BFR 500 S&W - Pros & Cons?

I've been tempted for the last few years about the BFR 500 S&W. I don't know much about the firearm itself of if it has a good lifespan if shot alot. I'd appreciate any posts to help me with this decision. Thanks!

REALLY big! Redefines the term large.

I have one in 45-70 and its a very well made gun. Stout defines it. t is also one of my most accurate wheel guns, heck most accurate guns in general.

I agree they are generally crazy accurate, and extremely strong!

I agree the bfr is a great gun,Ive got one in 475L and sure like it,shooting one in 500 S&w alot might be a job tho.

Dave, I have found that there is so much mass that even with really heavy loads, the BFR in .500 Smith isn't that bad to shoot.

Great gun, except for the handle.

No doubt!

I have one in 454 and it is really accurate. Easily hit a whitetail at 100 yds. no problem. Very well made wheelgun. Everything is nice and tight. Fit and finish is very good.

pro pro pro.... no cons!!! :-) I don't even own one, but want one!!

Cons are: poor quality sights and plowhandle grip frame.

"Cons are: poor quality sights and plowhandle grip frame."

Okay, I'll give ya that. But the pros are that its big, its really big, and its cool! That should make up for the small, insignificant, teeny tiny cons shouldn't it??!! :-)

Shoot one in a BIG bore and then revisit that sentiment. The handle really sucks.

Taking all of the above into consideration: problem easily solved by going with a Freedom Arms Model 83 in .500 Wyoming Express!!! (instead)

Well crap... Guess ya got me there.

The only con I have about it is the cylinder length, I wish Magnum would make a mid length cylinder to handle the 500 and 460 S&W and maybe even add the 475 and 500 Max. The long cylinder is overkill for those two cartridges so you have alot of throat but they still shoot good. I had a 45-70 in 7.5" and it was very accurate and very strong. I was using 450 Marlin pressure loads which in the 45-70 will actually out perform the Marlin.

Kral is 100% on the mark with poor sights and grip frame to the point of being punishing to the shooter if you shoot full-house loads. It is a very accurate gun. I don't know why they don't fix the problems. Seems to me it would be very easy to solve. There are some cosmetic things I don't like too like the deeply cut barrel markings and the weird angle where the trigger guard area mates with the main frame. It looks like an afterthought - oh this thing needs a trigger, let's bolt one on.

I too can't stand the cheap aluminum front sight. That said, for the price point, they are pretty good, however.....

I do not own a BFR. However, I have fired one in 500 S&W. A friend, who lives in Ohio, owns one. He has had the trouble with his when firing full-house loads. It has been back to BFR twice. No solution. Finally, Dennis (SSK's employee) fixed it. My friend now saves the full-house loads for his encores. Shoots lighter loads in the BFR.

As with anything mechanical, not all are A-1.

Doesn't anyone make replacement sights for them? Also, would it be possible to put a Ruger bisley gripframe on it? - Just thinkin'

The Bisley grip frame is a real pain in the but to retrofit. There are solutions, though and the most logical (for me at least) is a modification that Jack Huntington performs, that extends the grip frame. It makes it more Bisley-esque, and it looks a world better. This is what I am having done to my BFR in .500 JRH. I will try to dig up a photo of one that has the estension work done to it.

Yes, the front sight can be changed.

my son has one in 454 casull and it's ridiculously accurate. bullstrong and just needs a trigger job. he actually prefers the handle and the way it recoils to my FA. i don't. i wouldn't hesitate to get one in 500 smith if that's what i wanted.

Thanks alot for all your info.! It might take some time but, I think I'm going to start saving up for one.

Okay, here is the stock BFR before the grip mods (and before the octagon barrel), and afterwords. It really changes the way they shoot and look (for the better as far as I am concerned).

And letsot forget that when you run out of bullets, you can turn the gun around grip it by the warm barrel and club to death what ever comes your way. Did I mention their stout?

