Which 454 casull?

R

Ruger guy

New member
I've had an itch for one of these for a long time. You know, the power you just gotta have? I guess it's kinda like getting back into the torque of a good old American muscle car big block after driving 4 cylinders around for a long time.

Anyway, while watching the news report about the woman being mauled to death by a bear in North Carolina, I finally convinced my wife that we should start saving for one of these. You know, for one day when we happen to be hiking in the mountains? :) :) Plus we were both attacked by a guy a while back that was the size of bear. Wouldn't have done any good though, I'm in a no right to defend yourself state. (That's for another conversation)

Question is, which one do you buy? I thought that the Ruger is about the ugliest thing in existance, but it is starting to grow on me. Although it is probably very reliable.

What about the other options?
 
Here's my take on these, and I'll tell you what I have:

Freedom Arms: Expensive, and from what I understand, very accurate and well made. Probably one of the strongest actions available for the Casull. Downside is that they use a Single Action grip, which is very uncomfortable to shoot for me...I don't like to have to concentrate part of my grip on hanging onto the gun...just on firing it well. Some folks that shoot it (scoped) get 2" groups at 100 yds! I have heard less than stellar comments about their recent quality.

Ruger: Also very strong. There's nothing bad to say about this gun, except in pics of folks firing it, the barrel is at a 45 degree angle (probably same as FA). Maybe a little porting would help. Accurate enough for hunting within the same ranges as the FA.

Taurus: Sometimes folks can get a bad apple out of these, but Taurus typically makes it right. The porting helps keep the muzzle down. Although not as accurate as the FA, good enough for hunting within the same ranges.

I own the Taurus, and I've had no problems at all. It's accurate enough for me (I can hit a 7" steel plate at 100 yds with open sights all day longwith it) I just need to put on a scope to really see what it's capable of.

Here's another angle. I'm drooling over John Linebaugh's .475 Linebaugh and .500 Linebaugh customs, using Super Blackhawks with Bisley frames. Maybe they're a consideration. Check 'em out at www.sixgunner.com Here's one thing to remember...Casull ammo is expensive. I'm going to start reloading so I can shoot it more.
 
I've nothing but good to say about the Ruger Super Redhawk, It's by far the most durable you can get in .454
 
I like the Taurus.... I agree, the porting helps out a lot. The kick ends up coming more backwards than upwards.

Heavy as hell though... Adding a RedDot scope doesn't help either :)

Was shooting one two weeks ago when the park ranger showed up to ask me to stop scaring the mountain climbers and ended up drooling all over.. "damn hell, boy, that's not a revolver, it's a cannon."

Woulda let him shoot it if he hadn't asked us to stop scaring the treehuggers :)

I'd take the Taurus over the Ruger, and the Freedom Arms is out of the question for my wallet.

Now I just need to get the custom ankle holster ;)
 
Out of curiosity, have you found the extra power worth the difference between the cost of Casull and 44mag ammo?
 
Buy the Freedom Arms version. The others are to damned heavy to pack. I have two of the 7.5 inch ones. One scoped and one iron sights. I may have the iron sighted one shortened to 5 inches and magnaported. The guns are made slightly better than a swiss watch. Save the money and invest in the best. You won't be sorry. If you get the Ruger or Taurus you may as well pack a rifle.
 
Oleg, if I can ever find an elk while I'm packing the gun, then yes! That's what I bought it for. Honestly,I haven't shot it enough to carry hunting yet, mainly out of respect for the animal. I just don't feel like I' extremely proficient yet. So for now, I carry a rifle. I really hate shooting rifles compared to hand cannons, but for now it will do. After starting to reload the Casull ammo, I will become much more proficient. BTW, factory .454 ammo is more than double the bower of a .44 Mag, so when large game at 100 yds.+ is a target, there's really not a debate. Actually, you compared the wrong cartridge...the .45 Colt (magnum loads) is much closer to Casull capabilities than the .44 Mag. Visit Linebaugh's site for the lengthy but intriguing reasons ( www.sixgunner.com ) . Oleg, if you are knowledgeable about shooting large bore revolvers so that you don't hurt yourself, the price dissapears from your mind when the hammer falls. You actually feel the concussion, and you see something 100 yds. away respond like an invisible Mac truck hit it...it's awesome.
 
