk.
12 November 2004, 17:40
lawndartI'm with George S,
The best for the least is a Ruger Bisley in .45 (long) Colt with a pring set and a trigger job. Feed it your choice of heavy, hard cast, heat treated bullet. Great for shooting a treed mountain lion, a sick cow, a pissed off bison, or a target of opportunity like a coyote that jumps out of the weeds when you are pheasant hunting.
JCN
12 November 2004, 17:50
jeffeossoI am with George, too...
my ruger bisley vaquero 45 LC, with "shootist" thin checkered grips, 225's at 1200, is a constant companion at the small of my back.
I CAN hit a pig at 50 to 60 with those crummy sights, and I can pull and draw a "charging" blackbuck....
and, dang it all, my, the ruger, and a flashlight, have finished more pig hunts than my buddies want to admit too
However.... coverting it to 480 ruger and a saddle carbine would be a thought
jeffe
12 November 2004, 18:44
KevHI,
I had a 45 colt Bisley made into a 500Linebaugh,I really like the 45 Bisley may get another some day,Kev
12 November 2004, 18:47
mbogo375Quote:
I have never shot a 41 magnum, what does it feel most like?
Recoil is noticeably less than a 44 mag, but a little more than a 357 mag. It is a great compromise round for deer size game, shoots pretty flat for a revolver round, and seems to be accurate in most revolvers and single shots so chambered. As BlackHawk1 says, you can't have just one. I also bought an 7.5" Ruger Redhawk stainless with scope rings, and a Redhawk 5 1/2" stainless when they were being closed out for $259 and $239 . Both are extremely accurate as well. The 7.5" with scope will stay in 1-1.5" at 50 yards anytime (even with lead bullet loads).
As a side note for the Model 57, it is the only revolver that I ever worked with that I couldn't improve on the accuracy of it's favorite factory load by reloading. I could equal, but never improve on the accuracy of Winchester 210 grain soft points (not hollow points). This was some years ago, maybe I will try some of the newer powders and bullets to see if they would make a difference since I have been hoarding my last box of the old Winchester ammo (but I really can't complain if they don't).
It's a shame that it never became more popular, but it does have a dedicated following among the small group of people who discovered it's accuracy and versatility.
Jim
13 November 2004, 00:30
445 supermagDPhillips, Now that is sweeeeet. Any pictures of that beauty.
Brian
13 November 2004, 00:31
445 supermagFor me its my Dan Wesson 445 supermag with an 8" barrel and topped with a burris 2x7. Smoking accurate too.
Brian
14 November 2004, 10:10
KevHI,
This is my 500 Linebaugh,MR. Clements did on a Bisley,Kev
14 November 2004, 15:50
NONEIII have carried a S&W 629 Mountian in .44 with me all over the US and love it. I feel weird hunting in africa because I dont have a handgun with me.
For hunting only duty thought my Gary Reeder built custom on a ruger frame in .475 Linebaugh is one of the best I have found.
Link to Garrys site and my fav. Big boar handgun
http://www.reedercustomguns.com/revolvers/images/africanhuntercolor1.jpghttp://www.reedercustomguns.com/revolvers/index.htm14 November 2004, 18:57
Socrates
Linebaugh Seville, 6 shot, 45/454.
s
Grips and finish work by Jack Huntington..
s
15 November 2004, 04:16
NONEIIThanks,
I had my Afrcian model engrved with a lion on the 5 shot cylinder and my Back Up 2 with a bear. Gary will swap the engraving around to your prefrance and they come with your choice of finnish for no addtional charge I like the two tone myself.
http://www.reedercustomguns.com/revolvers/images/Ultimate_Backup_II.jpgJames F. Nixon III
15 November 2004, 10:06
DPhillipsLooks like hunt101 is back up, so I'll give it a try.
15 November 2004, 10:45
Lar45I have a BFR in 45-70 also. I can get some serious loads out of it, 405's at 1750,
but I think it is too heavy for a carry gun.
I also have a 4 5/8" Blackhawk in 45colt. It's light and handy to pack,
yet can still deliver respectable performance.
I would like to have a 475 someday though.
I have been thinking of doing a 1.3" version of the 375 Atomic
on a Blackhawk. It looks like it should make a rather respectable medium bore handgun.
15 November 2004, 10:55
jro45My favorate handgun is S&W 500 shooting 400 & 500 gr bullets
The most powerful handgun in the whole world.
15 November 2004, 12:36
WESRDPhillips,
Beautiful! Looks a little intimidating to shoot with full house loads though. I sometimes wish I had a .500 Lin., but my .454 level colt loads are as much blast/recoil as I need (no desire at all to touch off a 500 S&W). How does Bowen's double action pull feel? Thanks for the pic.
Wes
15 November 2004, 13:03
DPhillipsThe Redhawk isn't bad with full house loads, surprisingly enough. Very little rise or muzzle flip, but it does come straight back pretty hard. I actually prefer this type of recoil much more than the Bisley framed roll. Re-acquiring the target takes much less time for me.
