Tell me about your big-bore choices.

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I have one Super blackhawk 44 magnum revolver and that's it for big bore revolvers right now. I like it a lot, but I prefer my 357 Magnums for plinking and target shooting because they're a little cheaper to shoot and just as much fun.

I don't hunt much these days, but if I had to choose between a 357 and 44 for hunting with a handgun it would be a tough choice for me between my SBH and 686. The 44 Magnum is obviously more powerful, but a 357 Magnum is no slouch and I can shoot them just a little bit more accurately than I can the 44. It would ultimately come down to what I was hunting. Anything bigger than a large Michigan or West Virginia deer and I'd take the 44 magnum.
 
Let's see... big bore...

Revolvers
  • S&W 629-4 Classic DX, 6.5" - .44 mag
  • S&W 24-3 Lew Horton Special, 3" - .44 special
  • S&W 625-3, 5" - .45 ACP
  • Colt 1860 Army (original) - .44 cap and ball
  • Colt 1860 Army (another original) - .44 cap and ball
  • Remington New Model Army (aka 1858 Remington) (original) - .44 cap and ball
  • Pietta replica of 1858 Remington - .44 cap and ball
The Colts are not shot by me (at least not yet, but it's still a possibility). The Remington gets shot very sparingly - that's why I bought the Pietta, to shoot more black powder. They are all a real joy to shoot, particularly the first two. The 24-3 will shoot 2" groups offhand (two hands) at 25 yards for me, and the 629 was supplied with a target showing a 1.5" 5-shot group at 50 yards, which is more accurate than I am (haven't tried it off a rest).

Semi-autos
  • Springfield Range Officer 1911 - .45ACP
  • Ruger P345 - .45ACP
The Springfield is a nice entry-level target pistol for competition, both extremely accurate and reliable. The Ruger is lighter than a 1911 and a decent carry pistol, although I carry smaller guns.
 
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44AMP, I know you are very much "set in your ways" at this point, and guys like you simply won't jump on the latest & greatest, the fads or funny new stuff, but my own personal experience has been that .460 Rowland is a heckuva lot of fun to shoot. I doubt you'd chase after one, but if you get the chance to shoot a modified 1911 pistol with the Clark/Rowland conversion, I'll bet it would light your eyes up.

It really flings a bullet and without a lot of associated nonsense. I did not keep the one that I had, but it sure wasn't because I didn't like it, the thing is an absolute hoot to shoot.
 
about the .460 vs the .44 Rem mag....
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Actually, in the post you;re quoting I was making a reference to .480 Ruger, not .460 S&W.

I read that the .480 seemed to give lower recoil because of its lower pressure.

I think the bullet weight and gun weight disparities would need to be pretty big for the .460 to feel tamer than the .44!!
 
My "heavy hitters" are;

44 magnum from either my 5" Super Blackhawk or my 4" M29.
320 grain LBT gas checked Wide Flat Nose bullet.
21.5 gr of 296 and a magnum pistol primer.

My "heaviest hitter" is a Freedom 454 Casull.
370 Gr LBT gas checked Wide Flat Nose.
Small rifle primer
25 gr 296.

I have killed a lot of game as well as large domestic animals (horses and cattle) with all 3 of these guns and the results have been all I could ask for.

Kills with the 44 are about equal to what I have seen in 45 years of hunting from 308s, 300 Savage 30-30s and 8mm Mausers.

I have killed elk, buffalo, deer, antelope and cattle with my 454 and the results remind me of the kills I have made with my 338 Mag.

I have only ever recovered bullets from the 44 mag loads 2 times.

Once when my friend Joe killed a large moose with his 6” M-29 with 2 shots. One went about 36” and exited, and the other went 45” and we found it under the skin.

Another time I recovered a bullet from a large beef cow I killed (bull actually) that broke the upper leg bone and was found under the skin at the back of the rib cage on the other side.

I have yet to recover a 454 370 gr bullet from any animal.
Exit wounds on every one so far. I have killed 27 large animals ( From 150 pounds to 2,100 pounds) with my 454.
I can’t seem to keep a bullet inside any animal I shoot with it. I am very very pleased with how well it works.
 
