In November 1959 an article appeared announcing a new and very powerful wildcat handgun round called the .454 Casull that set the handgun world on fire. But the .44 Magnum is not as hard-recoiling as the .454 Casull due to the significant difference in chamber pressure and muzzle energy. If you are interested in either of these cartridges long term, a return to the roots of both makes sense, and you might want to reload them instead of always buying new. If youre not used to powerful handgun ammunition, dont take the plunge without trying it first. The .44 Magnum and .454 Casull can both satisfy the needs of handgun hunters. It was also overshadowed by the aggressive marketing of the .500 S&W Magnum and later the .460 S&W Magnum. The underlug increases the weight of the revolver from 45 ounces to 48.4 a welcome addition when firing full-power ammunition. No one buying a .44 Magnum revolver expects the equivalent of a .22 rimfire or .38 service revolver. consider the bullet selection of 45 vs 475 I used to have a 475 wildey, packs one a punch, but the availability of bullets was one of the reasons I sold it . Externally it wasnt all that unique looking, other than the cylinder lacked fluting. Eventually Freedom Arms did build his revolver, bringing it to market in 1983. It was designed to be a more powerful alternative to the 44 Magnum, and it definitely delivers on that front. .454 Casull ranges from around 1,700 ft-lbs of muzzle energy to nearly 2,000. I KNOW WHAT SEX I WAS BORN!! However, the .454 Casull is the more powerful cartridge due to its increased max. Lets face it you cant have power without recoil, although many gun designers and manufacturers attempt to dampen it as best they can. Like a lot of inventors, Casull had some great ideas but lacked the capital to bring them to market. About the best deals we could find would be used firearms, and those are still around $500 for a Smith and Wesson revolver. Load 'er down a bit with heavy cast bullets so you can stand to shoot it and let the large caliber do it's work. In terms of being able to ethically kill game animals at a given distance, the .454 Casull wins out. Pressures are in the magnum centerfire rifle range, 65,000 CUP compared to 36,000 for the .44 Rem. Case length: 35.1 mm (1.383 in) !New Merch available - bit.ly/2W68GqpHeavy Metal here: https://bit.ly/30wF6wWSupport us on Patreon https://www.patr. That was my point and reason for an earlier post I made when I expressed a desire for a FA M83 chambered exclusively for a 45 Colt. Primer type: Boxer Small rifle The lightest variant of the .475 Wildey Magnum Ammo is the 250-grain bullet load which can travel at a velocity of 1,850 feet per second while creating an energy level of 1,900 ft. lbf. the other thing i'd ad is to make sure ya chrony the rounds before ya compare recoil. Bullet weight is around 240 to 300 grains and delivers a muzzle velocity of 1900 feet per second. I just see no need for my 454 Casull since my 45 Colts will do anything my Casull will. To prevent .454 Casull ammunition firing in a .45 Colt revolver, which could prove catastrophic, the case is 1.383 inches (35.1mm) instead of 1.285 about one-tenth of an inch longer. Neck diameter: 12.2 mm (480 in) In my in-depth comparison of .44 Magnum vs .454 Casull, Ill compare the two rounds and some of the guns that fire them so you can determine which will best serve your needs. Perceived recoil is a very personal thing, varying from person to person. It is also a good choice to defend yourself against dangerous big animals. Its parent cartridge is the .45 Colt (sometimes referred to as the .45 Long Colt). Though it did not reach commercial success as quickly, the .454 Casull is nearly as old as the .44 Magnum, the former of which was developed in 1958 by Dick Casull. To kick things off, well start with a brief history of each of the cartridges so that we can understand them better in their intended uses and context. Both .44 Magnum and .454 Casull are great performers in terms of velocity, but the latter generally moves a little bit quicker. While we do not have a ton of personal experience with .454 Casull, we expect it to do increasingly well commercially, as there seems to be a renewed fascination with long-range, powerful handgun cartridges over about the last decade. With that said, both of these cartridges offer exceptional stopping power. So, lets get started with the big-bore magnum and the legendary Keith. Save my name and email to use for future comments. Is the Wildey any more or less powerful? 