Which Smith X-Frame?

[CraigC]

Wow, the comprehensive and profoundly intellectual responses are overwhelming. Strong words from the guy who made the joke about wheels and thought you could shoot .45AR out of the thing. I guess I'm out of my league with this panel of experts.

Sounds like the President and his common sense statements.

Thanks for twisting my words so you could make a personal insult.

My hunting ethics put 1000 foot pounds of energy minimum on the target at the max range I will take a shot. This provides a humane harvest. Because the .460 replaces a rifle I have chosen to apply the same standard to it.

You've chosen to apply a standard that does not apply. Energy does not kill and your requirement, while interesting, is more than a little silly. I was going to ignore this but since you've stooped to personal attacks, here we are. Energy is far too dependent on velocity. It does not place any importance on diameter and trivializes mass. Big bore handguns do not kill in the same way as rifles and the old foot pounds of energy nonsense needs to die a quick death. Energy does not kill. Blood loss caused by tissue damage is what kills. That velocity you love so much, only serves to flatten trajectory. That energy you love so much, does not kill them any deader. Those lightweight jacketed loads you're referencing might put up some impressive energy figures but they give up a lot of the cartridge's potential with their low mass and rapid expansion. If a 250gr at 900fps will fully penetrate from any angle and kill any deer on planet earth deader than a hammer, yet only produces 450ft-lbs of energy at the muzzle, that should tell you that maybe energy is not the proper gauge. But you're already an expert, so don't let me confuse you with facts.

 

[codefour]

Because a handgun is not a rifle. Again, it has nothing to do with the ability of the cartridge but the ability of the shooter to make a precise shot under field conditions. I would love to live in a world where you can just walk into a gun shop, buy a .460, step outside and start blasting 8" plates at 200yds but that ain't reality.

CraigC, you are right regarding the 200 yard shots with a revolver. Yet, they are quite possible with a good rest and good optics. But, if I were trecking through grizzly country, I would only have my .460 mag. Not one of my .44 mags or a .45 Colt (I dont's have a .45 Colt yet).

All of mine are well under 50oz.

Most large bore .44 mag or .45 Colt that are designed for hunting weigh 50 oz or more. Yes, the Model 29 with an eight inch barrel weighs 48 oz IIRC. But the X-frames weigh from 56 oz (4" 500) to 88 oz (14" PC 460). The most common 8 3/8 barrel weighs 72 oz.

Energy is far too dependent on velocity. It does not place any importance on diameter and trivializes mass. Big bore handguns do not kill in the same way as rifles and the old foot pounds of energy nonsense needs to die a quick death. Energy does not kill. Blood loss caused by tissue damage is what kills. That velocity you love so much, only serves to flatten trajectory.

Extra velocity creates more energy exponentially. Yes, the bullet as it travels through media leaves a hole behind the same diameter as the bullet. But, there are many secondary effects of energy. All that extra energy creates collateral damage. Have you ever seen a bullet go through gelatin? After the bullet passes through the gelatin, there is so much extra damage visible in the gelatin. That is catastrophic damage if there is enough energy. Energy increases the size of the wound channel.

Yes. I understand it destroys meat. On the other hand, when you are trying to bring down a big beast whether for dinner or self preservation, I want all the energy I can get.

This was the "niche" I was referring to in my previous post.

I know we disagree on this matter. I am not trying to throw flames. This post is all in good faith for benevolant debate. Nothing more. It is good to debate these topics but is bad when people take it personal or throw personal attacks. There is a very large group that we need to keep our negative energy flowing too, i.e., the anti second amendment nuts.

 

[JohnM]

Humorless drone, why bother?
Been an otherwise interesting thread.

 

[musicman10_1]

Back to the topic at hand:

I chose the .500 Magnum. I got the 8 3/8" barrel and a set of dies and components to load my own rounds. With the variety of bullets and a lot of good load data there seemed to be no reason to consider something other than the .500 for my needs. I do a little handgun hunting (mostly with a T/C set-up) and a lot of paper punching at the range. The .500 allows me to pursue whatever handgun hunting I am interested in and having shot everything from 300 gr up to 700 gr chunks of lead I think that it fits the profile of being versatile.

BTW - the 700 gr bullets are not practical at all and I love them because of that.

 

[Deer_Freak]

Shooting 45 LC ammo from an X-Frame defeats the purpose of practicing. I have to shoot a 460 quite a bit before I quit pushing. I would want to practice with 460 ammo so I am used to the recoil and muzzle blast.

 

[HKGuns]

We're all on the same side here guys, especially now. We can agree to disagree on some minor technical points, however, we have FAR more in common than those who would limit our freedom and interests.

Looks like the Xframe is down in the queue by one as I picked up a Pro Series model 60 yesterday and am seconds away from heading out the door to the range.