Ruger 500 magnum

[magnum777]

Ruger makes one of the strongest revolvers out there, why haven't they developed a 500 frame magnum?

[Wyosmith]

Wright them and ask.

[gnystrom]

Back to a kinder response.
Ruger already has revolvers chambered in 454 Casull and a very interesting .480 Ruger and I suspect they are currently waiting to see if the giant cartridges catch on. Ruger seems to be a very intelligent company following their customers wishes based on practicality and popularity.

[GeauxTide]

The 480 Ruger propels a 400gr Bullet @ 1200fps, which is more than I could handle. I'm with gnystrom, 500 is a niche round and Ruger wants it's name on those.

[gwpercle]

The 500 magnum is S&W's baby.....the 480 Ruger is Rugers big bore baby .

It's the same reason S&W doesn't have a 480 Ruger !

The gun companies have been playing this cartridge name game since self contained ammo hit the market .

[Ruger45LC]

I don't like the long cylinders of the 500 Magnum, but Ruger could give a shot to a .500" that would fit in the SRH cylinder, kinda like the 500 JRH but with properly reamed brass t accept the big heavies. I don't know that they would rip off the 500 JRH and put their own name on it, but they could (and SHOULD) come out with a 500 of their own that fits in regular sized revolvers, not monstrous clowns guns.

[Targa]

The 500 magnum is S&W's baby.....the 480 Ruger is Rugers big bore baby .

If I were a betting man, I would go all in on that.

[coolbreezy]

Hamilton Bowen and other gunsmiths make SBH and RH
Capable of firing the .500 linebaugh. Granted, they are boutique firearms for a niche crowd.

[T. O'Heir]

"...boutique firearms for a niche crowd..." So's the .500 S&W. Starts at roughly $40US per 20. The .480 Ruger isn't any better except from Hornady's $30 per 20.
The .500 has more factory options than the Ruger at Midway. Five loads for the Ruger. Thirty-two for the Smith.
However, like gwpercle says, Ruger doesn't make a .500 because it's not a Ruger.

[Don Fischer]

I think S&W should chamber a detective special for it! :-)

[Pathfinder45]

Since no one needs one, who would buy one? Are there enough people that would buy such an impractical firearm that it would be quite lucrative to make them? It's a gamble that would cost a lot of money and might not pay off. Who knows; they did make the Charger, but it's based upon the very well established 10-22 and uses inexpensive 22LR ammo. It was probably much less of an expensive gamble than what's being suggested here.

[Radny97]

Originally Posted by gwpercle

The 500 magnum is S&W's baby.....the 480 Ruger is Rugers big bore baby .

It's the same reason S&W doesn't have a 480 Ruger !

The gun companies have been playing this cartridge name game since self contained ammo hit the market .

This is correct. It’s why only Ruger is doing 327 mag (right now) and 480. It’s why only s&w does 460 and 500 and why they won’t do a smaller framed gun in 454.
The manufacturers like to stake out their little caliber niche and then if you like that caliber you have to buy their product. You know when a caliber has “arrived” when multiple manufacturers start chambering for it.


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[Road_Clam]

I'll bet like others that Ruger kinda' took it on the chin with the lack of shooters big bore love from their 480 cartridge. No sense rubbing salt on open wounds by trying to gain big bore market share. The 500's are a small niche market. (strictly just my opinion)

[jackmoser65]

The 500 smith is a silly cartridge that needed a silly long revolver to handle it. I see no need for Ruger to accommodate it when a standard length 500 would do all one needs a handgun to do and it wouldn't need a wheeled carriage to maneuver it.

Starts at roughly $40US per 20. The .480 Ruger isn't any better except from Hornady's $30 per 20.

Anybody serious enough to do more than make noise at the range would be handloading for either one. In fact that holds true for any of the big bores from 41 on up.

[TruthTellers]

Because .50 caliber revolvers, and handguns in general, aren't sensible. Unless you're an elephant hunter, there's nothing that a .454 or .460 won't do for you in the Western Hemisphere and do it for less.

Also, I think there's Ruger wanting to support the .480 as their biggest big bore revolver and not give their competitor S&W a boost with a .500 S&W Magnum chambered revolver.

Also, IDK if the Ruger cast frames can handle the .500 Magnum. Not without them having to make an even larger frame and go from the Super Redhawk boat anchor to a small asteroid.

[FrankenMauser]

The 480 Ruger propels a 400gr Bullet @ 1200fps, which is more than I could handle.