My opinion doesn't matter a bit on this, but I gotta say I think that with the long cylinder they are just plain ugly! With the shorter cylinder they are a sharp gun. Whit's .475 is a looker (even stock- no doubt more so with the mods.).
I would like to try one some day in one of the Linebaugh calibers.

The front sight can be changed out with aftermarket models.

x2

Whit, that mod on the grip looks kinda FA'ish. It does look much better and it's got to feel better.

It's the best $300.00 (this includes custom grips) you can spend on a BFR as far as I am concerned.

Or just buy a FA'S. Sorry my experience with the BFR has not been the same as others. If the gun would have been accurate i could have over looked the fit and finish,the trigger,the grip,the sights,the bulk,but i digrees maybe i just got a lemon.

I had the same thing happen with a Kimber .45 I bought. I had nothing but problems with it, so then everything else about the gun started to bother me too!

If you gotta put a $300 fix on a $900 gun to make it shootable, I'd sooner have Rod "fix" an old Bisley ;-)

It'll cost you a lot more than $300.00 bucks to turn an old Bisley into a .475, or .500 Linebaugh or JRH. Hell, a good set of custom grips on any gun should run you around $300.00 alone. People either love or hate the BFR and they always (and unfairly) get compared to FAs, but for the money, they are very hard to beat and they are strong revolvers.

Grizzly Ammo used my BFR in 500 JRH to develop the factory loads that they produced. Mike told me that he was extremely impressed with the revolver. He also stated that it was one of the most accurate revolvers that he had ever shot and that includes FA's

Thinkin' more like $300 gun and $900 worth of work, or so. In the end I would be more satisfied with the result, even if it costs a bit more. You will never see me drop 3 bills on a set of grips, Hogues are just fine ;-)

Hard to find a Bisley for $300 any more (I'm always looking for deals).....but that's neither here nor there. We're actually comparing apples to oranges. Hogue makes only a handful of different grips for the Bisley and there is no guarantee they will fit your hand well. I cannot over-emphasize how a good set of custom grips, made for your hand, improve shootability -- particularly when dealing with a revolver that kicks hard (makes all the difference in the world). This is a topic for another thread, but custom grips are money well spent IMHO.

If I could get frist class conversions done for that price then I'd take a dozen of them.

A set of custom grips properly done and fits ones hand perfectly is worth every penny. When a grip fits ones hand perfectly felt recoil seems to be less

The bisley I recently purchased on Gbroker and sent to Rod for my custom build, I picked it up for 350.00 and that included shipping.

You did well on that one. I see a lot more Blackhawks around that price point, but not so many Bisleys.

Whit, you have any FA's to show a gripframe comparison to? And whats the general turnaround time for that gripframe mod?

It looks real nice, that's the very first BFR I've looked at twice, not usually my thing.

I have photos somewhere, I'll have to dig them up. The turnaround time is around a month if I recall correctly, but I may be wrong.

Yeah, it is about the best looking BFR I have ever seen! Once you address some of obvious issues, there is nothing wrong with them at all. My .500 JRH is one of the most accurate revolvers I have ever laid hands upon and it is box stock.

Here's a photo that shows the FA 83 on top, and a standard BFR grip below, and I reposted the modified grip photo:

i couldn't agree more with whitworth. i've had a custom shop bfr 475, have a standard 475 and my son has a 454 casull. they are well above rugers in fit and finish as well as significantly stronger. the triggers are rough, except on the custom shop gun, but very doable. they are not near a FA in fit and finish but they are equal in accuracy imho. never dealt with their warranty work but it'd be tough to meet FA standards as they have been tops with me thus far. they are however very very accurate and will do the job. my son shoots his better than any other gun. he is incredibly proficient with his, hits 4 out of 5 on 8" plates at 150 yards off hand, can't beat young eyes i guess.

And their oversized Bisley grips fit me to a T, for about $50 ;-)

Haha! No doubt!

Spot on, the BFR's are very accurate and are a hell of a value

That shootin' iron is just plain GEORGUS!!