Here is my "take" on the question.

I own a 4.75" Freedom Arms Casull w/Mag-Na-Port. I have shot a Taurus, have handled a Ruger.

Freedom Arms. I bought mine for $950 8 or so years ago. They are currently going for over $1500. I could sell mine and make a profit. It is the finest "production" revolver I've ever handled. Lock up is tight... no cylinder movement what so ever. Trigger pull is crisp. Fit is flawless. IIRC when FA was working up the Casull they TRIED to blow the gun up... couldn't do it.

I got a chance to shoot a friends Raging Bull (Taurus). I fired one shot and it hurt. I figured I didn't have a good grip, so I readjusted my grip and let loose another one. It hurt again. I mean I felt it in my hand, wrist, elbow. Pain. I put down the Raging Bull and then proceeded to fire two cylinders out of my Casull.

The difference I believe is in the difference btwn the grip frames. DA grip frame channels the majority of the felt recoil back into your arm while the SA grip frame allows the gun to "roll" in your hand and allow most of the felt recol to bleed off.

I, personally, can not see a need for a DA Casull. I can cock the SA FA as I bring it out of the holster and recock it as I bring it down out of recoil (and you will have recoil <G> ). Why do you need DA then?



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Schmit
GySgt, USMC(Ret)
NRA Life, Lodge 1201-UOSSS
"Si vis Pacem Para Bellum"
 
I don't have any great technical reasons for my love; but I absolutely love my Ruger SRH .454. I guess its is true: "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Other than the finishing work and factory trigger, Ruger did a wonderful job making the SRH .454, IMO of course :) After having a local gunsmith do a trigger job, a recessed target crown, and a little polishing where the cylinder sits in the frame; this gun is a dream come true. Total cost of gun excluding tax would be now $700, the smith only charged $60.

I can now rapid fire .45LC and the SA pull is light&crisp. The recoil is subjective, I for one do not like ports on my gun, again IMO. Except for the heaviest of the heavy loads, the Ruger SRH is very comfortable to shoot. So much so that I was at first dissappointed that it didn't knock me in the floor. :D

The accuracey of this gun before was good, now with the trigger job and target crown it is far better than I can shoot. At a recent TFL meet, Joe Klug put all six rounds of .45LC touching at 10yards. I know that is up close, one day I'll learn to shoot a pistol at 100yards. That is why I have this gun. Yeah its heavy, but my God it got the kick of a 30/06 in a package you can fire in one hand :eek: with enough takedown power to literally take down a elephant. I don't expect it to be light, but with the right holster the weight can be managed.

One day, I hope to own a FA .454; I feel that they are the finest SA revolvers out there solely on their reputation, but to get a FA would cost me an additional $1000 compared to the Ruger.

Find someone that will let you shoot their .454 if you can, it so subjective a matter. I cast my vote for Ruger; with all the power of the .454 in the palm of my hand, I trust my Ruger.

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Know Yourself, Know Your Weapon, Know Your Enemy; then Know Victory! ---DaHaMac
 
DaHaMac,

>it got the kick of a 30/06 in a package you can fire in one hand

With full power loads I think I'll stick to holding on with both hands. I'd be worried about retaining the impression of the front sight in my forehead with a one handed grip. :)

It would be interesting to try the .454 at a longer range. I'm sure it would be quite accurate, though.

Joe/Ga
 
I honestly have a hard time picking a favorite .454. While I haven't fired a Freedom Arms piece I have fired DaHaMac's 'Hawk and the other day while on duty I stopped by the range and a guy let me have a go at his Raging Bull.

DaHaMac's 'Hawk was my first .454 experience and I was quite impressed with it. It was a hand full with the big loads (read as: Huge muzzle flip!! :)) but still terribly enjoyable. Like Joe Klug said though, I think I'll stick to a two handed grip with the 300 grainers. :D

The Taurus 'Bull didn't try to impale my forehead as aggressively but after thinking about it I'm not sure that it was entirely due to the porting. The one I shot was scoped and was considerably heavier than Mac's 'Hawk. I'm sure that the extra weight of the scope over the barrel had a little to do with it.

