What is it like to shoot he .50 S&W ?

retiredgal · May 31, 2012

Not for me, thank you!

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unklekippy · May 31, 2012

I believe the only reason to own a .500S&W is living in the wilds of Canada, Alaska or some of the northern states with an honest chance of a Grizzly attack. Of course, Africa could be a reasonable place to have a .500. For me, I think the highest I would consider going is .454 Casull. Even that is extreme. If you live in Oregon, you really don't need anything bigger than .357 magnum. Maybe a .44. Still, that .500 sure is cool. I want to be clear that my statements on caliber are just my opinion. Kip.

Iceberg · May 31, 2012

It is not as bad as people say, in fact I think it has much less recoil than an Airweight .357 Magnum. Those little guys are just plain nasty! I just bought a snubby S&W 460 Magnum and my 14 year old loves to shoot it. You just have to hold onto them firmly and not limp wrist them & you will be fine. The X frame guns are pretty heavy guns so the recoil is very managable. My buddy has a lightweight (scandium) .44 mag and that is a real handfull when he lights that off. When we light off my .460 at the range you can almost see the rest of the guys of the guys on the line jump...lol. It is a serious flame thrower. I sold my 4" .500 because the the ammo was just too expensive, the .460 allows you to shoot .460 Magnum, .454 Casull and .45 Long Colt.

My .460 Snubby

MrNiceGuy · May 31, 2012

unklekippy said:
I believe the only reason to own a .500S&W is living in the wilds of Canada, Alaska or some of the northern states with an honest chance of a Grizzly attack. Of course, Africa could be a reasonable place to have a .500. For me, I think the highest I would consider going is .454 Casull. Even that is extreme. If you live in Oregon, you really don't need anything bigger than .357 magnum. Maybe a .44. Still, that .500 sure is cool. I want to be clear that my statements on caliber are just my opinion. Kip.

You're forgetting the best reason of all... FOR FUN!

I own many firearms, none of them are for hunting.
My 308 and 30-06 are great for dear, but it's even better for shooting ice blocks.
Same with my ar15, ak47 and colt python.

The 500s&w is a blast to shoot. An aquaintance carries a short bbl 500. He's let me shoot it a few times. It's even funner in the dark lol

I will own one at some point. The ammo cost is the biggest deterrent for me.

charros93 · May 31, 2012

That scandium frame S&W 340PD loaded with some high octane .357 magnum rounds was the most recoil I've felt in a handgun. The 500 is a beast and throws massive fireballs, but wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be.(recoil wise) I'd like to see a scandium frame 500 snub nose ;-)

cowbikinlogger · May 31, 2012

I can shoot a 1/2" group with one shot...

orygun · May 31, 2012

I had a 4" for a few years and traded it just before I joined this forum. Recoil is dependent on what ammo you are shooting. The Ultramax ammo is healthy, but does not have the brutal recoil of the full-house stuff like Hornady. I reloaded my own and using 350 or 400gr bullets over a pretty full charge of H110, it was a stomper.
About that time I had a .357 snubbie. Shooting 158gr magnum loads out of the snubbie stung the hand more, but is no where near the match for the amount of recoil generated by the 500. The .357 would smack the hand. The 500 moves your whole body.
Shooting full power 500 loads reminds me of lighting off a real M80. The concussion is enormous!

RVTECH · May 31, 2012

Well no experience with the .500 but I did shoot a .454 Casull once and that was enough. I find no enjoyment in shooting something that painful. I once owned a Super Blackhawk but used to tone the loads down and it was fun to shoot. I notice most .500s that are up for sale have the line "Less than X amount of rounds shot through it" This may sound anemic but the Taurus Mod 605 I recently got is absolutely a kick to shoot with 3.5 gr. of Bullseye and a 125 gr. bullet. Incredible accuracy out of a 2" barrel too and cheap to load for. Jackrabbits look out this summer!

errackeleo · Jun 1, 2012

I own a 500 and love it. I got rid of my 340pd because shooting it was like laying your hand on an anvil and striking it with a ball pene hammer with each trigger pull. Once I was shooting my 500 without a proper grip when I had the rumoured "uncontrolled double tap". The gun basically recoils back far enough to reset the trigger. The bodies natural reaction is to clamp down so as not to lose your grip, which in turn will fire off a second round unintentionally. I was lucky enough to get this on video. listen closely to hear the second shot. With a two handed grip I find the recoil to be noticeable but not uncontrollable. I think the noise ovewhelmes the senses making the gun "feel" as though it is recoiling harder than it actually is. I've edited the video to remove any foul language reactions of those who witnessed it.

[video=youtube_share;0-eCDGIhMy4]http://youtu.be/0-eCDGIhMy4[/video]

WhyteCheddar · Jun 1, 2012

You can sure tell if your fillings are loose, thats for sure.

Riot · Jun 1, 2012

WhyteCheddar said:
You can sure tell if your fillings are loose, thats for sure.

Agreed...the muzzle porting and the grip really take off a lot of the recoil but that thing is still a beast. I can feel the muzzle blast on my face! Anyone that says the recoil on these things is less than a .357 mag I have to ask what loads of .500 you're shooting to compare. I hear that the .44 Mag is worse. I always wanted a Ruger Alaskan in .454 Cassul. I wonder how that would compare with the 4" .500.

orygun · Jun 1, 2012

Riot said:
Agreed...the muzzle porting and the grip really take off a lot of the recoil but that thing is still a beast. I can feel the muzzle blast on my face! Anyone that says the recoil on these things is less than a .357 mag I have to ask what loads of .500 you're shooting to compare. I hear that the .44 Mag is worse. I always wanted a Ruger Alaskan in .454 Cassul. I wonder how that would compare with the 4" .500.

