Is the .480 Ruger drawing a larger crowd now??

It seems like I am seeing more posts on the .480 Ruger.
It is coming back like the 10mm did?

I been looking at the 45LC, .44 Mag, .454, and now the .480 Ruger.

Well, I just shot a Zebra and record book Wildebeest with a Super Redhawk, so, you can guess what I'd vote for...

I purchased a ruger SRH over the winter, while doing some research on it I read that it had 80% of the 454's power with half the recoil.It is a great round, it pick's up where the 44 mag and the 45L.C. leave off.

Welcome Aboard Northkid.

It is a great round. Really, it isn't THAT far of from a 475. You do your part and game won't know any differance.

Thank you TCMan!!

I been lurking for a while. This is a great place for handgun hunting info.

The .454? NA
The .44 Mag? Na
The .480? Ya!!! ?

I have a raging bull 480 that has taken several deer and mucho hogs!!!It is a great round and you won't be sorry.
Welcome aboard!!

Yes... I believe the .480 Ruger IS getting more "popular,"
\
due in part to this website.

JMHO

I do believe there is a resurgence. I am not sure how big but there is definitely a renewed interest in that caliber. I like the caliber well enough that I am planning to sell my Ruger SRH in 454 Casull.

I have been looking for an all around handgun for hogs, bear, deer. The .480 seems to fit the bill.

I think the 480 has had a little bump in interest since the 500 & 460 Smith novelty has slowed/worn down a little. Guys don't like or need the wrist snapping power of the two top dogs and the 480 fits the bill. Is it enough interest for the bean counters at Ruger to bring it back..... I doubt it. But the cartridge is a great big bore and should be around for a while with the diehard hunters.

I know my 480 will never be sold!!!!

I have been thinking long and hard about a 480. I would have to have one custom built as there are no Single Action ones on the market.

Actually, you can get an FA and a BFR in .475 Linebaugh. You can load it light and then you will have a .480 in essence. I don't know that I would go through the trouble of building a custom in .480 when the .475 will fit in the same basic space. And I have nothing against the .480 as I have owned a couple and I bought one of the first runs in an SRH when they were made available.

I don't know who actually came up with this claim about the .480 having 80% of the power of the .454. If we are measuring velocity of factory loads, the .454 wins, but when it comes to putting the hurt on a large animal, I will take diameter and bullet weight over speed potential. The .480 undeniably makes a larger hole.

Just note, Freedom Arms says not to chamber a 480 cartridge in the 475 cylinder. They make a drop in cylinder for the 475 if you wish to shoot the 480 cartridge.

Possibly so that they can sell you another clinder?? Am I being too cynical?

Im sure that is mostly the case, with some concern over liability. You forgot 45LC out of a 454 Casull.

Just a quick thought...Can you get factory 480's?

Yup, Hornady, Speer, Buffalo Bore, and Grizzly all offer ammo for the .480 Ruger.

Cool. I have one on my list, but it changes with the weather(that's alot in OK).

I shoot 480 ammo in mine when the urge strikes.


The 475 can be loaded to any power level desired. There are a number of mid range loads for the 475 as well as Hornady's 400 grain at 1200 FPS which is a 480 level load for the 475

Yes IMO the 480R is more popular... In fact I found this forum searching on "480 Ruger + Bison"

I have a Ruger SHR with the 7 inch barrel and my oldest son has one with a one 9 1/2 inch barrel.

My son is the one that introduced me to this round.

I Handloaded for both of us and he is planning to use his rho for bison this December…

It seems that the 480 caught on just as Ruger dropped it… How Ironic

No. But it's loss is a shame.

It just seems strange to me that you see so much chatter about the 480, it just won't go away. For years shooters kept asking for a 44 special, Ruger didn't think it would fly but look at it now, they have sold lots of them.
When I had Alan Harton build my 5 shot 480 I kept getting ask, why not just go with the 475 & load it down....I didn't want a 475, I've had one, used it in Africa & it was great but I can shoot anything on the planet with my 480 with the right bullet & thats why I had it built. My loads normally run around 1100 fps, I can go much higher with this 5 shot gun but big cast bullets always exit, why punish yourself.
I just hope Ruger reads about all this interest in the 480, I'm sure they've done some testing along those lines.

