Ruger S. Redhawk ?
- Thread starter skeeziks
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The Lone Haranguer
Member
I can only guess that it didn't sell well enough. Unless they fill a specific purpose or niche that others don't, proprietary cartridges often have a tough row to hoe.
MachIVshooter
Member
The .480 was a miserable failure in the market. For one, it made less energy than the other big boomers (.454, .475 Linebaugh, .50 AE, etc.). And there is a pretty limited selection of .475" caliber bullets. Add to that the big splash of the S&W .500 mag. right about the same time, and it was curtains for the four-eighty.
Nine Lives
Member
A better question is why don't they make the blued Redhawk anymore 
cottonmouth
Member
And why no .454 or .475 in a stainless single action!
J.B.
J.B.
22-rimfire
Member
I believe Ruger probably didn't sell enough units to keep producing the revolver in 480 Ruger. There were some pressure issues at first. It is still chambered in 454 Casull. I much prefer the 480 Ruger and believe Ruger made a blunder stopping production totally. They could at least do limited runs of the SRH in that caliber.
CraigC
Sixgun Nut
IMHO, if history views the cartridge as a failure, it is Ruger's fault. They marketed it miserably. It is a wonderful cartridge. Where else can you get a $600 sixgun that slings a 420gr cast bullet at 1200fps without beating you up? No, it doesn't have the bullet selection of the .44 or .45 but there are PLENTY to choose from. It is only 2000psi behind the .475 (48kpsi vs 50) and that extra couple thousand pounds doesn't get you much in return. It was overshadowed on the market by the big S&W's but that doesn't make it an inferior cartridge or platform. Just less flash, all substance, no glamour. It's a shame that Ruger is letting it go away.
Have any you guys seen those U-Tube videos with a couple of bikini-clad babes that are easily Hot enough to grace the pages of Playboy, blasting away with .500 magnums?
I could just see all those guys that have huge egos looking at those babes shooting their cannons and then looking at their .480's and saying..."I gotta trade this in for a five-hundred!"
I could just see all those guys that have huge egos looking at those babes shooting their cannons and then looking at their .480's and saying..."I gotta trade this in for a five-hundred!"
MachIVshooter
Member
There
Sometimes cartridges that shouldn't make it do (WSM's, for example. though that seems to be changing), while other good cartridges that truly have merit fail miserably (5mm Rem. Mag., 8mm Rem. mag., .480 Ruger, etc.)
Alot of it is marketing, and even more of it is timing. Introduce a good cartridge at the same time as another similar concept, one may make it big while the other struggles to survive, and for no logical reason.
As for the .454, it took decades to catch on. And it's still not exactly making record sales, just has a steady following with the hunting and silhouette crowd (and the recoil junkies)
Seancass
Member
The folks at RugerForum.com say the .480 is a dead cartridge as far as Ruger is concerned. I think it's failure is entirely a lack of commitment on ruger's part. All this cartridge needed was a 5 shot single action frame to really shine. I even thought it was a stupid catridge untill someone on that site made a 5 shot bisley revolver and suddenly it made sence. This cartridge should scream at ruger of what might have been.
I also think the single action frame would have taken away any advantage the S&W guns have by beating them in pack-a-bility. Being a pound or more lighter and a lot smaller would have been a great selling point for these guns as real hunting tools and not gimmicks, like the S&W gun usually are.
I think the .454 only caught on because it had some very determined individuals behind it packing it into a truly amazing gun(Casull, Baker and freedom arms). If Ruger won't give this round more than a couple years of half-effort then it never had a prayer from the get-go.
I also think the single action frame would have taken away any advantage the S&W guns have by beating them in pack-a-bility. Being a pound or more lighter and a lot smaller would have been a great selling point for these guns as real hunting tools and not gimmicks, like the S&W gun usually are.
I think the .454 only caught on because it had some very determined individuals behind it packing it into a truly amazing gun(Casull, Baker and freedom arms). If Ruger won't give this round more than a couple years of half-effort then it never had a prayer from the get-go.
MachIVshooter
Member
That's a personal choice, and obviously a minority one.
The .454 can be downloaded, or the gun fed with anything on down to powder puff cowboy loads (and even .45 Auto-rim or Schoefield, if you happened upon a box of it). It can also rocket 300 grain bullets at over 1,600 FPS. And it's dimensions don't require an X-frame 5-shot platform. There's alot to like about the Casull, and the guns have that multi-cartridge flexibility.
S&W hasn't survived more than a century and a half by marketing "gimmicks". While I don't personally care for the gargantuan X-frame, it has a place and a purpose.
22-rimfire
Member
The pressure issues are why Ruger went to a 5-shot cylinder over the original six. I personally have never had a problem with the 480 in the SRH.
It all comes down to commitment. If Ruger was really behind their new cartridge, they would not have offered the SRH in 454 Casull for years later. Just my opinion. The revolver is an absolute tank. The commitment is why I would never consider a 375 Ruger rifle or more than likely the 327 Mag. If you can't depend on them standing behind their products, why bother buying anything new in the first place.
It all comes down to commitment. If Ruger was really behind their new cartridge, they would not have offered the SRH in 454 Casull for years later. Just my opinion. The revolver is an absolute tank. The commitment is why I would never consider a 375 Ruger rifle or more than likely the 327 Mag. If you can't depend on them standing behind their products, why bother buying anything new in the first place.
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