Big Bore Home Defense Revolver Help?

Have you considered the standard Redhawk? Last I looked, the 4" barrel version can be had in .45 Colt...a big gun to be sure, but certainly less so than the Super.
 
I am an unabashed fan of the .45LC

I'm getting a big bore low pressure revolver for home defense.
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Why?
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Well, for starters, a big slug that is effective, no wear on the gun, easy to shoot, low blast/muzzle flash/noise, easy to handload...and if you want to push it a bit...

I have some faith in this guy's testing and conclusions (Taffin):
http://www.handloads.com/articles/default.asp?id=12
And this guy is no slouch either (Linebaugh):
http://www.customsixguns.com/writings/dissolving_the_myth.htm

My 4" M25 is one of the last revolvers I would ever part with.
 
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I like the 44S and 45C for HD. I currently have a 624 Smith and a Charter Bulldog in the nightstand with several speed strips.
 
Is there a reason why you're limiting your choices to those chambered for .45 Long Colt? You will have a much larger selection of revolvers to choose from if you also consider those chambered for .44 Magnum/Special and .45 ACP/Auto-Rim.

Personally, .45 Long Colt would be one of my last choices for a defensive DA revolver due to its small rim. You see, the rim of this cartridge is only .032" larger in diameter than the case. This is because the .45 LC was originally designed for gate-loading SA revolvers where the only function of the rim is headspacing. While the .45 LC's rim is more than enough for headspacing, it can sometimes "jump" the extractor of a DA revolver tying up the gun until the offending case is removed (not and easy or quick task) .44 Special, .44 Magnum, and .45 AR were all designed from the get-go for swing-out cylinder revolvers and, as such, have larger rims. Those cartridges along with .45 ACP in moonclips provide a significantly larger surface for the revolver's extractor to bear against and thus allow for more positive extraction.
 
I'm old-school: 1911, with 230gr. Hydra-Shoks. The Mossy 500 mentioned earlier would work just fine, too. My wife has one of those in 20 gauge, 18" barrel. Between the two of us, we feel pretty safe.
 
Any Ruger SA .45 Colt
Any Colt SAA .45 Colt
Ruger Redhawk DA .45 Colt
Ruger Alaskin DA 454 using a .45 Colt
Any S&W M25 DA in .45 Colt
Heck-Even A Governor or Judge Using .45 Colt or Colt .45 SA Clones

Guess I like .45 Colts.....My Favs-Ruger New Vaquero's in .45 Colt
Especially The Davidson's NV Montado or Talo Birdshead in .45 Colt of course.
 
I shot my 4" Colt Anaconda in .44 magnum yesterday. If I was getting mauled by a bear this would be what I would want to have to put in his ear. I doubt I could shoot more than one shot with a .454 Casull one-handed getting mauled.

Colt+Anaconda+.44+Mag+Revolver-1b.jpg


Like all .44 magnums, it was no fun with magnums and lots of fun with .44 specials. For hunting I much prefer .41 magnum here in Texas but then you can't buy .41 ammo at Walmart.

The Colt will appreciate being Colt and discontinued whereas the others not so much. It is as beefy as a Ruger but has much more class and quality. Model 29 speedloaders work for it.
 
For home defence, I'd vote for the Redhawk 4" model. I'm actually going to buy one pretty soon.

If you only want to shoot the Colts then the redhawk doesn't give you much advantage and it's 5 shots with a short barrel. The RH is 6 shots and the 4" gives you more powder burn but it's still short enough to be handy in the home.
 
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