Just joined the forum and I came looking for help! I decided back in January to re-commit myself to deer hunting with a revolver next year and about that same time I found a new S&W 460 with the Whitetails Unlimited and "Iowa" engraving on it. Being a longtime supporter of this organization, I thought it was kind of an omen and I fell in love with the gun. Never owned a Smith before but had always wanted to. Their reputation impressed me as did the feel of this gun.

Here's my list of questions:

I want to get so used to this gun that it becomes an extension of myself. How much should I shoot it at any one time? Any other routines others have used. My wife says I have to quit sleeping with it!

How much should I shoot it using 45 Long Colt -vs- using the 460 round? Give me some thoughts on practice distances, rest, etc.

Research has shown me certain issues that I'm questioning whether I can believe. Such as, problems with deterioration of the cone, upper strap, even talk of needing to replace barrels periodically. Anyone know any truths on these matters?

As for scoping it, yes/no? What scope to use? Does anyone know anything about the quality of the rail and rings I found I can order direct from S&W?

Please just answer as much or as little as you want. Any and all advice is appreciated. Don't hesitate to tell me anything else related to my undertaking positive or negative. Thanks in advance!

First off I'd like to welcome you and say congrats on your Smith (I have the 8 3/8 model 500) so I might be able to help you a bit considering theyre so similar.

So first off you asked about practice and making it an extension of yourself. I going to say this to help answer your question about scoping it the base and rings at smithwesson.com the Warne brand one are good form what I hear, and theyre made form solid steel so they should be able to handle the recoil *But I would get another set of rings so you could use 3 or 4 rings on whatever optics you choose. And you probable want some sweet glass like the Leupold 2.5-8x to help reach out and touch em' with the 460 mag's. If you dont want to scope it you maximum shots should be under 50 yards for ethical purposes. With a scope Ive heard of deer taken @ 200yards with the same cartridge.

For practice (If youre not a recoil junkie) I would practice with the 45 Colt to get a feel for the gun and get used to the bang and what not. Youd probably be better practicing with .454 Casull out of it because as far as shooting inside 100 yards that would be more comparable ot the .460 magnum

45 Colt, 454 Casull and 460 S&W Magnum can all be shot out of your 1 gun if you didnt know.

I had a 460 that I sold here on the forum because I prefer a smaller revolver I can wear on my belt, I too have heard of the forcing cone issues but the only barrel issues I had were with my 500. I found that my gun with a leupold 2.5-8X with handloaded Nosler 260 grain Partitions over a max charge of H110 gave me 1 1/2" to 2" groups at 150yds. I always practice with the same loads I hunt with but that is just me, I shoot nothing but full house loads out of my 475s' because that is what I shoot critters with. If you do shoot the 45 or 454 rounds make sure to pay special attention to the cylinder when you clean it as the shorter rounds can cause a carbon ridge to build up. Just my opinion for whatever it's worth. By the way welcome to the site.
Rod

I had one, got rid of it. I like to shoot maximum loads in my big boomers and the forcing cone was not up to that. S&W can say all they want about a polished forcing cone but with the abuse it takes with that much powder being burned it will only be a matter of time before the metal begins deteriorating. The forcing cone in mine was beginning to look chewed up after about 200 rounds. I would surely load it down if I was going to practice with it a lot.

Man, you are getting great advice. The wife is just jealous that you are spending more time with “that other woman” than her! LOL A big question for me is do you reload? If you do, I would load some lighe“r” 460 rounds for practice. I have been told by several people that the 45LC don’t do as well because of the gap they have before they reach the forcing cone. But from my understanding, the 454’s do pretty will. (I throw this out for comments from other users!!) As for scope, again you are getting great advice, and would stick with a nice variable scope. Just my experience and preference, but it would stick with Burris or Leupold. Great scopes.

When I was admit about shooting trodishinal archery, the best advice I ever got was to shoot 6 arrows a day, every day. I would usually shoot 12. But then it was, shoot 6 (or 12) arrows one at a time. It made a big difference in just a couple of weeks. To the point I was hitting the bottom of a coke can at 20 yards pretty constantly with a recurve! With that being said, I would invest in a set of snap caps or make them yourself AND USE THEM DAILY!! That has help my pistol shooting a lot and it is a very cheap way to improve your form and style of shooting. It will also help you call your shoots on the range, I promise.

Just my .02 cents so take it for what it is worth.

http://64.70.221.101/snapcap.html

Nice to have your here!!!!!

I have to agree with the other guys that practice is the key, especially practice in field conditions. If you live in an area where you can safely do it, take a steel plate or two out to the woods & hang them in trees & then shoot at them from different angles, ranges, & positions. Juist a couple cylinders a week will make a big difference.
As for practicing with lighter ammo, it makes sense at times. Friendlier to the gun & your body, & also cheaper to reload. Use 460 brass with light charges & light inexpensive bullets.

Thanks guys, I appreciate this help. I'm really kind of alone when it comes to taking this up again. I don't know of any other handgun hunters locally. I'm enjoying running in your circle though!