Dick

I guess if I wanted a 475, I could get an FA or a BFR. But I really would like a blued 480. I never handled a BFR with the short cylinder so I don't how they feel compared to a Ruger or an FA for that matter.

I purchased my .480 SRH earlier this year from Gallery of Guns. NOS I guess.

I love it!

Congrats on the purchase, TimBob! The .480 SRH is a great piece. What length barrel did you get?

I just recently got a .480. Gonna try it on Wisconsin bears this fall!

It will do just fine. My son just shot a buffalo with my Raging bull 480 with actory 325xtp's. He put 3 rounds in it and 2 were complete pass thrus. I find the 480 to be very accurate and a pussycat to shoot compared to some of my other guns.

ya know, i hate the fact ruger kills guns and never gives them a chance to catch on. it's a great caliber. here's the deal. people lose the fact that the .44 mag is a very very powerful handgun, it's capable of very handily, not barely, killing anything that walks. the 480 offers more power in the same package and is very very shootable. what's not to like? just that ruger can't stick with anything. congrats on the purchase. beautiful gun.

I wouldn't count the .480 out just yet......

good, maybe you know something we don't.

if Ruger wants to give the .480 new life, they should consider getting rid of that grey finish on them. lol

You know, that finish came about accidentally in the tumbling process. I actually like it -- it's different and very durable.

Hey to each his own I suppose. lol
They could offer different barrels, lengths and (you won't hear me say this often) take a page from S&W, and offer it in a black and silver color combo like the bone collector model. anyway, that's my 2 cents...

That finish was one of the things that really attracted me to the 480 SRH. I love it's appearance. I could live with a flat black or gray Duracote type finish or Parkerizing too.
It's ironic. My favorite handgun/catrridge combo (7.5" 480 SRH) and my favorite long gun/cartridge combo (Marlin 1895M (Guide Gun) in 450 Marlin) have both been discontinued. Guess I have lousy taste or just don't know what really works

I would love to see Ruger produce a bisely hunter in 480 ruger. That would be a nice hunter!!!

You know you can get a new .454 SRH in plain old stainless now. They look good too!

i'd like to choose a couple barrel and finish options and i love that grey finish

yes they do! I almost got one in January but went with the "plain old stainless" .44 instead. lol

Ive wondered also why they went out of production,it seemed too good a cartridge to quite on,the Bisley idea would be great.

Sorry for the late reply Whitworth. I got the 9 1/2" one.

We talked to someone at the Lipsey's booth at the SHOT Show about the possibility of a Lipsey 480 Ruger SBH. Did not get any committment, but he did smile and say "possibly". If they can book enough orders for the special run that Ruger requires it will happen. That was the same answer we received about a repro. of the old Keith #5, but I think that is much less likely to happen.

I hope Ruger starts chambering for it again...

But I will never sell mine either.

I just picked up 100 more pieces of brass yesterday so I guess it's easy to see where I stand...

Yep and about a month ago I picked up 500 325grXTP bullets. Should keep mine shooting for awhile. Or I should say my son shooting for awhile.

Ha Ha Ha Ha!!!

I have 5 experimental rounds weighting to be shot out of my SRH 480! I went the Hard Cast route for in my bullet choice, mainly because I want to be casting my own for this one in the not so distant future.

I'm using the Lee 400gr mold, tumble lubing, & 20.0gr Lil Gun.

I have the Lee 325gr mold. LOL

Right know I have some Beartoothbullets loaded up. I haven’t loaded up any with LiLgun just because of the chance the rumors are true about the damage to the forcing cones. My experimental loads utilize H110, 2400, and AA#9 and 325 and 355 bullets.

