Magnum Research BFR in .45 Colt

[richhodg66]

I haven't been shooting handguns as much the past few years, not sure why, but rifles have been what I've messed with most. That being said, I love big bore revolvers, especially .45 Colt ones. I have a couple of Blackhawks in it and also a SBH in .44.

This evening, I went for a motorcycle ride and ended up going by a couple of gun shops I don't hit frequently and there sits a Magnum Research BFR in .45 Colt. I believe the barrel length to be six inches and it's stainless and heavy and has grips that look like Pachmyers on it. Price was $699 and because I've never dealt with this shop, I have no idea how negotiable they'll be.

The guns appears to be in real good shape. Any down side to these? I was gonna try my hand at handgun deer hunting this year with the SBH, but I truthfully like this revolver better.

[missionary5155]

Greetings
If I was serious about buying, I would get me $700 cash and head back.
I would look the BFR over carefully. If it passed my inspection I would lay $550 cash on the counter and talk about the revolver. If it was indicated that was not enough I would lay another $20 down. I would continue the discussion.
Depending on how badly I wanted that BFR I might get to $640 before picking up my cash and putting it away. I might even walk out the door. I dought the owner has $500 in the BFR.
But it all depends on how bad you want it. You can always go back in and start over. You can always add more. But I have found the sight of "greenbacks" tends to make sellers get itchy to reach out and grab on.
Mike in Peru

[richhodg66]

I've been kind of contemplating just biting the bullet and buying a Freedom Arms in .454 Casull, but truthfully, I'd never load a .454 up to what it's capable of, I'd just like to have a strong .45 Colt with a tad more mass than a Blackhawk (loads that get above safe Colt loads in a Blackhawk get unpleasant for me real fast).

This BFR seems to fill that bill. I may look around for some things to trade off, I sure have enough stuff that isn't getting shot much lately.

[odis]

I have one in 45colt but I had to order it through their precision center because they weren't making them in 45colt. I have loaded it up to levels that are uncomfortable to shoot down to very mild. I really like it.

[DanWalker]

I've been kind of contemplating just biting the bullet and buying a Freedom Arms in .454 Casull, but truthfully, I'd never load a .454 up to what it's capable of, I'd just like to have a strong .45 Colt with a tad more mass than a Blackhawk (loads that get above safe Colt loads in a Blackhawk get unpleasant for me real fast).

I did just that. i load my 454 to medium warm 45 colt levels. Another thing I did to make my blackhawk more comfortable to shoot was to buy a stainless gripframe and ejector rod housing for it. It adds a bit of heft to the gun and makes it quite a bit more pleasant to shoot. 45 colt is a terrific hunting cartridge. I'm of the opinion that most folks are VASTLY overgunned when they handgun hunt. You simply don't need howitzer level muzzle blast and recoil, to cleanly take big game with a handgun. People that shoot my ruger are amazed at how light the recoil is. My wife and daughter and numerous other females, have shot it, and have no problem getting hits with it. What really twists peoples tops is when I tell them the loads they just shot are the SAME loads I hunt deer and antelope and hogs with. 6.5 grains of Red dot under a 250 grain swc just punches right through critters out to as far as I can hit them, without stinging your hands or rattling your teeth.

[richhodg66]

Wow, I wouldn't have figured 6.5 of RD as a hunting load. That used to be my standard target shooting load in the .45 Colt.

My standard bullet is a SAeco 250 grain SWC that I have a four cavity mold for, so that is probably what I'd hunt with.

[gandydancer]

when I ordered my freedom arms Casull in 1986 I got the extra cylinder in 45 colt at the same time. I have shot the 454 thousands of times in the fallowing years both cast and j loads. today I use the 45 colt cylinder all the time now and can come with in about 200 feet per second of casull loads in the 45 colt and just as hot if need be.to the point of not being any fun to shoot. so I keep my colt loads around 800 to 1000 FPS I'm to old to do hot all the time now. I shoot for fun.

[richhodg66]

I've about gotten myself talked into going back for it. If it's still there on pay day, I'll get serious about dealing.

[w5pv]

I love my 45LC with the liter loads.

[DanWalker]

Let's be clear here. "Light", is a relative term. The original blackpowder load was capable of "shooting through a horse, and killing the indian hiding behind it." It wasn't even doing 1000 fps. I know a few guys (saz, Doug Kruske, JT) who seem immune to recoil and muzzle blast. The rest of us struggle to achieve accuracy as the pounding to our hands increases. I have tried to harden myself to these effects, and after several years and MANY hundreds and hundreds of rounds downrange, all I had to show for it was a flinch and wrists that "pop". When I did connect on critters with my wristbreaker loads, I saw no difference in killing power. Critters didn't hit the dirt any quicker than they did with the easy shooting loads. My hat is off to those of you who can harness all the power of these megamag 500nukem loads, and shoot them with accuracy. I will just keep punching holes in critters with my boring old "light" 45 colt loads.