The Taurus owner said that he had put a Tasco Pro Point red dot on it to begin with but he had to send it back to Tasco after the recoil "broke it in half". He said it was very accurate for a while, then wouldn't hit for anything. He examined the red dot sight to see why it wasn't zero'd and found that it had broken completely in half!!

FWIW, I shot a better group with the scoped Taurus with five rounds going into about 2" at 25 yards. To be fair though, when I shot Mac's 'Hawk I didn't know what to expect recoil wise and was probably focusing more on keeping my forehead intact and retaining the use of both hands than I was with all out accuracy. :D Joe Klug's group decisively removed all doubt about the gun's abilities. This guy is a true marksman!

I want a .454 but I honestly can't decide on which one to get. I want to fire an unscoped Taurus before I make a decision. As it stands, I am slightly leaning toward the Taurus because it seemed to fit my hand a little better.



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The Glock freak formerly known as Chris...
 
Schmitt, I don't think that anyone uses the DA function of their DA .454...at least I don't. I only fire it SA. I really don't like the "rock" from an SA grip, so Iwent with a DA because I like it better. I still like the SA Bisley the best, but that's on;y a cust app. reight now, and FA doesn't make it. Eventually, I'll get a Linebaugh. Some of us shoot DA frames better than SAs. I had my trigger work done only to the SA action of my Ragin Bull becuase that's all I use. I can fire that as quickly as DA, and much more accurately.
 
Hello to all... I'm a new member... just signed up yesterday. Greetings!

Well, most of what I can say has been covered by the Freedom Arms fans... I'm no expert, but have a little experience, so I'll be an echo in favor of the FA.

I own a FA 454 with a 4 3/4" barrel (not ported). It weighs 3 lbs 2 oz's, is a "field grade" with the black Micarta grips and "premier" sights (no scoped handguns for me, thank you!). I like 325 Hard Cast LBT style bullets.

As to recoil, the FA Pistol grip is of the Bisley style (as has been pointed out). When held properly the piece just rolls comfortably in your hand... that's the beauty of a properly designed Bisley grip. As one poster mistakenly thought, it is not a traditional SA grip where the pinky finger is under the grip (you'd probably really hurt that finger if this were the case!).

Shooting the FA comfortably requires proper technique. It must be held in such a way that the piece is "in-line" with the forearm and a "straight-wrist" used (no bent wrists here!). The elbow of that same arm must be slightly bent. The other hand is up to you according to your own preference and training. The final thing is that you can't hold the piece lake a vice-grip! You must hold it in a manner that allows the grip design to work (roll in your hand). Most guys try to overcome recoil with some mistaken "macho" notion that if they flex enough, bear down enough and engage enough testosterone... it'll all work out! My own opinion is this peculiarly male attribute is why so many of us guys are lousy pistol shots and so many women are better "natural" shots (all IMHO of course!).

With proper technique it's an absolute joy to shoot. I've fired a S&W "mountain-Gun" with full house loads... now that thing bites
you! The FA is nice in contrast... no "web-bite."


Best Regards, Brad
 
No, FA doesn't make a Bisley grip...they told me that personally. You have a traditional Single Action grip, which is designed to roll. The "bisley" mimics the DA grip because it doesn't roll. This is the only SA grip that I can shoot comfortably. Again, FA doesn't make it, but Linebaugh and others do (most makers use a Ruger Vaquero frame (it's stronger than the rest), mate a Bisley grip frame to it, and put sights, a barrel/ejector rod housing band, new cylinder and other things on it and resell them.)
 
Frontsight... have you actually fired a Freedom Arms with a Micarta or Rosewood grip? Your post doesn't leav the impression you have. The Freedom Arms with that cheezy injection molded rubber grip doesn't count... that thing is an abomination and doesn't utilize the grip design of the FA.

