500 Smith

[Bill B.]

How many guys are shooting one of these? What bullet are you using? What powder? What are your thoughts on the 500, Like or Dis-like them?
As for me, this is what I have; 8 3/8" 500 and have been casting with the RCBS 50-340-swc(50 AE) bullet and the 50-400-swc bullet. For a nice milder load I use the 400 with 20.0 grains of Longshot, these are still potent, but recoil is not so bad. To step things up I use either 34 grains of IMR 4227 or 34 grains of WW296. These are not max, but they recoil enough for me. I normally shoot around 50 shots at a time, so I don't need bone-jarring(destroying) loads. Even these loads have got the palm of right hand sore. So I will be getting a pair of the gel-filled shooting gloves. If them don't work, fit/feel right, back to the bare palm.
What are guys using for bullets and powder?
Anyone gonna go for a 6 1/2" with the half underlug? They are just now showing up.
Smith has a $75.00 rebate on the 500's till 12-31-2008.
Thanks,

Bill B.

[EDK]

I shot 5 rounds through my brother's 500...about 2 too many! He loaded from mild to wild and wild is too much for me.

Seriously, I would look at John Taffin's article on 500 Specials and load most of my ammo fairly light. Carpal tunnel is way too common in the guys who got into 454 Casull, 475 Linebaugh, etc...along with hearing loss. You'll notice a lot of interest in 44 Specials/45 Colts as the writers "age and fall apart."

Brian Pearce has some articles of interest for you in various issues of HANDLOADER. Custom grips would be a real good area to investigate.

I just turned 60, shoot 40 rounds of 44 out of various RUGERS daily, and my favorite rifle is a 50/90 SHILOH SHARPS. AND I've already had Carpal Tunnel surgery! You know you need help when your scores are better left handed than right...and the pain is pretty constant. Elmer Keith fired 600 rounds out of his 44 magnum the first year he had it...think about that a bit.

:Fire::cbpour::redneck:

[Lloyd Smale]

Dont own one but shot a couple thousand rounds out of my buddys 4 inch gun. I thought it was mild compared to a bisley 500 or 475. I guess i cant say mild but milder then a bisley. I know that he had a long barreled one and it seemed to kick more then the 4 inch gun.

[44man]

None of the big guns are bad off hand with a two hand grip. From bags or Creedmore , they twist the wrist. Bags are the worst. Once an accurate load is found and the gun sighted, just shoot off hand and get good. I don't find the big ones any worse then a .44.
Talk about RECOIL! :mrgreen::mrgreen: I shot a .577 NE Saturday for a penetration test. No pain at the shoulder and it was controllable but I can see a headache after 3 shots. What a wonderful and beautiful double rifle it was. Here is the cartridge! :drinks:

[Bill B.]

EDK, I do get the HANDLOADER and read almost every article, sometimes 3 or 4 times just so I can remember something from it. Like you, I am not a youngster anymore, I will be 69 in a few more days, I don't have to worry about ruining my hearing, I did that 30-40 yrs ago with '06's and any other gun that was LOUD. I now have 2 Miracle Ear hearing aids, so the hearing problem is over. My eye sight isn't too bad, if I only knew which rear sight to use, I guess there is still a front one? On top of these problems I have a good dose of Rheumatoid Arthritis, so I guess my hands should hurt. But I AIN'T GONNA QUIT YET, I AM HAVING TOO MUCH FUN!
The 500 I have has never fired a factory round, I use the RCBS mould for the 50 AE and the other 50 cal mould that casts the 400 grainer. I have loaded these 500's down to as low as 10 grs of Unique, these are definitely soft loads. The 20 grains of Longshot and the RCBS 50-400 is a nice load to shoot. It does recoil considerably, but not like the 34 grains of WW296. I used to think the .45 colt has quite a bit of recoil, now it is like firing a Ruger Single Six in .22 LR.

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate hearing from fellow shooters of the hand cannons.

Bill B.

[Whitworth]

Dont own one but shot a couple thousand rounds out of my buddys 4 inch gun. I thought it was mild compared to a bisley 500 or 475. I guess i cant say mild but milder then a bisley. I know that he had a long barreled one and it seemed to kick more then the 4 inch gun.


That's been my finding as well. I don't think they kick so badly considering the bulk and the compensator. I just don't think that the .500 Smith needs to be pushed so hard and would probably do a bit better if slowed down a little bit.