Proper shooting form is demanded when shooting it though.
Double action pull is as good as any I've tried. Of course, I'm much more accurate using it single action mode. Not because of the pull weight, but because of the length of the trigger pull.
Bowen really is a master building these guns. I highly recommend it. The gun weighs 2lbs 13 oz, so is fairly light, with a 3.5" barrel and well balanced.
15 November 2004, 15:01
DavidReedHere's mine. Its a five shot .45 Colt done by Bowen.
15 November 2004, 18:25
CZ 550I absolutely love my Ruger Blackhawk 41 mag. That little 4 5/8" barrel sure does bark though!
Andy
16 November 2004, 00:31
GanyanaCannot fault 41 mag as a carry gun. My S&W M58 has one elephant bull, One Buff bull, one Houtie and one Hyaena notched up! Love it to bits
16 November 2004, 07:08
tiggertateMy hat's off to Hamilton Bowen for that beautiful revolver and especially to you for being able to control it in double-action fire
.
I have a full 7-1/2 inch regular Redhawk in 500 Linebaugh that was rebored by Labounty and has been double magna-ported. It is a real handful; without a glove it tore all the internal tissue between my thumb and index finger on the third shot. The loads chronoed right at 1600 fps with a 435 gr cast bullet.
Six weeks later I could shoot it again (this time with a Past glove) and six years later I still flinch like a guppy in a shark tank when the feeding bell clangs
.
16 November 2004, 11:33
jro45I also shoot the Blackhawk in 45 Colt 7 1/2" barrel The fastest I can get my 240 gr bullets to go is 1450 FPS. I like the Redhawk in 44 mag 5 1/2 " barrel. This gun will shoot the 240 gr bullets at 1430 FPS But there is no gun like my S&W 500.This gun shoots the 400 gr bullet at 1620 FPS or the 500 gr bullet at 1419 FPS. If I had the Equipment
to post pictures I would.
16 November 2004, 11:56
DPhillipsDo you use the "push-pull" grip style? Using this with the Redhawk, the gun just isn't too bad to shoot. Push foreward with your grip hand and pull back and down with your support hand. That coupled with the recoil coming straight back with the Redhawk just isn't bad. Good stocks on the gun help a lot too. Had a 45 Colt Redhawk that split the web on shooting hand while shooting hot loads. The grip had a nice sharp edge on it and sliced my hand open.
16 November 2004, 12:21
crackyflipsideThis thread is getting popular! Here is my other pride and joy.
Its got an extremely well done blueing job. Never seen any others with that same job done
16 November 2004, 12:35
Redhawk1My BFR in 500MAG, cut down to 6 inches with inverted muzzle crown and mag-na-ported.
16 November 2004, 18:09
Lar45Quote:
My favorate handgun is S&W 500 shooting 400 & 500 gr bullets
The most powerful handgun in the whole world.
The S&W500 should definatly be a beast, but I think that I can get more out of the 45-70 BFR. 405's at 1750fps is where I stopped due to recoil, but the brass just fell out of the gun when it was tipped up. The gun was still controllable with 50yd open sight groups of around 1.5", but it wasn't fun to shoot anymore. I pushed 500's into the 1500fps range, they all hurt to shoot, but I think my hand was bruised by then.
16 November 2004, 21:13
KevHI,
Just love DPHILLIPS 500L,Kev
17 November 2004, 02:15
tiggertateI noticed the grips right away. Are those Jordans? I will try the push-pull next time out. Frankly, the Past glove sovled most of the problem for me. I would like an alternative, though. It's too awkward to put on and pull off only when hunting so you end up wearing the thing all day.
17 November 2004, 08:59
TBEAR99Well mine is the Ruger Redhawk in 44Mag i own a 41 mag also which was my favorite untill i started shooting 330gr garrett ammo it's added a special essance to the gun for me.I plan on having a 475 linebaugh built next year i can't wait i'm to the point in my collecting that i'm going alot more custom i own a custom dan wesson 44mag and i had my colt gov't model customized to 45 super which adds alot of fun and brings conversation piece this colt draws a crowd at the ranges [image]my pictures[/image]
17 November 2004, 09:14
RoosterMine's a Ruger Bisley in a 45 Colt. I waited for months for the gun shop in town to get one in. When it finally did they gave me a call and I bought it. Wasn't a week later they got another one in and when I found out about it I went down and bought it also. It's still in the box, never been out and sitting in the top of the closet.
17 November 2004, 10:34
jro45The 45-70 has been around a long time. Someone made a revoler to chamber the 45-70 cartrige. Thats Fine but it is a round orignally made for a rifle. The 500 has a round made for it only. Thats why it is the most powerful handgun made so far in the world. I also have a contender that shoots the 45-70 faster then the most powerful gun in the world.