I have heard the rumors, but I think it's mostly a high pressure/low bullet weight (read light bullets at max in 454 & 460) that causes the problems. With the 480 I heven't seen any sign of erosion or flame cutting. Granted, it's only been a few hundred rounds but I heard rumors of the 460 cutting the topstrap noticeably in under 100 rds & the same with forcing cone erosion in the 454.
I did quite a bit of testing with H-110 vs Lil Gun. To get near 1150 with H-110 was taking 2 or 3 more grains than with Lil gun, & the shot to shot velocity variation with H-110 was literaly running up to 100 fps (tried standard & mag powders. Temp 40ish) while Lil Gun was less than 10fps as memory recalls.
With 20 gr of each the H-110 was doing anywhere from a touch over 900fps to just over 1000fps while the lil gun held within +-5fps of about 1160fps. Accuracy was also better with Lil Gun, & recoil seemed a little less.
I bought 5# so I'll use it but keep an eye on things.

Tracking Vance!

I am not even “pushing” my loads. My 325's should do 1400 easily. I think I will load some up and see what they will do the next time I head to the range.

Thanks for your time. You have defiantly done your homework on this one.

Duane

I wonder how well hard casts would shoot in the raging bull. I may have to try a hard cast load at or slightly below Hornadys factory velocities.

Don't know why they shouldn't work well.

Whit, I will let you know. I am going to load some up next week and try them out.

Looking forward to it!

I don't want to butt in on the report promised by cfish2, but I took my 480s out to the range last week, and was able to chronograph a few loads. I mostly use AA #9 (WC-820 in certain lots) in my 480s because that was the powder used in some of Speer's loadings when the cartridge was being developed. It burns very clean, and is not particularly tempermental in the .480. I use Federal #155 primers exclusively with this cartridge. This is a magnum primer, which is not generally recommended in the .480. I checked with Accurate's ballistician on this combination, and he confirmed that it had been proven safe in their testing. I am ONLY talking about the Federal Primer here. Do not substitute!

A good starting point for loading cast bullets in the 480 Ruger (or any other cartridge) is the reading of John Linebaugh's writings on cast bullet penetration. Since you are not concerned about achieving enough velocity to ensure jacketed bullet expansion, the shooting can become much more comfortable. To paraphrase John Linebaugh, a good cast bullet at 1100-1200 fps will shoot through any creature on this continent.

I generally use the Montana Bullet Works 400 gr. WFN bullet, but I have ordered some of that same weight in the LFN design to see if they are more stable at longer ranges. When I got my first .480, I started out using the CPBC 410 gr bullet, but I have been using the MBW design the last couple of years. They shoot just as well as the CPBC bullets I have tried, and the price and delivery are much better. MBW will also let you select from a range of size diameters, alloys, hardness, etc., which is not the case when ordering CPBC from a distributor.

The shooting was done in three 480 Revolvers: Ruger SRH 7.5"; Magnum Research BFR 6.5"; and Taurus Raging Bull 8 3/8". I had to narrow the testing down immediately after discovering the Taurus would not accept some of the WFN loads because of its very tight chamber dimensions. I will have to re-check this again, but bullet profile appears to be the problem. I had no difficulty with a variety of jacketed bullets. In my pre-shooting check out, both the SRH and the BFR would allow a .476 bullet to be pushed through their chambers with moderate effort. The RB would not allow the same bullet to be pushed through its chambers with max. effort. It is a very tight gun.

I used Star and Speer brass in my loads. If you care, the weights of Hornady cases average 195 gr.; Speer cases average 199 gr.; and Star cases average 203 gr.. For a baseline, I chronographed the three available factory loads through the SRH. Results were Speer 275 gr. Gold Dot-1429 fps; Speer Gold Dot 325 gr.-1409 fps; Hornady 325 gr. XTP-1329 fps. Even though the Hornady produced less velocity than the Speer, the cases tended to stick in the SRH. Perhaps because the brass was a tad thinner.