[44man]

Yeah, the boolit is half the size of a deer---well, the ones I shoot anyway! :mrgreen:
A milder load is good enough until you get to the large animals.
I have hand problems too, the base of my thumbs always bother me but the big guns never make it worse. My biggest problem is a huge knuckle from a lifetime of shooting heavy bows. The wrong grips can pound it and that just makes it larger.
Guys wonder why I hate the RH, Bisley grips and the SBH with wood panels. I NEED a filler behind the trigger guard. I even put Pachmeyer's on my Vaquero for heavy loads.
If the gun is comfortable for you, it doesn't matter what you shoot.
I read all the time about rubber grips peeling the skin off the palm and making blisters. I don't know where that comes from but maybe it is a good idea to HOLD the gun. Trying to let a gun roll to get to the hammer easier is not how you handle recoil. The gun should raise your arm, not twist in the hand. I have seen video's of guys shooting the big ones and it baffles me how his hands did not move much but the gun twisted so bad it almost split the guys skull.

[Bill B.]

44MAN, I also have put "oversize rubber grips" on my .45 Colt 7 1/2" Vaquero. The wood and ivory grips on these are Ok if you shoot mild loads, but some of mine are not very mild, so like you, if you can't get a good firm grip on the gun it will educate you(really me)....

I was wondering, has anyone considered one of the Smith 500's in 6 1/2" barrel and with the half underlug? I think I will try one of these, I priced my 8 3/8" 500 today, and if the shooter buys it, then I will for sure get the new 6 1/2 500 Smith.

For fun, this spring I bought one of the Smith 610's with 4" barrel and in 10mm. That is a great shooting smaller revolover. It is pretty potent on the 3/8" steel plates at 50 yards when using a 200 grain cast bullet. I normally use Blue Dot or HS-6 in this gun. It is sure lots different to handle than the 500.... But, the 500 is the most fun, it sure as H**L means business.

Thanks for the replies.

Bill B.

[bdutro]

Hey Bill,

I've been shooting my John Ross 5" half-lug 500 for a while now. I bought a couple sample packs from Bill and Leona at Ballistic Supply that range from 350 grains to 700. The reduced loads are milder than many 44 magnum loads and the full house loads are sledgehammers. I love the 500 not only for it's power, but it's versatility.

Based on my observations, I'm going to order a 500ish grain mold to cast with. I think it's the best balance of mass, penetrating power and velocity. I'll still buy Hornady bullets for hunting or Winchester CLHP for long range silhouette. I agree with the previous post regarding offhand vs rest shooting. It's a two-hand gun, let your arms soak that up.

I really enjoy the gun, the absence of a compensator helps keep the blast down and the tight barrel/cylinder gap boosts velocity above factory 8 3/8" pieces.

[shotman]

I looked at the 500 and then the 460. I settled on the 460 8 1/2in.It will do all that I need and will shoot the 454 and 45 colt. I have only shot 2 factory shells . I was hunting and shot at 2 different deer within one min. Missed the first and hit the second at 85yds. As I said hunting, no ear plugs. I shot with the one hand braced with the other. I will never try the one hand thing again. I didnt care if i got the deer I couldnt hear, It twisted my back, and my elbow hurt for a week. The 45 colt with a 250gr cast is like a 22. That is all I need for clay targets[standing up] shotman

[475/480]

At one time or another I have had 4 different SW 500's,the 4", PC 6.5", 8 3/8 and the monster PC 10.5" all of them shot well but I settled on the first one I bought the 8 3/8" and now shoot 495gr WFNGC cast and 400gr cast out of it. The 10.5" is just to cumbersome to shoot in the field
I have a bunch of reloading data for the SW 500 if you would like some, you PM me your email addy I will send it to you.

Sean

[NHlever]

I was reading an article about the .500 S&W in the NEF Handi Rifle, and the author suggested the old reliable 10 grains of Unique load with a 370 grain bullet. He was getting very good accuracy. Also suggested were:
11.7 gr of Trail Boss / 370GC
25.0 gr. of H4227 / 370GC
25 gr. of H4227 / 440GC
10.0 Trail Boss / 440 Keith
12.0 Universal / 440 Keith
27.0 IMR 4227 / 440 Keith

[69daytona]

I have 2 500s, a 4 inch and the 10 1/2 inch hunter. I have shot everything from 375 plain base lead to 700 grain WFNGC and have clocked some of my loads over 1800fps.
One of my favorites is a remington 385 gr JHP (they sell them in bags of 100 for about 40 bucks for shotgun slugs) with 39grains of H110. I usually shoot 150-200 when I go to the range. I really like the 600 grainers made by RangerRick, they shoot very well out of the 4 inch
For nice plinking loads go with something between a 375 gr swc- 400 gr swc style and between 10=12 grains of unique or 231 and you will have a nice load around 850-1100fps
at least thats what I get out of mine, if you havent done so already you should get in on Happy7s groupbuy if he hasnt closed it already.