Recoil is a function of numbers; if the .460 has a larger powder capacity, throws a heavier bullet faster than the .44 does, it is going to have more recoil unless the gun itself is heavy enough to absorb the difference....there is no way around it.
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That is all true but gun weight does have an influence in felt recoil. Here are some numbers comparing a 4" 629 44 mag (that was one of the most uncomfortable guns I ever shot), a 7.5" Freedom Arms 454 Casull, and a 8 3/8" S&W 460. To make it simpler, a 240 grain round is used across the board and strong loads but not the fastest for any of the cartridges.

Caliber ------Revolver Wt-----Bullet-----Velocity------Energy---------Recoil
44 mag--------2.6 lbs--------240 Gn----1375 fps----1008 ft/lbs-----23.4 ft/lbs
454-----------3.28 lbs-------240 Gn----1815 fps-----1756 ft/lbs----36.5 ft/lbs
460-----------4.5 lbs--------240 Gn-----2165 fps----2498 ft/lbs----38.6 ft/lbs

Now these are just calculated numbers using a constant powder burn rate, etc. While I am sure they are not perfect, they are close enough for approximation. So, in the case of the 460, it delivers about 148% more energy than the 44 mag with about 65% more recoil. In the case of the 454, the 460 provides 42% more energy with 6% more recoil. The other thing that is not calculated is the effect of the muzzle break. I never shot a 460 without one and never shot a 44 with one. The only 454 I shot was shooting 454s out of the 460 so that was with the brake. That may be part of the reason the 460 is not bad to shoot. So the weight is a burden carrying a gun but it does help when shooting the gun. YMMV
 
5.5" Super Blackhawk .44 mag
4.62" New Vaquero .45 lc
RIA 1911 Tactical .45 acp

Nothing exotic or flashy, just good guns.
 
big bore

Lar grizzly .45 win mag 3 port by Bob Cogan. I was lucky I bought the gun from a man that knows about all there is to know about the gun. He has loaded me several options from 185 grain to 230 at 1700 fps to some 300 grain hornady XTPs. I don't have energy data on the 300s but I would bet its enough to get the job done. If you ever need work done especially hard chrome Bob is amazing. He will talk to you for as long as it takes to give you the best options and explain why and what should be done. His prices are surprisingly low and the quality of work top notch. It isnt often you find someone that cares more about doing something the best way than making the most money.
 
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Ruger flat top .45 colt. The grip fits my hand to perfection. A 255 grain .45 at 900-1000 FPS will shoot completely through any animal I will encounter and is pleasant to shoot. Unfortunately the N frame S&W just doesn't fit my hand.
 
Ruger flat top .45 colt. The grip fits my hand to perfection. A 255 grain .45 at 900-1000 FPS will shoot completely through any animal I will encounter and is pleasant to shoot.
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You and I are on the same page. I am shooting a 255 around 900 fps. I never felt the need to hot rod a 6-shot 45 Colt much beyond that and I also agree at least in part with John Taffin's Big Bullet Baloney theory. The 255 load is accurate, works for what I need it to do, performs well on game to reasonable distances, and--if I would need more--I get a bigger round! :D
 
BFR 45-70Govt. !0 Inch barrel

I can shoot rounds as light at 250 grain at speeds about 2000 FPS All the way up to 550 grain bullets plodding along at about 1250 FPS.

But if I am going to be honest my favorite load is 550 grain bullet moving less than 900 FPS. Still gives a lot of recoil but its slow and not sharp at all. So far they don't key hole but they are not the most accurate rounds at that slow speed.

For Accuracy the 400-450 grain bullets seem to the the best at about 1200 FPS. Certainly not full power but plenty of killing power for me.
 
If we define bigbore as a bullet diameter of .400" or larger, then my bigbores are as follows in order of bore diameter:

10mm Auto
.41 Magnum
.44 Special
.44 Magnum
.45 ACP

In terms of power, I've never really felt the need for anything more than a .44 Magnum or equivalent. Even in a .44 Magnum, I don't really see the need to push things beyond a 240-250 gr bullet at 1200-1300 fps as that is more than enough power for anything I'd ever need a handgun to do. Beyond that, my interest in handguns is historical interest and recreational and nothing substantially bigger or more powerful than a .44 Magnum really fits those interests. I do admit that I've considered adding something in .45 Long Colt to my collection, but I would load it to .44 Magnum levels or, more likely, substantially less.
 
