44 mag vs 500 mag..........ouch!

 

Are you talking about the S&W 500? My buddies rented it at the local shooting range and said it was a blast to shoot...get it a blast! lol. They were going to shoot it again so I could test it out, but i'm too scared. I've also heard people shoot it who rented it and dang that thing is soooo loud! The rounds are mad expensive...freaking a buck a pop!!!

 

Yeah. There are two gun manufacturers who make a handgun in that caliber (.500 Magnum) The Smith& Wesson 500 and the Taurus "Raging Bull" also comes in a.500 Mag option (You can get a Raging Bull in .41 Mag, .44 Mag, .480 Ruger, and .454 Casull as well) Taurus is a good quality gun that is cheaper than the S&W.

 

I knew the 454 wasn't the biggest round anymmore but that or the 500 is still plenty of power.... I would be a bit frightened of shooting it to be honest with you.... I would do it if given the chance but only very cautiously..... My dad has a Thompson Contender with a 30-30 barrel for it and I shot that thing as a kid (10 or 12 yrs old) and I hit my target at about 30 yards but it also came up out of my front hand with enough recoil to smack me in the forehead with the rear sight.... my dad just started laughing (as would I if I saw that...) so needless to say I have a little bit of a misgiving about large caliber handguns....

 

Haha yeah I bet. A gun that big would be a bit "overkill" for home defense as well. If you started shooting, the bullets would travel through many walls before stopping. Not good. The only reason you should need a gun like that is if you are in bear country. But even then most experts say a .44 Mag is enough. If I was in bear country though, I would probably get the .500 or a .454Casulljust to be on the safe side.

 

You just nailed it! Bear country is all over here..... what gets me is when people go through the trouble of getting a handgun to protect themselves from bears when hiking and then they get a 9mm.... I don't know what they plan to do to the bear with that besides **** them off..... and when people tell me "just carry pepper spray" I simply reply, why don't you go to my ex GF's house and talk to her dad, take a look at his back and ask HIM how many CANS of spray did they unload on the bear and what it did.....

The other reason for it is pistol hunting is legal and has a short special season for it....

 

The foothills and mountainous areas ofAlberta are grizzlybear country.Even so,I can't image hauling that blunderbuss for miles, let alone that ridiculous"kit". I think it's kind of a marketinggimmick on S&W's part to create it. Like big, 4 wheel drive SUVs, most of those kits will never leave a city environment.

A 500 mag with a 2.5" barrel with no recoil reducer or muzzle brake?Yikes!The good part is that even if you miss, thereport is going to be so loud that both the shooter and the intended target are going to be deaf - at least for awhile - and it's probably also going to scare the you-know-what out of the intended target, too.

About small caliber hand guns and large animals. My wife lived in Churchill, Manitoba for five years. Churchill is famous for being in polar bear country. Much of the video that most people have seen of polar bears was shot in the Churchill area.

There are some native outiftters that take hunters out from Churchillto killa few polar bears each year. (At least $40k a pop, I understand.) One dark night onone of these trips, the hunter told the guide that hewanted to go outside of camp to relieve himself in private. The guide handed him a roll of paper and a snub-nose 38 and said "good luck". The hunter thanked the guide for giving him the means of defending himself should a polar bear attack him while he was dropping his load. The guide replied thatalthough thiswasnot the reason hegiven himthe 38, in the likely event that a bear should attack, he should stilldefinitelyuse it ..................

 

Haha! Good story Tony1M!
The only reason I could see carrying a 9mm would be if you had a 15rd clip and about 4 or 5 spare clips and you were a pro at rapid fire accuracy and reloading. Plus you would have to shoot the bear in the head...and hope the bear didn't maul you while you were reloading.
I think that pepper spray is a crock too. All that crap is going to do is royally **** that bear off and he is going to really be after you out of pure rage.

yeah I forgot to mention the whole pistol hunting thing. They make those 500's with 10 inch barrels on 'em. You could probably kill a frickin elk at over 100 yards if you knew how to compensate for bullet drop.

 

I have the Glock 22 (.40 Cal) and Love it.....I am a reserve cop.....the only problem is with the tactical light on it, and the dept. ammo, it sometimes jams. like 2 out of 400 rounds

 

if you shot a bear in the head with a 9mm chances are it would deflect off their exceptionally thick skull.....