I tested the 275 gr. Speer Deep Curl over 27.2 gr. of AA #9, which generated 1481 fps. Accuracy was every bit as good as the 275 gr. Gold Dot factory loading, so I dubbed it the Factory Duplication Load. Sorry for all of this rhetoric. On to the cast bullet scene.

355 gr. Oregon Trail Laser Cast PB-22.5 gr. WC-820 1281 fps RB
380 gr. Bear Creek FNPB Dry Lubed 20.0 gr. Lil Gun 1155 fps RB
410 gr. CPBC WFNGC 20.0 WC-820 1196; 19.0 1126; 18.0 1083; NOTE: AA recommends 17.3-19.4 gr. of #9, so the 20 gr. load is slightly over max. SRH.
410 gr. CPBC WFNGC 20.0 H-110 1145; 19.0 H-110 1084 SRH.
425 gr. CPBC WFNGC 18.0 WC-820 1136 (1.24" @ 25 yds. SRH)

400 gr. MBW WFNGC 19.0 WC-820 1130 (under 1.5" @50 yds BFR); 18.0 1087 BFR;

I tried Lil Gun in some other loads, it was accurate, but dirty in all but the heaviest loadings. Other comments. No leading with any of the above loads. Barrel Cylinder gaps .005 RB; .006 SRH; .0035 BFR. Federal 155 primers used in all above loads; RCBS dies with Redding Profile Crinp Die. Both the BFR and the RB would land 5 shots in a 6" bullseye at 100 yds. SRH not tested. SRH-Magnaport-Dual Traps; Taurus factory porting.

Old thread I know, but how the heck did I miss this?.
Oh well.
Chalk me up to the list of .480 fans.
In my opinion, if Hornady would have used their 400gr as the
initial loading, at a 1200fps+ loading, the cartridge would have
been way more popular.
At the time of introduction, heavy for caliber was "in". 325 aint bad, but 400 was what everyone wanted.

Mag writers never "liked" the cartridge from the get go.
Started to "lean" on their expensive custom Linebaughs I guess.
(No offense meant to anyone with those!).
I got sick of reading "Linebaugh Special". The factory 400gr .480 aint no dang special.

Heck, some writers still wont even discuss the SRH!

As a matter of fact, at the time of introduction, single actions were making a huge resurgence.

Hornady/Ruger were having some killer ideas, but came away with results that were a bit off market.
A 400gr cartridge, in Rugers affordable SuperBlackHawk, would have stolen the show.

Heck, I sound like a writer.
My battleship grey SRH is fine by me.

Let it out Dan! No problems here! LOL

I like love my SRH in 480! The 480 is a great round, you just have to take it for what it is. Or more importantly, not push it beyond its original platform.

PS, I don’t know of a single 325gr bullet for that gun that wouldn’t punch a hole all the way threw an deer I know of. I can’t weight to see what it will do on pigs this fall!

I just received an order for a 5 shot blackhawk conversion in 480 for a gentleman in South Africa so apparently it's appeal is not restricted by borders or seas. I still prefer the 475 but as my wrists age I'm starting to like the idea of less recoil.

I agree that 325gr was REALLY well thought out fjor actually hunting. I only meant that most people Ive ever read from, or talked too, leaned towards the REAL heavy wieghts (something you couldn't get in a .45 cal, etc.).
In the field, 325 will do anything in on this continent.

On hogs, it REALLY shines.
(Remember the article where D.Metcalf had to shoot one 4 times to kill it? That did nothing to ispire confidence in many readers who didnt read deep enough. He did admit to pulling the first shot, which reads "gut-shot").

Hello Marvin,

Great post, with lots of good information. Thanks for sharing; I know that these take time.




I like this quote; and I have gone by these guidelines for the most part.