As for the reloading, no, never done that before. Not ruling it out though but I can't see it starting any time soon. I like the idea about short practice sessions more frequently. When I used to own a 44 Taurus Raging Bull, I shot it quite often and really got to the point of enjoying the feel of it going off. I only really ever reached for pie plate accuracy which I attained out to 50 yards. Part of the appeal of this gun for me is that I will probably only be using it during what Iowa calls its Late Muzzleloader season which runs from about December 20 thru January 10. Typically cold weather and you're hunting food sources which doesn't always mean getting them into bowrange. 100+ yards won't be uncommon. Looks like I'd better start saving up for optics. If I'm right, I'll be looking at another grand for this investment, right??? Oh well, I never squabble about spending money on my passions. Can't take it with me! :>)

Anybody else have any maintenance tips or anything else to add for that matter?

BTW this seems like a great site!

This might help price scopes. Definitely spend the money on the base and rings thought. Just one sight, but they have pretty good prices

http://www.scopesnmore.com/riflescopes4less/pistol/burris_pistol_scopes.htm

http://www.scopesnmore.com/riflescopes4less/pistol/leupold_pistol_scopes.htm

This is another good one!

http://www.swfa.com/c-192-handgun-scopes.aspx

Score Guy,

First and foremost, welcome to the group! And welcome to the .460 owners club as well! I have one of the 10.5" Performance Center editions of your gun, pretty much the same, with a little more barrel out in front than you do. I bought the gun to "extend my effective range" with a revolver, and the 200 gr SST factory loads from Hornady do that nicely. That projectile should serve your needs as well, but there are many choices available in the .460 line. Fortunately, the Hornady's are one of the most cost-effective, in addition to being my ballistic choice for deer and thin-skinned game in this caliber (roughly $23-28/box - cheap, considering the alternatives).

If you decide to ramp-up in bullet weight, I would definitely recommend practicing with the .454 ammo and the .45LC. Great for practice with the trigger squeeze, and easier on the wallet than the Cor-bon's, and other 460 alternatives. Will also help you adjust to the recoil and percussion difference between that and your Raging Bull. Just remember to clean the cylinders well to avoid the carbon ring that Rod discussed previously.

As for scoping, some of 460 owners on this site have gone with the red dot options, others with magnification. Again, since my initial goal was reaching out further than before, I opted for the 2.5x8 Leupold and have been completely satisfied - check out http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com for the best price I've found.

Good luck, and let us see some of those big Iowa bucks you put down this year!

Dur

I have a 460& it is very easy to shoot.I have a Weaver 2x scope mounted on it.Using factory loads I get about 2-3 inch groups(Hornady 200 gr. sst).I just bought my first reloading press so I can't offer any advice on this subject. If you can shoot a 44 mag.,you can shoot this with no problem. Recoil is only slightly more than a 44.When I use mine this year for deer hunting I will definitely use some kind of shooting sticks for the longer shots(75 yds.or more). Hope I answered some of your questions. Good hunting.

I have the Burris 2X7 E-Dot on my with 3 Burris Zee Rings. I really like that scope.

MIHunter, that's a sweet looking PC gun! Thanks to everyone for making a guy feel welcome! Here's some thoughts on what I've heard so far; I think I'll stick with the Hornaday 200 SST as eveyone seems to bring them up and its what I have the greatest access to. I'm definately going to start shoping for a scope and I'm leaning towards the Leupold, again from having seen it mentioned more than once. I have to admit, I never would have even thought about the idea of putting more than two rings on my rig but I can see the probable benefit. I was a little surprised no one started talking to me about changing the grips, it seems like I'm always hearing about guys thinking thats a must. I'm an avid archer and years of shooting and hearing people who like to "coach" has taught me that in archery what works for one person doesn't mean succss for someone else. I'm still trying to figure out the nuance's of handgun shooting. I feel pretty confident in my knowledge about the equipment, I just need to figure out what parts of my technique need work. I don't want to keep practicing if I'm doing something wrong. I'm going to see about hooking up with one of our local law enforcement guys and see if they'd be willing to watch me and share any tips. I'm sure I'll be coming back to you all with more questions!

I would look for a gun club in the area and see if they have someone that is a qualified instructor or a competition handgun shooter. Your aveage police officer isn't all that great of a shot. I can say that because I was one for 17 years and saw how much some practiced and what kind of shots some of them were. If you don't have the passion for shooting then you just shoot to qualify and that's good enough. Then on top of that they have to be able to teach and pick out what you are doing right and wrong. So I guess what I'm saying is find a good teacher. Also video taping yourself shooting is good way to pick yourself apart too. You will see some of the things you do wrong. We used to video officer doing defensive tactics and then play them back for the officer and let them tell us what they thought they were doing right and wrong. Very interesting most of them are pretty hard on themselves. Just my drug inducted 2 cents. LOL

I agree with wapitirod,new myself practicing with the load you are going to hunt with helps alot then there are no adjustments to make come hunting time so all you have to worry about is the hunt.Schunter as well as others have been a great help for me,this is a great sight to bounce ideas and theories and get the cold hard facts from them.I believe so far everything I have thought about someone on this site has tried it and can save you time and money.Welcome to the site Score Guy