Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska Your carry Handgun in AK 44 Mag, 10mm, .454 Casull?

Everyone has their own threshold. .44 Buffalo Bore 305 gr at 1325 feels like a hand-full in an SBH.

Believe it or not the 480 is able to push a 400 gr 1200 fps burning slightly less powder than the 44 uses to push a 300 gr 1300 fps, and IMHO the recoil levels are really on par with each other. Some day on your way through town we'll have to plan a range session so you can try the 480 out.

The reason I like the 480 is I had the opportunity to shoot several 454's, 475's and 500's and I personally cannot handle that level of recoil in a revolver and accurately place my shots. With the 480 I found a round that is IMHO a step up on terminal performance from the 44, but not past my recoil threshold.

I'm intrigued by the 480 and now that Ruger is making them again, I may look that direction. For now, I carry a SRH in 44 Mag, with a...gulp... 9 1/2" bbl. Not the most convenient, but I run what I brung and I cant stand the thought of cutting it..... with 325 gr Hardcast DT bullets and near max charges of W296 it is one hell of a nice shooter.

I been looking about for a 454 SRH so I can shoot 45LC too, but the 480 has my attention. Definently need to look at a 4" or 5.5" barrel though. That 9.5" is a bit of a hassle

That would be fun, but so often that's fly-by country going someplace.

Bring it as a salmon finisher!

I run 300gr Unicores at ~1200 in my 2.5" Taurus tracker, I'll admit it's about all I want to hold on to. That load would probably clock ~1300 in a 6" or 8" barrel. The tracker is just a handy piece to carry compared to larger frames like my 629 so it gets used the most.

I hope I never have to test it to see if it's enough gun. Our grizzly density is not nearly as high as some of the places in AK, but enough to keep you on guard in lots of places. My caliber of choice would probably change if I hung out around some of your big coastal bears.

I plan on buying another 480 and cutting it to 5". Don't know why they don't offer a 480 Toklat, it would be perfect.

I can tolerate 7 1/2" in a shoulder rig, but would much rather have a 5" in a chest rig.

Bender, understood. With kids activities its a rush to get there on time, and by the time you're done you just want to get home. I'm thankful my son is in Seattle and Portland this week for soccer tournaments. That way I don't have to commute to Anchorage twice a day. First time for work, then as soon as I get home it's back to town for a practice or game.

Weigh a 329PD... 300 or 270 hard cast with stiff loads aren't easy to handle but they are sure not impossible.

I just hate to pack around a 5 pound pistol like some of the big ones seem to be. I'll take a short rifle everytime over something like a redhawk or such.

I have not taken a 10mm glock yet, but I think I could consider that.

The super redhawk is 3.3#'s. It may appear to be a heavy revolver, but really isn't as heavy as one might think.

AKMH, give a shout if you want to test drive a 329. Mine is not for sale, but you're welcome to shoot it.

I agree the 480 is more better, but the 329 is all I'm willing to pack.

Chris, how's the recoil on that 329 with loads like what Jeff mentioned?

Oh yeah, I know, had one, and I was being a bit facious. But too heavy for me to want to lug around when a couple more pounds would be smarter at that point.

RE recoil, its stout. I don't know how to put it. But I can hit well enough for bear issues with it. At least for the first couple. AFter 2 or3 I need to get a better grip on it as its rolling some.

I will not shoot it with heavies with wood grips again as the seam will pinch you really good. Though seems I've shot a friends that must have had different grips that did not pinch. That gun never had real heavies shot, but shooting 240 factory soft points was not a big deal.

I think I'm going to do the 10mm for starts and go from there, I have shot the 480 Ruger and Hornady factory loads have a nice jolt.

I use my smith 29 with 300 gr loads at 1100fps.I get alot of penetration and can handle the load well.

I carry a 1911 45. I'm comfortable and accurate with it. I shoot 230g bonded Golden Sabres for both two legged and four legged issues.

+1

Stepping on the 320s in my 45 BH or running 420s in the abbreviated (5") SRH I have are not much different. The 480 has always been an overlooked cartridge IMO. While chunking 300-320s in a 44 or 45 is probably plenty enough and has been adequate a time or two for preventing an untimely demise, I much like the security of the bigger, fatter 480 bullets.

In regard to the initial query, I wouldn't even bother looking at the 10 and the 454 has never held any interest for me though it would undoubtedly be quite effective if one could really master it. However, like the 30-06 is plain and boring, the 44 Mag is easily the best choice of the three when it comes of heavy handgun needs.





Compare a 17 Rem with 25 HPs and a 45-70 with 535 cast against 1/4" steel plate and see if shooting steel really works as a bear bullet analyzer. (Not saying there aren't better 44 bullets than the 265 Hornady though.)

With the original grips, pretty nasty. With X-Frame grips, it's like getting hugged by Kate Upton.

Actually, it still gets your attention, but MUCH better.

hello

I had a 44 Magnum with Buffalo Bore 270 grain for 3 years. Now I think to buy a Glock 20... 10mmm.

I don't find the recoil on my son's 329PD that offensive, and he has G10 VZ Grips on it� he loads the Garrett Defender 310g in it regularly for backcountry carry and they really are not all that bad. I shot it last weekend and put around 24-30 rounds through it and did feel a little numbness in my hand for a few minutes afterwards. Having said that, my 629-4MG ain't a whole lot better with the same loads. In fact I load it with 44 Spc when I'm carrying around town, or practicing at the range with it.

IMO, the single actions, specifically the Bisley grip frame, just handles heavy recoil (e.g.: 454, 475, 500) so much better than the Smith back strap design. That knot on the back strap of those N frames right above the web of your thumb just comes back and pounds my hand. The DA revolvers, IMO do have a slight advantage in that you can use DA firing mode if you're really in a pinch� I guess an alternative is to carry one of the Smith X-Frame 4lb. hand carbines, but you may as well be carrying a nice compact lever rifle at that point.

I do love me some SA revolver though� they just feel right in the hand! Classic, fast out of the holster, point and hit right where you aim, roll back in the hand and come right back down of follow up shots pretty quickly (load dependent of course). I just can't get into the plastic semi-auto's� they just seem like disposable junk to me. Don't get me wrong, I've got a couple of Glock's stashed around, but they just don't do it for me.

IMO, an honest Alaskan carry weapon should be wood and steel, with a big hole in the tube, and carried in leather� but hey that's just me, an old romantic.

Carry on�

The bear spray is much lighter, vastly cheaper, and more effective as a bear deterrent. This is especially true since you're "not much of a handgun person" and probably lack sufficient practice in wielding a sidearm.

http://www.bearspray.com/bear_spray_study.pdf

If you're like most of us and don't need a solid excuse to buy another firearm, it wouldn't hurt to buy a small-caliber handgun for plinking fun.

I have never had to stop a bear attack, but I do spend some time in bear country in Montana and farther north.
Apparently, when people have been attacked by bears, it's not unusual to end up on the ground rolling around with the bear. In the situation, I would prefer a double action revolver. Also, a bear gun isn't going to do much good if it's sitting on the truck seat wheile you walk into a campground looking for a camping spot. I like my Smith & Wesson Mountain gun with it's 5 inch barrel because it can stay on my hip all day and not be overly obtrusive.
While working in a gun store years ago, we had enough Taurus owners bring guns back with locked up cylinders to allow me to have any confidence in that brand.
Based on accounts of other people's bear attacks, if given a choice, I would much rather try to stop a bear attack with bear spray than with any handgun. Just going with the statistics on that one. Oh, and the fact that it's not unheard of for people trying to stop bear attacks with firearms to shot the wrong mammal.