I got 45 inches of penetration lengthwise on my mule deer with my .500 Wyoming Express with a 425 gr. cast slug. Awesome.

http://www.handgunhunt.com/promo/membership/features/readNewArticle.php?oid=28&title=.500 Muley Buck

I used Speer Gold Dots in 325 grains when the .480 just came out and there weren't many other options. I hunted hogs with them in Florida and was not impressed with their performance as they were very inconsistent. I think it was a mistake that from the outset they didn't offer more load options -- particularly with the .500 Smith and the .460 just around the corner. It just looked milquetoast on paper. I bought mine right when Ruger came out with the .480. Great round, and I think it'll be around for a long time to come.

I've joined the .480 crowd!

That's a good look'n shoot'n iron you got there!!


Shortgun

NICE!

That is a slick looking handgun. If you don't mind, who did the work ?

Yesterday I shot my .480 SRH at the range. I did shoot some 325 grain Gold Dot handloads at the target. I am not sure if I will continue with that load in the future or not. I would like to try some Hornady XTP 325's for it.

It is too bad no one made a 350 grain bullet for that gun.

Actually Hawk makes a 350gr JSP in 475 in both a .025 and .035 jacket as well as a JHP with a .025 jacket. Oregon Trail makes a 355gr in their True Shot line of hardcast.

Wapitirod:

Do you have any experience with those bullets on game? Or know of someone who used them on game? Thanks. I would like to make up some good loads for my revolver. I will be taking it with me on my moose hunt. You never know.

Not personally but I've been researching them for a while and what I've found is all good. Grizzly loads them in their premium line of ammo along with the Punch bullet. I've also noticed the cost is no more than any other premium bullet. The thing I like is that with their bullets you can choose your jacket thickness so for you going for moose you would want the JSP with a .035 jacket but if you want to switch to deer you go to the .025 jacket. The three calibers I'm most interested in are the .475, .500 and .510, the first and last have JSP's in the same weight with both jacket thickness's and the .500 you can go with a JSP with a .035 jacket for tougher stuff and then drop to the same weight in a JHP with the same weight and lighter jacket for smaller critters. The reason I like that is you can sight in with one and in theory you should be able to switch back and forth without poi changing. For me that's nice because normally my deer season runs right up to the beginning of elk season. If you haven't already done so check out their website, there is alot of informative information on it.

Mag-Na-Port

I'll just went down this road and picked one up at Cabelas for $599 minus a $100 coupon so it cost $ 540 with tax and background. I had to jump on it and did some research prior to the purchase. It seems ruger was blowing them out so I moved fast.

Picked up dies at a great price and bought brass at Graf for $33/100. Bought 500 pieces so I should be set. Right now I'm trying 355s from Leadhead and 420s from penn bullets. But since then the brass dried up so people must be buying them.

Thanks to Vance I added the Ultradot I'm doing too much at once so I can't really say what wt I like better. Lil Gun Running at the bottom for now. I did notice some sticking in the cylinder but that was from the lube I'm certain.

I do know where there is an Alaskan in 2.5 inch that hasn't been shot. Damn it would be a lot fun and wow what a carry piece. lol

Joe

try a max load of H110, that powder at max normally always produces good to excellent results out of the big bores.

I've always wanted a .480 Ruger.....but i'm picky. I'm waiting for a 5 shot Super BlackHawk w/ square trigger guard with a 10-12in. barrel in .480 or

Bisley with 10.5in Octagon barrel and target sights in .480 Ruger.

If Ruger were to decide to produce either of these i'd be first in line to buy one. What do you guys think?

You can always have one built. There are a few of them on here from other custom gun builders and right now I'm doing one for a Zoologist in South Africa.

If they were to produce a 480 it won't have a long barrel. They will try to satisfy the masses with one offering and it will likely have abarrel length of 5-1/2" to 7-1/2". I would like to see a 6" to 6-1/2" as they carry and handle so nicely.

Lipsey's is squarely on the fence about ordering a run of 5-hole Bisleys in 480. If we keep the pressure on them they will.

From what I understand, Ruger will not be producing any single action .480s as they do not feel that they are up to the task. I disagree, but nobody is listening to me.

