A case for more options between 44Mag & 500S&W Mag

M

mes227

New member
When we look at the sub-44Mag rounds there is a plethora of popular options in the "smaller" calibers. Working backwards: 44Mag, 41Mag, 45 Colt, 10mm, 44 Spcl, 45 ACP, 45 Gap, 40S&W, 357Mag, 357Sig, 9mm, 38Super, 38Spcl, 380Auto, 327Fed, 32Mag, 32acp, 25acp, 22Mag, 22LR. In short, we go from muzzle energies of 70 ft-lbs (25acp) to 900 ft-lbs (44Mag) in 19 steps averaging 44 ft-lbs each. That step size drops to 35 ft-lbs when you consider the slightly odd calibers: 357 SuperMag, 45 Super, 38 Super and a couple others.

But when we go up from the 44Mag the common options are few: 454Casull, 50AE, 460S&W Mag and 500S&W Mag. The energy increases from 900 to 2,500 ft-lbs, or steps of 400 ft-lbs each!! Even if you throw in the rare cartridges like 460 Rowland, 480 Ruger, 50 Wyoming Express, 375 & 445 SuperMags the "steps" are still a whooping 180 ft-lbs each.

Given this disparity, why aren't more large cartridges popular? Why do market entries like the 460 Rowland, the 480 Ruger and the Dan Wesson SuperMags, which helped to spread the gap, have such a hard time becoming successful? Going from a 44Mag to a 454Casull doubles the already large energy, wouldn't a few more options between those be useful?
 
And I forgot all the obscure small calibers: 8mm Nambu, 8mm Lebel, 9mm Mag, 30 luger, 30 Mauser, 9.4mm Dutch, 357 Harrett, 38 Colt Long, 38 Colt Short, 38 S&W, 10mm Mag, 38/40, 44/40, 45 Schofield, 45 Colt Pyrodex. We seem obsessed with these more modest calibers but pay almost no attention above 700 ft-lbs.

I wonder why.
 
Cost and comfort.

Not everyone considers it to be all that fun getting pounded by a monster magnum handgun and many find it even less fun knowing they're paying several dollars for the privilege of each whack.

The guns are quite specialized and those who don't have a need for the capabilities they provide (or lots of money to burn) will probably find a way to enjoy shooting more economically and without quite as much noise and fury.
 
.44 mag is enough gun for me since I must shoot one handed. I shot a .454 Casull with full power load that didn't take the hand off, but it tingled for a few minutes. For my purposes, If I want that high powered load for woods defense, Buffalo Bore has some rounds right up there with the .454 Casull in muzzle energy. Heck, the 1200 ft-pd range of some of their rounds is more than enough with proper shot placement for even the largest critters you will find in the woods. Anything more than this, I go with my Marlin .444 in rifle which I can shoulder in one second. That will suffice and is double the .454 Casull in muzzle energy. That is enough gun for me.
 
I'd say the demand in the market just isn't there. There is one segment of the handgun market who feels that all of their needs can be fulfilled with smaller caliber's like .357 magnum. There is another segment that likes a little more power, but they usually have little need or want for anything more powerful than a .44 magnum. The other main segment of the market consists of those who want more power, and they usually want a lot more. Hence the lack of intermediates to choose from.
 
Prices begin to skyrocket on both firearms and ammo when you get above .44 Mag levels. When you take into consideration that .454 and up is considered useless for anything but hunting you begin to see why. Most people don't buy handguns to hunt with and it would be silly to even consider them for serious day to day carry pieces. Even if weight and concealment were non-issues it would be silly to put yourself in a position to have to turn a 4-500 grain bullet, driven at near-rifle velocities, loose in a building or urban setting on a daily basis. It could easily kill or injure a dozen people beyond your target. On top of this, a .44 Magnum is capable of taking any game in the Western Hemisphere if properly loaded.

In short it would be a solution in search of a problem.
 
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The other thing you have to remember is that many of us reload our own ammo. My reloading book has loads for the .454 that aren't much hotter than a maximum pressure .44 magnum.
 
They seem pretty popular with me... I went to look at a 44mag snubbie couple days ago.... and came home with this instead.

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The big bores have a strong following as their price and difficulty in finding attests. The Ruger Alakan in 454 Casull, for example, is one of the hardest production guns to find, while the 44Mag version is abundantly available. And the price difference is less than $100. Ammo prices (factory) are also not the big deal that some claim: rather than "dollars a whack" I pay under a dollar even for the 460 S&W Mag.

And even if you accept the premise that there's not much "need" for calibers above the 454 Casull (a premise I don't accept), the power difference from 44Mag to 454C is over double. And that gap remains when you consider hot 44Mags and hot 454Cs.

It still strikes me as odd that in small calibers we 'demand' power increments of under 50 ft-lbs between options but in larger ones we 'accept' 400 ft-lb increments. The 44Mag to 454Casull comparison is a good one. I can shoot 44Mags one handed all day. That's not the case with the Casulls (which I also enjoy shooting but in more modest quantities). I also easily handle my 445 SuperMag (1,300 ft-lbs ME). The recoil doesn't start to become huge until I get up to the 454 Casull (1,800 ft-lbs). But the SM is an odd ball and there are essentially no common options in that huge power range.
 
Geetar... if ya get that one i just sent ya the link to and no one bids on it... you could have it for 900 bucks with shpping///transfer.
 
There's really not much of a gap if you have a gun that will handle hot loads. Hot .44 mag loads approach standard .454 casull performance and hot .454 casull loads approach standard .460 s&w performance. If those aren't enough for you then the .500 s&w mag is the next logical step up. There's really no need for something right in between one of these unless you just want something different. I personaly think the gaps are filled with varied loads in just these few cartridges.
 
It is my opinion that there is no need to step up the power in small increments. You can take a .454 and hand load it down well under the 44 mag, in any increment that you choose. Ditto for loading the 500 mag down to .454 power levels, or lower. My favorite load for my 500 BFR, is 32 grs of 3031, behind a 370 gr. gas check, hardcast. This is a normal .454 powered load. With the larger case of the 500, the recoil and pressure are less.
 
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