S&W 629-6 Classic 5" - .44Mag.
S&W 629-4 3" - .44Mag.
S&W 624nd 3" - .44Spl.

Factory ammo - typically 240gn.

I've never shot any handgun bigger than the .44mag. The 5" is very comfortable to shoot while the 3" .44 is like hanging onto a grenade, tho somewhat better with rubber grips.
 
40 caliber or bigger ???

let's see... yup... I've got a couple

rather than list them all... I'll just comment on a few...

smallest / weakest big bore revolver, is my antique 44 American Bulldog... I reload for this cartridge, which uses shortened 44 Special cases... gun is a nickel solid frame with a loading gate... may I have been unfired before I bought it... neat little big bore pocket gun...



now to go back to smallest bore, of the big bores, is my custom S&W 610... which come from the factory able to shoot 40 & 10mm auto... I have an Automag 4, & also a custom Contender barrel chambered in 10 mm magnum, so I had the chambers deepened on my 610 to shoot all 3 cartridges

then I have a custom converted old German single action in 44-40

I also have a custom Dan Wesson 2.5" snubbies 44 Magnum... has both a compensator barrel nut, & the factory nut... I had it out last night, had 70 rounds of hot handloads that were in vintage Herters brass, that I'd picked up a while back, that I needed to get shot up, so I could sell the cases at the up coming Herters Swap Meet... that gun now wears a set of full fiber optic sights, & was built as a bear gun, back before Ruger came out with the Alaskan... last night I didn't have the comp nut on it, & they were not my handloads, but were a couple grains of Unique over max published... so I can still feel it in the web of my shooting hand... pictured here with the comp nut, & before the fiber optic sights were added



several 45 Colts, including my custom snubbie carry gun, this Montado, that had a birdshead grip from a single six ( back before they offered them that way ) barrel shortened & extractor removed... pictured with a beaver tail holster I made




...& speaking of the Ruger Alaskan... here is my 454 Casull... it also currently wears custom fiber optics...



my newest... is still under construction ( needs cosmetic finishing ) that is a custom converted Walker revolver, chambered in 45 Black Powder Magnum ( uses full sized 460 S&W cases ) gun was highly strengthened to shoot smokeless powders & can easily handle warm 45 Colt level loads... the mechanical work is complete, & extensive firing done... just waiting to get into the metal finisher...



then there is my custom 50 A.E. Blackhawk... it's a 50... what more do I have to say...



have many more than pictured... including an Air lite 44 Special... probably the guns that get fired the most are my pair of consecutive serialed 45 Colt polished stainless Ruger Montados that I use for CAS shooting... this year I added polished brass Colt Lightning grips, mostly because my companion rifle is stainless & brass... no pictures of that pair since the work was done...

sorry... had to go back & edit out some pics... as I had more than allowed...
 
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& since this isn't the revolver thread... got a few autos that qualify, but I'm more of a revolver guy, so that is what I pictured previously...

my Automags are my favorite autos... I've since pulled all the scopes off, & put them on Contenders ( BTW the 45-70 Contender qualifies as a big bore ;) )



this is the add that started me on the Automag path... nope it wasn't the Clint Eastwood movie... though I'd like to add a 44 Auto Mag to my collection...

 
MWM's post about his Bulldog reminded me of one I left off my list... my Colt Thuer 3rd model Deringer in .41 short. Yes, it's a mighty beast indeed. I would love to shoot it (once) but can't find a spare .41 short round for it, not wanting to break up my full box of 1935-era Peters ammo.

According to Wikipedia, the 130 grain bullet is propelled at a rather lethargic 425 fps, for a muzzle energy of about 52 ft-lbs (half that of a decent .22LR) and less than a .25 ACP round.

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there is a guy that sells collector cartridges that does the local gun show circuit you may find someone like that in your area, that has a couple ( I'm sure the cost would be several dollars a piece ) but your factory box is in incredible shape... so... nope I wouldn't shoot one out of it...

I have a replica Butler single shot derringer in 22 short that looks similar...does your barrel pivot sideways in the middle to load / unload ???
 
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