Getting into the handgun hunting game. 500 S&W

[Wyatt Smith]

FA 83 454, 7 1/2 barrel, with delta point red dot.
Add the 45 LC cylinder for smaller game. Do note their cylinder length precludes heavy hardcast LFN, I use WFN in my 475.
When I looked at the 45-70 in handgun, it just could not get velocity as needs rifle length barrel. , had high recoil and muzzle blast.

Out of curiosity, is the 454 cylinder too short with the LFN? I’m guessing the 45 colt cylinder would allow its use and with heavy loads will still be very good for large game.

 

[Jefferry404]

Cylinder is ~1.785” (recessed head) WFN 300 gn ok but LFN requires less weight, maybe 260gn.
But boy, once you get one, nothing else compares.

 

[Jefferry404]

@Wyatt Smith
Actually, it is the opposite. FA uses tight throats and since the 45 Colt is shorter than the 454, they strongly recommend a 45 cylinder, same physical length but throated different.
Adding fuel to @Backyardsniper fire,
Here is my 6” 454 with the extra 45 cylinder

 

[Backyardsniper]

@Wyatt Smith
Actually, it is the opposite. FA uses tight throats and since the 45 Colt is shorter than the 454, they strongly recommend a 45 cylinder, same physical length but throated different.
Adding fuel to @Backyardsniper fire,
Here is my 6” 454 with the extra 45 cylinder
View attachment 752197

That is sweet! I really like the octagon barrels. I may end up placing a custom order. That would give me time to save up a little extra cash and get one like I want
I have a question for the guys with extra 45 colt cylinders. If you hand load would you bother with getting an extra cylinder or just use 454 brass and load it down for plinking/practice loads?

 

[Jefferry404]

I hand load both the 454 and 45. Again, not the power but the short 45 vs 454. FA concern is copper, lead build up in the 454 throat when shooting 45. Then, erosion , difficulty chambering, accuracy.
The 454 is my only FA with dual chamber as I wanted the octagon
Loading down is ok but have quite a ways to go to get to 45 levels.
For me, the 454 is such a high pressure round, spending extra ~$450 for cylinder out of $3500 (which is expensive out the gate…

 

[Backyardsniper]

So with the FA and the 454 cylinder you are somewhat limited on what bullets.you can run because of the cylinder length. I had asked about this earlier in the thread and was told that was only on the model 97's.

 

[Backyardsniper]

I'm looking at an 83 premier on guns international right now that comes with a 454, 45lc, and 45acp cylinders. Its $5500 but that's still cheaper than that FE bfr pistol. I would think the 45acp cylinder would be a lot of fun and also great for training/developing good shooting habits with the pistol.

 

[Jefferry404]

well, model 97 in 41 Magnum is right there. But for almost all jacketed bullets, both are usually ok. The discussion comes in with hardcast bullets for heavy game. Then, usually need to go down in weight to fit.
For example, this is what i use to reload the 83 454:

and a group of hardcast (BHN 22):
bullet nose length
LFN280 0.375
LFN300 0.390
WFN300 0.360

so you can see that even a 280 gn is probably still not enough jump margin but the WFN has plenty.
This is how I go about the FAs.

 

[Backyardsniper]

The only thing holding me back is that I really want an octagon barrel, and also kind of wanted a little shorter barrel. This one is a six inch though so not too bad. 4 3/4 would be nice though.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

@Wyatt Smith
Actually, it is the opposite. FA uses tight throats and since the 45 Colt is shorter than the 454, they strongly recommend a 45 cylinder, same physical length but throated different.
Adding fuel to @Backyardsniper fire,
Here is my 6” 454 with the extra 45 cylinder
View attachment 752197

I meant to load the LFN in 45 colt brass and use the 45 colt cylinder instead of the 454 cylinder. That should allow the use of the long bullet.
With heavy loads in Colt brass I think 1200 feet would be achievable with a 325 LFN. While not quite what the 454 would give you, it’s still a very potent hunting load.
I’m not sure what problem a 454 could solve that a heavy 45 colt load could not.

 

[Jefferry404]

Maybe. Depends on his FA throats the 45. From my 454 and 475 cylinder measurements, FA tightly follows Saami chamber specs. If the 45 has a long throat, might work. Will look at the specs and see if the LFN fits (my working with FA, I have a number of pin gauges, 0.5/1000 steps).
Never measured the colt cylinder

 

[Wyatt Smith]

Bullets should pass through revolver cylinder throats by hand pressure. When shooting cast bullets they should be sized so they slip through. Jacketed bullets are the same but you don’t have the option of sizing.
I have a Ruger 45 colt that had .449 throats while the groove diameter was .451. I reamed the throats to .452 and all is well now.
Having never dealt with freedom arms, (would love to someday) I’ve heard they will throat a cylinder for lead bullets if asked.

 

[Jefferry404]

That is it then!
@Backyardsniper, order your custom
FA with std 454 specs and have the 45 cylinder throated long for hardcast. The best of both worlds.

 

[Backyardsniper]

That is it then!
@Backyardsniper, order your custom
FA with std 454 specs and have the 45 cylinder throated long for hardcast. The best of both worlds.

I did not know you could do that! I think the FA is the way to go. Now I juat have to decide between finding one or ordering it. I'm thinking ordering it may be the way to.go. any idea what thiwe lead time is and what the deposit is?

