How feasible is this?

[dirtyjim]

the project wouldn't be all that difficult.
start out with a remington model 7 in 300SAUM to get the shortest action possible then open the bolt up for the .560 dia rim. the 700 bolts have been opened up for the .338 lapua & its .028" larger than the s&w. have a sako or an ar-15 extractor fitted at the same time the bolt is being opened up.

pac-nor or classic barrel works would be the best bet on the barrel, both of them list the correct bore size for the 500s&w.

as far as the feeding goes i would set up a inline magazine with a slight taper to keep the rims from interlocking.

i don't see anything about the project that i would consider hard or any more expensive than a standard rebarrel or magnum conversion.

 

[moosehunt]

I tend to agree with dirtyjim. I have great respect for Mr. Keenan and Mr. Model, but I think they might be over thinking the deal. A bit of bolt face modification may be in order, but that really isn't a major deal. I agree that feeding problems may be the biggest factor, but I'm betting not a game breaker. Over length magazine--I truly question if that is a real problem. While the resultant rifle doesn't appeal to me at all, personally, I say go for what flips your bick! The idea of using a .300 WSM (or SAUM) may not fit our mans needs to fit Indiana's goofy specs. If you're willing to spend a few bucks--and we're not talking fortunes here--I'd get after the project! I sincerely hope that NavyGuy gets back in here and reports his results (I hope he didn't give up on his idea). Christ all mighty, guys, this is what fun is!

 

[dirtyjim]

The idea of using a .300 WSM (or SAUM) may not fit our mans needs to fit Indiana's goofy specs.

i was recommending the remington model 7 in 300saum as a donor rifle for the project not recommending it be used as is with indiana's retarded regulations. i think it would be just about the perfect donor for the project for a couple of reasons that i'll try to explain.

I agree that feeding problems may be the biggest factor, but I'm betting not a game breaker. Over length magazine--I truly question if that is a real problem.

one of the reasons i recommended the model 7 is that its the shortest version of the remington 700. the 500s&w's overall length is approxx .560" shorter than the 300saum but when the magazine is angled to keep the rims from interlocking it will move the top round forward enough to make up the difference in overall lengths between the two cartridges.

i actually think a 500s&w rifle with a 18-20" barrel would make a very nice brush/pig gun and would be a great plinker with cast bullet loads

 

[Jim K]

Well, the original post is over a year old, so I presume the OP has either done the work or lost interest by this time.

Jim

 

[NavyGuy]

Still here!

I'm still here and check on this thread every couple of months. I still want the rifle very much so. I have contacted some gunsmiths, but they won't have anything to do with it. I guess it's a little intimidating of a project. Ruger makes the 77/44, but.... I want what I want dammit! Anyone know of a good, brave, pioneer type gunsmith in the hampton roads area?

 

[NavyGuy]

I just sent the CEO of Ruger a message on this:

Mike,
Have you had many requests for a .500 S&W bolt action? The caliber REALLY cries out for a shoulder gun. The only rifles currently out are the H&R Handirifle single shot, and a $1,500 lever action by Big Horn Armory. Ruger already has most of the ground work done with the 77/44. Please do us all a favor and devote an hour or two searching for ".500 S&W bolt action". There is an overwhelming demand out there. I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

I'll post his reply when I get it.

 

[NavyGuy]

Still no reply from Ruger.

 

[triggerman770]

500 S&W rifle

Layne Simpson just had a Marlin lever converted to 50 B&M Alaskan, which uses a .500 inch barrel instead of the normal 510. B&M rifles have afew bordores made on Win M-70. so you might be able to get a BBL made by SSK
to fit a M-70 or even a Mauser. or a blank in500 and use a 500 s&w reamer
then thread for what you want.

 

[NavyGuy]

Well boys and girls, after more than a year I've given up on the 500 S&W rifle. I have, however, found something I can hunt with in Indiana that shoots a heavy grain bullet fairly far and fairly accurate out to 200 yards. I think it is pretty close to what I wanted in the rifle except for the "just plain cool" factor. All I really wanted was to take an ethical shot across a field at 200 yards , be able to quickly get another round in the chamber, all in a state where only shotguns, muzzleloaders, and rifles in a handgun caliber are allowed. Here it is:

http://randywakeman.com/Savage220F.htm

Whatcha think?

 

[roadchoad]

Now im going to blow all your minds!! Why not take the 500 S&W and neck it down to 375?! Sorry to bring this thread back up but I definitely like where it's going and it's getting to that time of the year for people to try to find their magic Indiana Deer gun!! I have been thinking about necking down the 500 for a long time, it Never says that you can't neck the cartridge it just says "pistol rounds" and then goes into case dimensions. I have a couple buddy's that swear it says straightwall somewhere but I have yet to find it!

How are you going to argue that your one-off rifle, chambered in a wildcat specifically made for your rifle, is a rifle that uses a pistol round? Really , I don't know why they even mention pistol rounds, as the requirements of those rounds should be enough to differentiate between legal and illegal cartridges.

Additionally, .458 socom is not straight-walled and is specifically listed as legal.

 

[Strykervet]

If rechambering it for SW500 isn't doable, look into the .50 Beowulf. I have one of those in an AR upper, it is a LOT of fun! The ballistics between the two rounds are very similar, and they both use the same bullets. The difference is that the bolt face on the Beowulf is the same as 7.62x39.

I seem to recall there being bolt guns in this calibre.

For custom barrels, you could contact Satern, I recommend calling, not emailing though. You won't get a reply. They won't make a Beowulf barrel for you anymore (licensing) but if a SW500 barrel can be made, they would be the ones that could do it.

At any rate, both of these rounds are low pressure rounds, so finding an action to take the punishment should be no problem. The recoil is like a 12ga.

If all else fails, there is still the .50 Beowulf AR platform. Nice, light, handy, accurate, and semi auto as well. 16" bbl., 1650-1700fps. 400gr. Sierra JSP IIRC.

 

[NavyGuy]

Turns out I have a couple of friends in Indiana who might be tooling up for this project. They've been gunsmithing for quite some time. Check out their website...

http://tdmetalworks.com/

Give them some feedback if you would be interested in rifle like this. With the amount of hits this post has I'd say the demand is there.

 

[dmckean44]

I still wish this would become a reality.

 

[Sun Tzu warrior]

Navy Guy, Quote "I am not talking about using a factory S&W500 here. Using a 300wsm case shortened to 1.625" and seating a .500 caliber bullet there. rcmodel already pointed out the headache of rechambering a rifle to another cartridge. But, the 300wsm and S&W500 have multiple similarities within the two cases at 1.625 and below. In other words, I'd use a 300wsm rifle, take a 300wsm case and shorten it to 1.625", and seat a .500 caliber bullet."

If you do this, it won't be a S&W 500, it will be a 300 WSM variant wild cat rifle cartridge.
If the game warden looks at the head stamp on the cartridge, will he think it is a S&W 500, or a 300WSM?
Be sure this meets (as RC said, the Pope's criteria) the regulations, or you may be asking for trouble, they would love to get the money you saved. (and then some)

 

[dmckean44]

I don't think it would make much sense to do a 300 WSM wildcat variant. It looks to me that the dimensions would be similar enough to covert a 300 WSM to 500 S&W with a new barrel, some bolt work and maybe a little bit of magazine work.