450 WILDEY MAGNUM. . 2. I occasionally shoot my friends M83 with his 45 Colt cylinder. But if you dont hunt with a revolver, a heavy handgun firing either of these powerhouses is also a superb sidearm for defense against dangerous game i.e., for stopping grizzly bear charges. Ive ownd in that time 500s 475s 454s 45colts 44 mags ect and id say 90 percent of the game ive taken with handguns up to the size of buffalo have been taking with 44 mags. Despite all of the above, another .357 Maximum I procured a couple of years ago is being converted to .475 Maximum as this book goes to print. The .475 Maximum never really caught on, as the discomfort it created when shooting never outweighed the performance gains that could be realized. The popularity of the film led to increased demand for the Model 29, and for. Many apply the aforementioned crimp as further insurance. While the 10mm Auto and .357 Magnum typically achieve muzzle energies in the 500700-ft-lb range, the .44 Magnum and .454 Casull can more than double those numbers. A lot of todays common metallurgical, machining and manufacturing technology had yet been developed. The extra length ensured the new round was able to achieve velocities somewhere around 150 fps more than its shorter counterpart while maintaining similar pressures. It is in this second regard where .44 Magnum shines: it can be a superb hunting cartridge for even large game at moderate ranges. Autorevolvers chambered in .44 Magnum can have the recoil spring swapped out to effectively cycle .44 special, .454 Casull, and .45 Long Colt. Common .44 Magnum loadings range from about 740 ft-lbs to over 1,500: this means that the cartridge can be moderate in its recoil and energy, or it can be an extremely powerful cartridge. It comes with a Leupold M8 2x pistol scope. WHAT?!? Recoil is not objectionable and there is nothing I'm going to shoot that those loads won't work on. You have entered an incorrect email address! To safely fire the most potent loads on the market, the Super Redhawk has a thick top strap and extended frame. The M97 chambered for the 45 Colt is listed as having a 1-24" twist. Is there enough differnce to make a differnce? What Sturm, Ruger & Company did create, though, is a relatively mild recoiling and effective round that, in my opinion, is one of the better all-around choices for the big-game handgun hunter. Has he considered the 480 ruger? The 475 Linebaugh is a mighty fine cartridge, as is the 480 Ruger and they can be either nasty or pleasant, depending upon how you want to load them. Start pushing similarly weighted bullets up over 1,300 fps, though, and this is where the party starts. Recoil is stronger than similar ammos. As far as intention is concern, .454 Casull has found a niche among those who live in areas where there are large, aggressive bear populations, as the caliber is appropriate for hunting game animals of medium to large size. It represents a monumental step up from the .44s and a considerable increase in horsepower over any of the .45-caliber cartridges. This delayed the acceptance of the round among hunters for several decades, by which time the .44 Magnum had a well-established reputation. This is a Used Ruger Suoer Redhawk 454 Casull with a 7.5" barrel. International produced and manufactured. Hi rusty. . Don't let the cylinder stop ya from purchasing it - you might say the M97 was designed around the small cylinder and you just have to make due. The high velocity makes for relatively flat trajectories out to extended ranges when talking in conversation with other pistol calibers. Currently Barnes, Buffalo Bore, Doubletap, Federal, Hornady, Magtech and Winchester are loading ammo in the big .45. imho the 475 shines with 400 or so gr bullets around 1100 to 1200 fps. Neither the .44 Magnum nor the .454 Casull are going to be your budget range plinkers: these are high-end cartridges and the firearms that shoot them are made with that in mind. It has also seen some use in long-range pistol shooting competitions where range and knockdown potential on steel plates are a priority. Two of the most popular the .44 Remington Magnum and .454 Casull provide the muzzle energy and penetration needed for hunting big game. I occasionally shoot my 7.5" SRH 454 with top end loads with a 360 Gr. This piston forces the slide rearward, initiating the cycling of the pistol." GI#: 102260406. My .475 Wildey Magnum vs. 5 gallon bucket of water: You can