 

[Backyardsniper]

Before I pull the trigger on this I have one more question for y'all.
Is there any real reason I should look at any other caliber? 475 Linebaugh? Is there anything that round does that the 454 won't do? With the vanity to load down the 454 and also run 45 LC or 45ACP for training I cant imagine that there is anything with the 475 that out weighs the benefits of going with the 454. I think the 475 might be a nice addition after the 454 but I'm thinking a short barreled 454 with a 45LC cylinder and oc course and octagon barrel is the way to go

 

[Wyatt Smith]

Before I pull the trigger on this I have one more question for y'all.
Is there any real reason I should look at any other caliber? 475 Linebaugh? Is there anything that round does that the 454 won't do? With the vanity to load down the 454 and also run 45 LC or 45ACP for training I cant imagine that there is anything with the 475 that out weighs the benefits of going with the 454. I think the 475 might be a nice addition after the 454 but I'm thinking a short barreled 454 with a 45LC cylinder and oc course and octagon barrel is the way to go

Do you cast your own bullets? It would be a good way to get cheap practice with the 475 (Can be ordered with a 480 Ruger cylinder). If you don’t I would consider it as I shoot my sixguns way, way more than I ever used to.
If you don’t think bullet casting is in your future id stick with the 454 as getting cheap practice bullets will be far easier.

 

[Backyardsniper]

Do you cast your own bullets? It would be a good way to get cheap practice with the 475 (Can be ordered with a 480 Ruger cylinder). If you don’t I would consider it as I shoot my sixguns way, way more than I ever used to.
If you don’t think bullet casting is in your future id stick with the 454 as getting cheap practice bullets will be far easier.

That's what I was thinking. I believe I'll go with the 454 and 45 cylinder. Then if I get into this revolver business a little deeper I may ger into some of the more obscure clibers like the 475. I don't think there is anytbing you can kill with a 475 that cant be handled with a 454. I think the big thing will be putting in the time with the lower powered loads to develop proper technique and really learning how to shoot the gun.

 

[RedTag]

I’ve owned and hunted with several .454 Casull revolvers. The step up from .44 Magnum (standard loads) to the Casull is noticeably more power and substantially more recoil. I find standard .44 Magnum in the N-Frame to be relatively easy to shoot one-handed. Not so with the .454; it’s absolutely a two-handed deal. It’s one cartridge you actually don’t want to load up to full power, unless you like a bruised hand rowdy dow with stuck cases. The handgun cartridges above .44 Magnum are best thought of as short rifle cartridges that happen to function efficiently in handguns. As a matter of fact, the .500 and .475 Linebaugh (and in turn .480 Ruger) are based on shortened rifle cartridges, .348 Winchester and .45-70, respectively.
The S&W X-Frame always seemed a bit ridiculous to me. Certainly bigger and heavier than I would care to pack around, and I’ve spent many days afield with a scoped 7.5” barrel Super Redhawk .454 Casull in a chest rig. Now that Bighorn Armory .500 lever action is a game changer and has made me seriously reconsider the concept of the .500 S&W…

 

[Jefferry404]

There are no 475 jacketed bullets! (at least the ones I want to shoot), so cast proposition only,
although I was able to snag a supply of XTPs bullets and ammo for my two 475's. The Linebaugh is a nice cartridge.

Lot more jacketed bullet options for the 454 and then use cast for 45 Colt. (you pick up the extra ~100/1000" throat length).
Although when I spoke with one of the FA gunsmiths about the 475, he commented he would never
"pollute" it using cast. To be honest, they are such precision machined revolvers (my 454 throat pinned out exactly at 0.4525", that I bought a Ruger Redhawk 44 magnum just to shoot cast bullets, figuring it would not care about pollution

As @RedTag noted, the 454 is a handful, and yes, can hunt with the 45 Colt but then you have a heavy gun. So, I got a Model 97 FA 45 Colt, which is a nice dainty gun compared to the 83, albeit with a short cylinder.

I can tell you, once you get the FA, nothing else will compare! I got Ruger's and S&W's for other purposes and every time I handle one, I put them away...

 

[Bush Buck]

I'll share a few thoughts:

The FA 83 454 can be fiddly for those who want to shoot heavy/long lead bullets. The throats are tight and unforgiving. You may need to do some research and experiment with bullet sizing to find what works best with your revolver. Make sure you have a supplier that can replicate that bullet once you figure it out.

The FAs are really designed around jacketed bullets and that's what I usually use these days. The throats usually fit XTPs so perfectly that they seemed to be cut for them. Most jacketed bullets work fine.

If you are going to buy an FA 454 then the used market is a solid option. The 454s are the most common and most available so they sell for less. The more recent guns that are marked Premier Grade or Field Grade and have a blue box will have the user replaceable firing pin - a nice feature.

A used one will also allow you to learn about the platform before you invest the big bucks in a special order.
The 45 Colt cylinder can be added to a used 454 but you have to send them the revolver.

I have a friend who really likes his BFR and has hunted quite a bit with it. It is less refined and heavier than the FA 83 but a strong, accurate, well designed hunting revolver. I hear great things about the newer Bisley grip.
I would not consider the 45-70 - that's a lot more steel and the BFR is already pretty heavy.