Regards, Brad
 
Yes I have. I have also fire a .500 Linebaugh with a Bisley grip, and it made a huge difference to me. BTW...the hammer is what bites me, and no matter how lightly or hard I tried to grip it, it did it...Some of us just shoot a straight grip better. Here's another advantage of shooting the Taurus: You have my honest word that the muzzle rises only about 3" with full power loads! If you ever needed a second shot, you're on target in a flash!


Anyway, Let's get back to the topic at hand. First, shoot some VERY hot .45 Colts from a friend's Balckhswk, and see if you mind the "roll" effect of the gun, and you have the money to spend, and you don't want the extra weight, get the FA. If you don't like the "roll, get the Taurus or the Ruger, or, if you still don't want the weight, look into Linebaugh and Bowen, where you can get a Bisley grip with the other propertie of a FA. That's what I'm doing now.

[This message has been edited by Frontsight! (edited June 02, 2000).]

[This message has been edited by Frontsight! (edited June 02, 2000).]
 
I agree about shooting the hot .45LC loads out of a SA ruger or simliar gun capable of withstanding the pressures. Killer45auto also shoots a 4 5/8 barrel Ruger Vaquero(same as blackhawk, but shiny with fixed sights). You can ask him, the heavy loads are quote, "painful" and scary especially after firing when you are only holding the gun with one finger through the trigger guard. If the FA is similiar, it would take some getting used to like Brad A has previously stated.

BTW, I had the Hogue grips on the SRH .454 not the factory grips. I can index the Hogue grips better because of the finger grips. The factory grips absorb more recoil I believe, but I do not shoot with them as accurately.

Yeah, I wanna learn to shoot this gun open sighted. I imagine the Raging Bull with a scope was monster heavy.

I believe the only reason that Ruger built the .454 on the DA platform is they felt it would be more comfortable than the SA. I would have bought it SA if it was offered that way from Ruger. I still dream one day of owning a FA .454, but logic and finances so far have prevented me. Good thing I don't do credit cards, or all this talk might have me looking for a FA .454 to add to my collection.

Guess this post put me up to $.04 ;)

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Know Yourself, Know Your Weapon, Know Your Enemy; then Know Victory! ---DaHaMac
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Rainbow Six:
As it stands, I am slightly leaning toward the Taurus because it seemed to fit my hand a little better.
[/quote]

Chris,

I stopped by Wolf Creek on the way home today. Guess what? They have a Raging Bull in the display case with your name all over over it. :) When I saw it I laughed and told the counter folks that I knew who was going to come see that one.

I wanted to check out a Glock 21 (you've almost got me talked into buying one of those things :)) but they sold the only one they had earlier today. Think maybe I'll rent one first to try it out before spending money I shouldn't spend anyway on a new one.

Joe/Ga
 
DaHaMac,

Keep stacking thos pennies .$02 at a time and you'll eventually have enough to get the FA. :D

Joe Klug,

If you can hold off for maybe a coupel weeks you won't have to rent a G21 to shoot. I am most likely going to pick one up very soon and you will be more than welcome to burn some through it. It ain't like we live that far apart.

Anyway, aren't those voices in your head sayin' buy a glock...buy a glock...buy a glock...? Orrrrrrr, is that me hiding in the bushes at your window all night uttering subliminal suggestions to encourage this purchase? ;)

Obey the voices Joe!! They know of what they speak!! :D

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The Glock freak formerly known as Chris...
 
Or, you can buy a Bisley. Visit the Phillips and Rodgers web site here:
http://www.phillipsrodgers.com/

Call them, there not real good about answering e-mails, and ask about there five shot cylinders for the 45 Colt. I believe there cylinders are about $300, but don't hold me to that. Either have them install the cylinder or buy one and have a local gunsmith, who knows what his doing, install it. At the same time its at the gun smith have a trigger job done, have the cylinder gap set tight, and have the barrel cut to desired length, if needed. The 45 Colt in a five shooter can be loaded to within 100fps, or less, of the 454 Casull.

As a side note there cylinders are only available in stainless, so you could go with a stainless Bisley Vaquero. If you don't like the two tone look.

Have fun,
Garrett

[This message has been edited by Garrett5 (edited June 03, 2000).]
 
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