see which one wins the battle. Most days if you find me in the woods theres a 44 of some sort on my hip. Keith had been experimenting with high-pressure .44 Special loads in N-frame Smith & Wesson revolvers for decades, publishing the results in various periodicals. This chambering places the Mateba in comparison to firearms like the Wildey pistol chambered in .475 Wildey Magnum and .44 Mag examples of the AutoMag pistol. I'm hoping that after a few full throttle loads through he will not become disenchanted with it and want to get rid of it. I've only been shooting a 475 FA for a few months and I can't tell you how happy I am. Smith & Wesson introduced the .44 Remington Magnum, also known as the .44 Magnum, in 1955. Both will benefit well from either long-barreled revolvers or being fired from lever action rifles. Much like stopping power, velocities of any cartridge can vary widely, so it makes sense to present these as a range as well. A M97 would do just fine for the 45 Colt. The first loads offered to the public did not show the true potential of the cartridge, featuring relatively light-for-caliber bullets at moderate velocities. Personally I have found no use for top end loads and have been very happy shooting mid to heavy weight bullets in the 1100 to 1150 fps range. Get the latest news and reviews from Gundigest.com. Editor's Note: This article is an excerpt from Gun Digest Book of Hunting Revolvers. Thank you that is goos to know. The reverse loading .44 Special ammunition into .44 Magnum revolvers is safe and allows for inexpensive and low-recoil target shooting. Grifone MoSer - Chambered in .454 Casull and mated to a longer 510mm (20in) barrel, Including a longer shroud with 5 widely spaced slots at the top. Area 2 Price. The .454 Casull was spawned from the .45 Colt case, lengthened about 0.10" and made thicker in the web. This caliber category is serious big-game medicine and represents a significant step up in terminal effectiveness from the various .45-calibers. Replacing the spring requires the removal of the slide assembly, which is blocked by a retaining pin held in place by a small set screw in the triggerguard. Cartridge case: .45 Colt As the .454 Casull cartridge is derived from the .45 Colt, .454 Casull revolvers can chamber and fire .45 Colt ammunition. the federal barnes xbp loads, kick a bit but near as bad but it seems to be more recoil than a 250 gr bullet at 1530 fps (box velocity) should have but on every box i've ever chrony'd of the federal loads the average velocity is 1750 fps. cartridges, as well as the still semi-custom Linebaugh line of handgun cartridges. The .44 Remington Magnum is a straight-walled revolver cartridge with a rimmed case head. Again, this is competing with rifle cartridges in terms of velocity. In a 6-inch barrel at standard pressure, the .44 Magnum can propel a 240-grain bullet to between 1,400 and 1,500 ft/s, generating between 1,050 and 1,200 ft-lbs of muzzle energy. Seyfrieds first shot on the water buffalo resulted in two broken front shoulders. The so-called Magnum era in handguns, which began in 1935 with the advent of the .357 Magnum, paved the way for the development of several high-caliber, high-velocity revolver and pistol cartridges. You wont notice the differnce unless you have them all at the range the same day. The progenitor of all three of these cartridges is the .475 Linebaugh, which spawned both the shorter .480 Ruger and the longer .475 Maximum. 480 Ruger vs 454 Casull. Once you start choosing more specialized loads, the price difference shrinks, but the number of .44 Magnum loads remains greater. Last edited by FirstFreedom; January . The Fora platform includes forum software by XenForo. Recoil is stronger than similar ammos. Meet the .475 Wildey Magnum Autopistol: . yes and no, i have all of the FA calibers for the big boomers and i like the 454 and 475 best. Throughout the bullet weight range the .454 Casull maintains a 25-percent to 33-percent velocity advantage over the .44 Remington Magnum. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart, and you may choose to advance one foot ahead of the other. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, if you wanted a big-bore handgun, you had to settle for a slow bullet. MATEBA Montebelluna, Italy, 76 mm (3 in), 102 mm (4 in), 127 mm (5 in), 152 mm (6 in), 178 mm (7 in), 203 mm (8 in), and 457 mm (18 in). consider the bullet selection of 45 vs 475. Jun 7, 2005. based on facts what is the best engine the Chevy 454 the olds 455 or caddy 500 (based on facts not by brand loyalty) Area 1 Stock. For big-game hunting or handheld bear defense, the .454 Casull has a notable advantage regarding wound trauma and, thus, stopping power. Easier would be a 440 Cor-Bon (50AE necked down to 44 cal), straight barrel swap on a Desert Eagle. This is where the .480 starts to shine, and it becomes most capable in pushing the heavier projectiles, thanks to the .475 diameter bore. And, as you correctly noted, the same thing can be done with the 454 Casull by loading down a bit making it much more pleasurable to shoot and will kill anything walking. Mantis Blackbeard X Review (is it worth it? [9], Also available was the Mateba Grifone, a revolver carbine which came in three primary variants:[10]. Much like their velocities, these prices are the kind of thing that you usually see in rifle rounds, which makes sense given the amount of brass, powder, and lead that goes into making these cartridges. Loaded to the max with heavy bullets the 500 is the worse followed by the 475 and then the 454. This variant of the Model 629 has a full underlug the part that encloses and protects the ejector rod a 6-inch barrel, and a 12-inch overall length. A double lo. With this many guns available, it didnt take long for ammunition manufacturers to jump into the game. Looking for more great options? The .454 Casull (left), compared with .357 Mag. The Mateba Autorevolver's barrel alignment is different from most other revolvers. Like the .454 Casull, it is an even-more-lengthened and strengthened extension of the original .45 Colt case (.460 revolvers can chamber and fire both these other rounds) and operated at centerfire rifle-level cartridge pressure. I once stopped by Casulls place while he was applying an annular crimp to the small rifle primers he used in the .454 Casull. Using a 300-grain bullet, this load generates an impressive 1,813 ft-lbs of muzzle energy, and this isnt at full pressure either. and 14,000 for the .45 Colt. In 1959, Guns & Ammo introduced the shooting world to a new wildcat cartridge co-developed by Dick Casull, Jack Fulmer, and Duane Marsh the .454 Casull. In addition, their barrels can be changed with interchangeable 3", 4", 5", 6", 7" and 8" inch barrels. Still, that .475 with some 420 grain loads in it would be mighty comforting in big bear country. The inclusion of the 454 Casull chambering makes the gun one of, if not the, most powerful semi-automatic handgun ever produced. [11]. .454 Casull firearms are even more expensive, and the cheapest options we could find began at around $800, with used firearms in the caliber being difficult to find at best. One way to measure the power of a cartridge is muzzle energy, usually measured in foot-pounds, or ft-lbs. of energy at the muzzle. The .475 Wildey Magnum Ammo has an overall length of 40.1mm, and the diameter of the bullet measures 12.1mm. Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives. 455 WEBLEY & SCOTT AUTO M.1904. The .454 is also known for being fast, achieving muzzle velocities as high as 1,900 ft/s in some loads. 454 Casull Ammo comes in a .45 colt case that is about 0.10 inches in length. Copyright Complaints: Please direct DMCA Takedown Notices to the registered agent. Cannot do this with the shorter cylinder of a FA M97. 475 Wildey Magnum About The .475 Wildey Magnum Ammo is a semi-automatic cartridge for pistols designed to hunt down big games. pressure and propellant capacity. Big Horn Armory began chambering its superbly made Model 90A lever-action rifle in .454 Casull in 2014. Hellstrom and Coleman cooperated on this project, and in 1954, Remington submitted a cartridge design to Smith & Wesson. This is a target grey finish revolver. Or buying a Wildey in 475 Wildey Magnum. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission, which supports our community. Originally known as the .454 Magnum Revolver, the cartridge began life in solid-base .45 Long Colt brass. Dan Wessons, & custom or semi-custom guns. No doubt that any good 300-350 grain cast bullet at 1100-1200fps will throttle anything walking..none. Released in conjunction with the Super Redhawk chambered in this caliber, the revolver was a good platform from which to debut the new round bearing the Ruger name on its head stamp. The .44 Magnum is a powerful caliber, and its capabilities are not limited to standard-pressure commercial loads. This beast is a handful. 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