Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska 500 Smith&Wesson to carry in AK?

Need a little help here gentleman. I'll be hunting Alaska for the first time this year and was wondering on which of these would be better for carring while hunting there in terms of barrel lenght.
4" S&W 500 or the 6.5 " S&W 500? Could carry my 10mm with some Doubletap Gas Checks....but would rather have the 500. Thanks.

Are you planning on hunting with a rifle and then planning on also carrying one of those very heavy revolvers? I'm sure the AK guys will check in here but having hunted western AK and walking over that real estate in hip waders I can tell you neither of the first choices would get a thought.

If you are determined to have a handgun for ambling around camp I'd take your last choice but it's almost as easy to always have your rifle which is a much better weapon anyway.

Of course I presumed a lot as you gave few details as to the "what, the where, and the how." For example, if fishing a lot with bears as close company along brush shrouded streams would be very different than hunting caribou in higher and much more open country.

Of course I'll be hunting with a 300 win mag for caribou and moose! We will be hunting west of Chicken sir.

10MM has proven itself. The small-medium grizz around Chicken won't be a problem... besides, if you're hunting RC860, you'll have A LOT of company, and I doubt too many bears will hang around.

I'd never carry a 500SW when hunting. To big, too expensive.

I carry either my Glock 20 10mm or my Redhawk 4" in 45 Colt and do not feel undergunned.

Ok awesome, thanks LoadClear.....will load or buy some gas checks for my G20!

If you feel like spending some money, get a KKM 6" barrel for that G20 and a heavier recoil spring (the lbs needed for heavy loads escapes me).

The factory G20 spring is a little light for full house loads, and the 6" KKM barrel gives a little better velocity and is traditionally rifled.

Neither of these are really required though/

I've never had a desire to pack a 500 S&W, simply too heavy for a packing gun. If you want a good powerful packing revolver, get a Ruger Toklat

I wear my S&W Mdl 29 .44 in a chest holster when I'm riding the wheeler in to where I'm hunting. If I'm cutting up a critter in the dark I'll strap it on as well. Otherwise it's just a sleeping companion any more. My .300 packs plenty of punch and is enough for me to carry around when I'm hunting. The longer I live here the more respect for brown fuzzies I have, but less fear and concern also. As far as which handcannon to carry, whichever one you shoot well and want to drag around. That .500 seems like it would be unpleasant. I'd rather carry extra water and/or my 22/45 lite to put some birds in the frying pan if the big game wasn't cooperating that day.

Wow! I think you could drop that thing on a bear and do quite a bit of damage!! What a beast!

Can you shoot the 500, full bore ammo, 6 shots, or is it 5? A full cylinder, rapidly and hit a paper plate every time say around 15-20 steps or so?

Didn't think so.

The glock will work fine IMHO. Plus if you miss a few times you still have more left..

Plus as noted, where you are going to hunt, I doubt you'll see a bear anyway, its possible, but with the pressure highly unlikely.

We have pressure where we moose hunt. Have yet to see a bear. See tracks all the time. Catch them on the game cams at nigth along with wolves, but not during the day.

Ruger redhawkish... hell no, if we are carrying, I sold the super redhawk, it was like a small rifle on your hip, ended up staying in the sleeping bag way to often... even bowhunting... 329PD for a 44... and now the Glock 20 isn't as light, but its a tradeoff...

I had to DLP one Grizzly in my life. It was 28 years ago when I was only 19 years old. It took 4 325 grain hardened garrett lead bullets from a 44 Mag Super Blackhawk to keep it down. It was an injured 4 year old brown bear that was going after a elderly lady we had with us King salmon fishing.

Bears in deep brush bent on destruction can be hard to kill.

I have a 9 mm Glock but I don't take it with me for bear protection.

45 Colt is all you need.

i have a s&w 500, got it several yrs ago. have never shot it.

Bought mine on a lark, shortly after they were introduced, about 13 years ago? It's been a range toy only, so big and heavy...

But fun to shoot! And surprisingly accurate. I put a few rounds through it every year, only haul it out now and again. Thought about it for bear, but it's awfully big & heavy.

Five, 440 grain bullets is kinda cool though.

Guy

Yeah, but it weighs a good pound less than an X-frame. They look bulkier than they really are. There are better, more manageable choices than the .500 S&W Magnum.

The 500 Smith would be too big and unwieldy for me, I practice shooting weak side and one handed in the event my strong side or, one hand/arm was injured.

A good S&W 629 DA revolver with a 4 or 5 inch barrel firing 240 gr XTP's at an easily controlled 1200 fps or so would be my choice.

Yes I have a BarSto barrel and heavier spring already, being Ive been loading for it!!!

Sounds like me. I goty mine when they first came out, just because. It's fun to shoot (sort of, for a couple of cylinders full) amazingly accurate at long range. As far as hunting, you may as well be carrying a small rifle. As far as bear protection (a topic in which I am a keyboard expert only) I would prefer my 627 Smith with 8 manageable 180 grain penetrators on board and go for the CNS hit.)

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I would not personally pick XTP over a hard cast due to penetration issues. Just me personally.

Like XTPs on deer though. Very much.

If I had nothing else to choose from, I'd take the Glock. The 500 S&W is way too big and heavy to lug around, not to mention I'd not be dedicated enough to master shooting such a handgun. My pet handgun, and I rarely carry one anymore, is a 4-1/4" S&W 5-shot L-frame .44 Mag. Or if I want even more compact, a 2-1/2" M66 .357.

Jeff