I'm assuming something here, but I'll assume that you've never shot a 357 snubbie with hot handloads AND a short barreled 500 Mag, again with Hornady or near max handloads. The Ultramax 500 ammo was very "soft" in comparison.

While it may not seem reasonable, the .357 in a 2" will have a very sharp recoil. The 500, even in a 4" that has a comp has a much stronger recoil, but it isn't as "quick". Plus, the 500 gun weighs a whole lot more than any 2" K framed revolver.

I've only owned one 44 Mag, but it didn't have anywhere near the recoil of the .500 Mag. I've been a magnum shooter and handloader for a long time (over 20 years) and I don't have magnums because I want to "tone them down". If I still had these guns I'd love to have you come shooting with me. It IS something that you have to experience to believe. And we would enjoy every minute of it!

MarkAd · Jun 2, 2012

Orygun:
You nuts. I have shoot the 500 with the short barrel once, and that was enough. my 357 i run all day with no problems. Also the 500 was made for a 8 inch barrel to get the max effect from it. The short barrel just plain hurts.

retiredgal · Jun 2, 2012

I posted the original video because it intriqued me, since I have a .357 mag. stub and it is all I want to shoot with about 20 rounds max and my hand hurts. Big calibers mean big guns for more control. I don't understand why anyone would want to suffer pain needlessly? Not me? Firing monster guns with big recoil or super noise isn't my idea of fun. Just wimpy me, but you tough folks step right up and strut your stuff at the line. I 'll hang back and just observe with a cup of coffee me thinks ? LOL

Happy shooting!

orygun · Jun 2, 2012

MarkAd said:
Orygun:
You nuts. I have shoot the 500 with the short barrel once, and that was enough. my 357 i run all day with no problems. Also the 500 was made for a 8 inch barrel to get the max effect from it. The short barrel just plain hurts.

I've been called nuts often! :s0114:

The 500 has a Hogue grip that covers the backstrap and the 649 I had didn't. Maybe that's what made the difference to me.

I now have the first 357 that I've ever loved. I've got a 686 Plus 4" that I shoot 158gr max loads until I run out of ammo. Similar loads out of the 649 and I wouldn't really want to run through a box of 50.

MrNiceGuy · Jun 2, 2012

retiredgal said:
I posted the original video because it intriqued me, since I have a .357 mag. stub and it is all I want to shoot with about 20 rounds max and my hand hurts. Big calibers mean big guns for more control. I don't understand why anyone would want to suffer pain needlessly? Not me? Firing monster guns with big recoil or super noise isn't my idea of fun. Just wimpy me, but you tough folks step right up and strut your stuff at the line. I 'll hang back and just observe with a cup of coffee me thinks ? LOL

Happy shooting!

The only gun i've fired that has actually hurt to shoot was my old makarov 9x18.
I dont know if it was the fixed bbl or what, but every time I shot that thing it felt like my palms were getting lashed with bamboo rods.

My px4 started to hurt my palm at ~1250 rounds within the span of a couple hours, but that was because of the aggressive grip pattern digging into my hand.

Comparatively, a 357/44/500 is a soft "thud". No pain what so ever. The ones I have shot, I could shoot all day without a problem.

billt · Jun 4, 2012

unklekippy said:
I believe the only reason to own a .500S&W is living in the wilds of Canada, Alaska or some of the northern states with an honest chance of a Grizzly attack. Of course, Africa could be a reasonable place to have a .500. For me, I think the highest I would consider going is .454 Casull. Even that is extreme. If you live in Oregon, you really don't need anything bigger than .357 magnum. Maybe a .44. Still, that .500 sure is cool. I want to be clear that my statements on caliber are just my opinion. Kip.

Big bore handguns are FUN TO SHOOT, period. I get so tired of reading these posts where people right away start talking about REASONS or NEEDS that they seem to think should be required, in order to own and shoot one of these guns. The last time I looked it was the Bill Of Rights, not the Bill Of "Needs". My need is very simple.....I WANT IT! I own .460 Weatherby's and .458 Winchester Magnums, as well as .416 Rigby's that will most likely never be shot on African soil. I own them because they are firearms, and I like to own and shoot firearms. The .500 S&W Magnum, and .45-70 pictured with it are just 2 more examples of it. My big bore weapons satisfy my wants, needs, and requirements, just as a ZR-1 Corvette satisfies it's owners. I'm quite sure there are people that tell them they don't "NEED" a 203 MPH car as well.

MarkAd · Jun 4, 2012

orygun said:
I've been called nuts often!

The 500 has a Hogue grip that covers the backstrap and the 649 I had didn't. Maybe that's what made the difference to me.

I now have the first 357 that I've ever loved. I've got a 686 Plus 4" that I shoot 158gr max loads until I run out of ammo. Similar loads out of the 649 and I wouldn't really want to run through a box of 50.

Oh my gosh, Another 686 nut is born, Welcome to the 686 funny farm bro.

MarkAd · Jun 4, 2012

I get so tired of reading these posts where people right away start talking about REASONS or NEEDS that they seem to think should be required

biit - I agree with you but for a different reason

am so tired of people who makes posts about reasons of needs and ignoring the OP which was about WHAT IT IS LIKE to shoot 50 S&W. When ppl don't answer the question or relate to the OP I see someone who spouts off because they think their non relevent opinion cares any weight to the original question.
Myself I simply related my own knowledge of shooting a short barrel 50 and not liking it. OR the other if you give me any gun to shoot I will do it, cuase I LIKE GUNS.