[Bill B.]

When you guys go to shoot the 500, how many rounds do you usually fire through it before calling it a day? When at the range, do you normally use factory full power, or do you load down?

Since I had some time this afternoon, I fired close to 80 rounds through the 500 Smith, probably 30 were with the .50 Action Express 340 grain bullet and 16 grains of HS-6, the other 50 were with the Redding 420 grain and 34 grains of WW296. I do have R.A., so my hands do start to hurt. Today I tried a Uncle Mikes Shooting Glove, the one with the fingers cut out and the gel-filled area for the web area. The glove definitely helps, but tonight my right hand is a litlle sore when pushing in the palm of it with the left hand. Anyone else have these problems, or is it just me?

I fired a Smith 629 yesterday with factory duplication loads, it recoils, but the 500 is still the most violent. I do prefer the 500 over any handgun I have. It is a fun gun.

Thanks for all the responses so far.

Bill B.

[10-x]

When the 500 first came out a buddy of mine got one for Christmas(from his wife!). IIRC it had a 16" barrel??????We took it up our hunt club in Floyd and tried it out. The "Beast" was dead on at 200 yds ,shooting B-27 targets.
All I can say is one cylinder of factory loads convinced me to stick with .44 SRH, .45 BH and my 1911s. :roll:
Used a shooting glove and my hand felt like "Sister Beth" the nun teacher had worked it over with her wooden ruler for passing notes in class!............Course 30 years of turning a wrench and carpel tunnel surgery has'nt helped either.
Each to his own............:drinks:

[FN in MT]

Shot a pair of S&W .500's one a long bbl PC gun, the other one of the 3" ( or less??) snubbies. Both were with factory ammo. With Factory ammo I wouldn't own either of them. Far too much recoil. Loaded down with cast I'd still have to ask myself; Why?

Other than for northern bears or moose I can see little reason to own one. I've shot clean through ELK with hot .45 Colt loads. Dead is DEAD. To me the .500's are a bit silly.

FN in MT

[Bill B.]

Guess I might be "woozy" from shooting the 500..... But since we still live out in the country, I can just step out of the shop and blast away at the steel silhouettes any time I want, so I do consider the .500 a fun gun. I do have some factory Hornady's, I have never fired one of these yet. The recoil from the RCBS 400 grain(which weighs out 420+) and the 34 grains of WW296 are enough for me, and the steel silhouettes are taking a beating from the 500. They are 3/8" steel, but they do have some nice dents in them and in some places, like near the edge or a rams foot, they are getting bent pretty bad. I guess one would say I just enjoy experimenting with various powder charges and different brands and types of powder. My biggest problem with the 500 is the weight of it, and I realize it better be heavy, or I could have a new smart bump on my head. Anyway, after around 25-30 shots I must start to tire from holding that mammoth hand cannon, I start to weave around quite a bit more than when the shooting event started. These are ideas of fun, and my wife thinks that possibly the senility could be worse than she has anticipated.... she has no idea of why I would stand out there and fire something that big and loud.
Bill B.

[cajun shooter]

Bill, I would like to say after reading your posts; " GO FOR IT". The key word you used was "FUN" and thats all that matters. I'm on the backside of 61 and shooting SASS. In my younger years I was a very serious shooter in PPC, Bullseye, MSHA and any other shooting sport. Now, I'm having fun and care not if I ever win a stage much less a match. The younger folk have yet to learn about smelling the roses!!

[Bill B.]

Thanks for the kind words CAJUN SHOOTER, I appreciate. Yep, age is now our enemy, I am gonna be 69 in a few more days, I don't like it, but not much I can do about it.... If I wasn't deaf, I think I could enjoy more things, but with the Miracle Ear heaing aids, I do get by. They do make great ear plugs, they have the AVC in them, so they shut down immediately from a loud noise, so they aren't completely worthless. I guess the real fun of any of the big bore revolvers and auto's is the bullet casting and all the different loads one can try....

I have a question which I will post in another part of this forum, but will also ask it here: does anyone know the ingredients of the RCBS 80008 lube? This is the pistol/revolver green stuff.... The rifle lube(80009) is a 50/50 bee's wax and alox. I have use the green stuff, it seemed to be a real good lube. I have 50 of the .500's still loaded with it, so will try them when I get time and weather permits. What I have used of this it seems to be a very good lube.
Thanks,
Bill B.