500 Special

Always wanted a 50 caliber single action revolver but not the recoil but not the recoil that goes with it.

Wonder if 50 caliber cartridge with a case length similar to the 480 Ruger would be successful? Bore diameter of .500 like the 500 S&W and Shoot a 350 grain at 1200 fps.

I think this would be a dandy for Ruger Super Blackhawk Bisley in a 5 shot revolver and get Ruger a piece of the pie.

What say you revolver shooters?

Is that not what a 500 JRH is?

The "special" has a similar case length as the 480 Ruger, 45 Colt, etc, about 1.285". The JRH is longer, about 1.4", similar to the Linebaughs. The "special" would be the 500 that I would want to have built as I don't have need for JRH power, nor recoil, but would like to use H110.

Starline still makes 500 Special brass. Wow this would be a great cartridge in the Super Blackhawk Bisley model.

Should be able to get same velocities as the 480 Ruger given equal bullet weights.

Get your revolver chambered in .500 JRH. It will give you more flexibility should you want to turn up the heat at some point. It will fit in the same confines. I will post a picture of the two cartridges a little later.

Here you go - .50 Special left, .500 JRH right:



You can easily load the JRH down to puppy dog levels, but you can't load the Special up to heavy JRH levels.

Just to offer up some info... (( and by the way I like the way you think) A 500 special with a 440 grain Cast bullet with 26 grains of H110 should put you a little over 1100 FPS out of a 5.5" barrel.
You said a 350 grain bullet and A 350 XTP w/33grs of H110 can get you 1354FPS or thereabouts.

SO,,,, Special or JRH You would not be handicapping yourself in my opinion to go with the Special. Either is going to get the job done IMHO $$ 2 cents again.

Whit cool photo, I never have seen them side by side and it would be cool to have a 500 magnum with them in another photo.

That 350 grain load is a .500 JRH load. I don't think you can get that much powder under a 350 in the .500 Special without severe compression.

Even if you could only get 30 grains behind that 350, it should be leaving the muzzle in excess of 1,200 fps which would still be some bad medicine, IMHO.

I am not one to argue. I got the information using Quick Load. 500 Spl case is 1.275 long w/ 33grs of H110 101.1 fill capacity IT shows 37869 PSI Chamber
Muzzle pressure is 9994 PSI and the 1354 FPS

My point was only to show that you are not giving up much with a 500 Spl.
I am not suggesting to use that load. Let's back off to 32 grains of H110 and look at the specifics. That's 98.1 on the fill capacity and 34062 PSI on the chamber pressure. The muzzle pressure is 9515 PSI and it is going 1303 FPS

S4S4U Let's go to 30 grns YES it leaves about 1203 FPS,,, Did you mean Bad Medicine for the user or the receiver? If you have never shot a 500 at all I can tell you there is a Kick even with bullets that small, going 1200 or more. I do like the 440 grain CP bullet cranking about 1100 FPS. Yes a 500 is going to kick a little more than say a Colt 45 with a "Ruger Only Load" But if you need or want one they are nice to have.

Whit I do not have any data on the JRH. But if the correct bullet and load data is used, I can see either offering substantial. The 500 Special has a Sammi of 38500 PSI what does the JRH use or call for? Is there a Sammi Spec for it already? The popularity grew exponentially in a short time. If I was comparing the 44SPl to the 44 magnum I could appreciate more having a 44 mag with the ability to use the spl ammo. But in that case we are talking about the ability to use a smaller and lighter gun. Which I have both and the 44 spl is a wonderful cartridge in itself. But with the 500 Spl and the 500 JRH They both would have to be a 5 shot. And if you lighten the gun or shorten the barrel is there a gain that you can see? And a better question for you would be, can you expound upon the suggestion about choosing the JRH? If I had some data to compare I would and not ask. But since I don't have it, help me on this one. Others may benefit too.

We all (I hope) will start low with our loads and work up. These loads discussed were max. My disclaimer YMMV

I was refering to it's effectiveness in the field on game.

CT
I assume the data you?re looking for is load data? Whit certainly has more experience with the JRH then I do.
My 500JRH is a 7.5? BFR just a little over three months old; I based my starting loads off published 475 Linebaugh data and worked up accordingly. I submit this data for the benefit of all, with the disclaimer to start low and work up. Most all my development has centered on the 325 Swift, it is my primary bullet choice for this gun\cartridge heading into the fall.

Swift 325 AF/HP
A#9 ? CCI350
Charge Velocity
27.0 1533fs
28.0 1565fs
28.5 1592fs

Swift 325 AF/HP
VV-N110 ? CCI350
Charge Velocity
28.0 1448fs
29.0 1510fs
30.0 1564fs

Hornady 350XTP
A#9 ? CCI300
Charge Velocity
26.2 1437fs

Hornady 350XTP
A4100 ? CCI300
Charge Velocity
27.0 1226fs

SWEET !!!! I have used VV N-110 before and found it to be a little more accurate than H110 in the 500Mag.
Now I find this interesting that you use a large pistol and LP-Mag(CCI 350) primer. In the 500 mag it calls for a large rifle primer for most things. I like the looks of the Swift loads. They are cranking. AA#9 would be getting into the fast powders for me, and I was wondering about the 4100? I have tried Enforcer in the Maximum and the 500 and it was better in the 357 maximum. But have you considered 1680? I think Whit was using it in his 500 Maximum, but have not heard of anyone using it in a Special or the JRH. There are recipes out there, But I would have to go back and look for some.
Anyway I do not know what kind of groups you are getting with these loads but it certainly looks like you are going well prepared. I think you are going to be bagging game come fall.
Thanks for the info and data. Good work.

I would love to see Ruger put their name on a .500 cartridge. Although I doubt it would be a 1.4" case.

That's why The 500 S&W Special case at 1.285" would be the perfect addition to the Ruger Super Blackhawk Bisley revolver line.

Run 500 S&W Special case at 480 Ruger pressure and you have a 50 caliber on the mild end of the recoil spectrum. Kind of like mild, medium and hot salsa.

500 Special is mild, 500 Linebaugh is medium and 500 S&W Magnum is hot.

Well the .454 is 1.4-inch case and it fits well also. That said, it'll never happen. It took nearly 14 years to make the .480 a reality in the single-action lineup which was a major step for them. It was also logically staring them in the face. If one needs/wants a .50 caliber single-action they would be better served by a BFR, FA or a custom built on a Ruger. I just wouldn't count on Ruger ever offering a .50 cal single-action. JMHO.