Spoke again with Jason at Lipseys, he said to keep asking, Ruger knows there are a lot of guys wanting a 5 shot Bisley. He also knows they have at least one gun they are testing.

Dick

My last coversation with Ruger indicated that they feel the Blackhawk as a platform is not up to the task. Bummer.

Can't be a strength question, unless they believe that all of the custom builders using their frames for higher pressure rounds are being unsafe? Did they go into detail?

It's not my belief and I conveyed that exact sentiment. They don't feel the guns are up to the task. I don't really get it. I am not through prodding them, though. I will be bringing this topic up once more (at least!). I also conveyed to them that I thought they would sell a boatload of them if they built them.

I wonder if Ruger is afraid that the 5 shot .480's would be reamed out for the .475 Linebaugh?

I would love to see a 5 shot Bisley with an adequate barrel length of 6 to 6 1/2 inches. What would really be nice is if they made a Bisley Hunter. A nice 7 1/2 barrel, tight cylinder gap and the integral scope mounts. What a hunting set up that would be.

Well they shouldn't be as there are only 2,000 psi separating the .480 from the .475......

could it be that they are concerned not so much with the blackhawk handling the .480 round, but how it would stand up to that round loaded hot, or maybe converted to a .500 then loaded hot? Or maybe that's there story while they're working on it!

Don't know if it's drawing more new interest but the crowd that has them are exposing them more.

that and the price drop since Ruger decided to clearence them. Gotta be hard to market the round, being between the .460 and .500.

Don't know that I'd consider it between those two other than diameter. The 480 can be chambered in a much smaller package than the Smith X frame and that is a big deal. The recoil is nowhere near as robust, but the end result is nearly as potent. The problem with the 480 is that Ruger never properly promoted it. If it were offered in a 5-hole Bisley as well I think it would have faired much better. I do have a SRH in 480 and it has all the thump I should ever need, but I will have Rod build me one on a Bisley frame one of these days. The 480 is as dead as the 41, right.......;-)

From what I understand to get a .480 Ruger in a FAs 83 one must first buy the gun in .475 and then buy the extra cylinder. I really don't have any need for the .475 and would love to try a .480 with a 4 3/4" barrel.

What I don't understand is why Ruger still tries to give people what they don't want...ie. a 6 shot DA revolver when they have people standing in line waiting for a .480 5 shot Super Blackhawk...even tack a $100 on the price over a .44 Magnum SBH and people would buy it...

Bob

I am wanting a 480 so bad that I am thinking of getting a 6" MGM bull barrel for my encore. I know it's not a SA revolver like I want. Which is a super blackhawk 4 5/8" 5 hole. But you got to do what you got to do right?

RJM: some say the bullet jump will not hurt anything as far as accuracy so the 475 would be ok. Does anyone know if that is true? I think I will start a thread on this.

I don't understand why Ruger doesn't make their 44 Mag and 45 Colt revolvers with five shot cylinders. Hell, one would think it would lower liability.

Landrum

They're not lacking in strength as a six shot, so maybe there's not real reason to build a 5-shot.

This is an interesting post from the Ruger forum. Don't know how true or how they got the info but take a look.

I hope the link works.

Joe

http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB/viewtopi...6a8729b985ff4c9

The SRH is still being produced in .480......

According to the one post on the Ruger site he claims it still is. I don't know, small production runs of anything sends costs through the roof.

I did check the date of the tread and it is recent. Like yesterday.

Joe

Apparently it is a regular production iten again.

thank the lord, i for one hate to see any big bore pistol round go the way of the dinosaurs, more choices is better for all of us.

i really wanted an alaskan in 480, i love the srh platform but would like a 454 in the bisley hunter platform as well.

i would buy another alaskan 454, a 480, and either in a bisley right now, as in i'd plunk the cash down this second, i just can't ever find them and ruger says they don't sell?

I hope they sell this time around...


Folks just need to learn about the round, it will sell itself.

well lets make that happen and all of us just commit to buying one.

No problem with that. I think the ball is in Ruger's court on weather they would take any ideas though.