It's not that bad.
My 12 y/o, 80 lb niece thought mine was fun to shoot when she had a chance to run full power 375s.
The response from most other experienced shooters was "Oh, that's not bad, at all!"
It is a niche round, though.

Of course, I believe .500 S&W to have an even smaller niche.
There just isn't a big enough market for Ruger to develope a Megahawk frame for the cartridge. (The Redhawk and Super Redhawk don't have large enough diameter cylinders.)

[straightshooterjake]

I would note that the Ruger Super Redhawk 454 Casull is already the most powerful 6-shot production revolver in the world. One could argue that it is already the most powerful and practical revolver available.

Smith & Wesson has demonstrated that there is niche for an even larger and more powerful 5 shot revolver, but I am not sure Ruger is giving up much by letting S&W have that market to themselves. How big is the market really for revolvers that are larger and less practical than the Super Redhawk? And if you made a 50 caliber round that fit in the Super Redhawk, could it do any job that the 480 Ruger could not?

[disseminator]

I have a 460 XVR and a Super Blackhawk in 480 and if I had bought the 480 first, I might have had a much harder time justifying the 460 purchase.

On the other hand, the 460 Magnum is a bad mammy jammy.....

I was looking at the BFR in 500 JRH, but it's not really gonna do anything I can't do now.

If you wanna Ruger in 500, just get the BFR as it's basically a big Blackhawk.

[Road_Clam]

Originally Posted by disseminator

I have a 460 XVR and a Super Blackhawk in 480 and if I had bought the 480 first, I might have had a much harder time justifying the 460 purchase.

On the other hand, the 460 Magnum is a bad mammy jammy.....

I was looking at the BFR in 500 JRH, but it's not really gonna do anything I can't do now.

If you wanna Ruger in 500, just get the BFR as it's basically a big Blackhawk.

Back years ago when I was big bore revolver shopping I researched all the 500's, 460's ,480's and 454's. Read opinions till my eyes blead. Was pretty clear to me if you want the baddest novelty big slammer you should buy the S&W 500. Me I was looking for a slammer with the best accuracy for reaching out to 200 meters. I ended up choosing the 12" 460 XVR . IMO it's the most practical and fitting choice for my needs, it has the extreme big boom, outstanding accuracy, and another huge bonus is it's easy and versatile to handload for. Here's my 460:

[disseminator]

^^^ That is huge and sweet. What kind of velocities do you get with that long barrel? I have the "normal" one, the XVR. The 460V is sweet as well.

I really like the 480 in the SBH. I like a 410g LBT about 1100 fps, if that don't kill it, it deserves to live.



Oh yes, I love the big boomers too.

[Road_Clam]

Originally Posted by disseminator

What kind of velocities do you get with that long barrel?

The 12" barrel is REALLY pushing velocities. I chrono'd my max 200 FTX load using H110 and i'm getting 2320 fps . The Hornady 200 ftx is a specialty designed bullet specifically for the 460. It's made with an extra thick jacket to withstand the extreme velocities.

[In The Ten Ring]

I fired a 4 inch barreled .500 once. MY ENTIRE HAND TINGLED AFTERWARDS. I put it down, much to the entertainment of the owner.

I was fine with his laughter.

[disseminator]

I fired a 4 inch barreled .500 once. MY ENTIRE HAND TINGLED AFTERWARDS. I put it down, much to the entertainment of the owner.

IME that is much more common with the 500 vs the 460 and is one reason I chose the 460 over the 500. While the 500 is more powerful, if you cannot kill it with the 460.......

The 460 has the classic 45 style recoil impulse that is revered by so many 1911 shooters, just more of it. :-)

I have a 400 grain hand load that's leaving my 8-3/8" XVR around 1680 that will wake you up and yet it's not an intense recoil that hurts like I hear about from so many 500 owners.

And the 460 shoots 454 Casull like they are 22 magnums.

But still, the gun is big and heavy and is nearly two POUNDS heavier than my 480 Ruger SBH which is heavy itself at about 50 ounces. (75 for the XVR)

The 12" barrel is REALLY pushing velocities. I chrono'd my max 200 FTX load using H110 and i'm getting 2320 fps . The Hornady 200 ftx is a specialty designed bullet specifically for the 460. It's made with an extra thick jacket to withstand the extreme velocities.

Those are great velocities but not as much more as I would have thought. I guess once the barrel gets to a certain length, it's time for rifle powders.......

[Wyosmith]

When I wrote "write them and ask" I was not being flippant.
Ruger actually listens to customers. Try them. If people call and ask for something enough times they will probably do it!

[DPris]

Not enough demand to repay R&D.
Seriously, that's it right there.
Denis