In the last month I've been so lucky as to handle a Bowen custom, a Freedom Arms premier grade, and a reeder custom all for the first time. needless to say I've been bitten by the single action bug. I was saving $ for another project but now all i can think of is a big single action revolver. My question is about caliber. I was told that the 475 linebaugh and 454 are both big in hand cracking recoil. I was also told that the 480 ruger and 500 linebaugh are more of a big push than a sharp smack. I'm looking for a gun that could kill the big 5 someday. I know a bunch of you guys have tons of experience with these calibers. So what's the best option? I have shot 44 mags before and the recoil is not a bother. And I hand load so i could load down till i get used to the recoil. Thanks guys.

PS The wife and I are settled here in idaho now and we love it. Never going back to CA

There is nothing like the feel of a SA handgun! I have not shot a .475 or .500 Linebaugh. I do have a couple of .454 Casulls. All three rounds will handle any game you plan to hunt. One of the best comparisons I have heard between the .454 and .475 was made by Brian Pearce in G&As 2000 Handguns Buyers Guide. He basically pointed out that the .454 was intended to drive strong jacketed bullets at higher than usual "magnum" velocities resulting in expansion while giving deep penetration. While the .475s power comes from using large caliber, heavy bullets (usually hardcast) at moderate velocites resulting in a large wound channel and deep penetration. The .454 works well with hardcast bullets also, but uses lighter bullets and lacks the bore diameter of the .475. While it does launch the lighter cast bullets at higher velocities, giving deep penetration, it lacks the bore diameter of the .475 or .500 Linebaugh resulting in a smaller wound channel.

IMO, the .454 is a little more versatile because of the huge variety of bullets available. You can load it hot with strong jacketed bullets from light to heavyweights resulting in expansion and deep penetration for most any size game. You can also use light loads with bullets designed to expand at lower velocities for smaller big game species. If your a hardcast fan, there are plenty of bullet weights and designs to choose from that will give end to end penetration on most big game. I'm not putting down the other two rounds. If I ever had the chance to hunt really big/dangerous game, they would be my first choice. They're both excellent rounds and if I found a deal on a .475 or .500, I would jump on it.

OK you are asking for our opinions and you likely will get a lot of 'em. All of the guns you mention and calibers are fine and can be loaded up or down to do the work you want. I don't believe Ruger offers a factory single-action gun in these bigger calibers. If you don't want to go custom gun for the first time the BFR (offered in .480, .475 Linebaugh, and .500 S&W) or Freedom Arms Model 83 (offered in .454, .475 Linebaugh and .500 Wyoming Express) are factory choices, the 83 being more expensive. Recoil with any of these single actions with heavy loads will make you really wonder what the h you are holding on to, again depending on how you load'em and barrel length, scope or not, ported or not. I think once you get into that "recoil category" there is not much difference in recoil with the caliber as much as in the loads vs. gun grip design, gun weight etc. Obviously the lightest gun with the heaviest load will have the greatest amount of felt recoil and I think the .500 Linebaugh is king. I like the .500 WE simply because it is "the biggest" in the excellent Model 83. And as pab1 says, the bigger bores have the largest (at least theoretically) wound channel, although a case could be made there in bullet nose design (expanding or not) vs. velocity vs. hydraulic shock, etc. etc.

What pab1 said.

Hey come on you shooters, let's hear from you.

I've used the .454, the .475L, and the .500WE pretty extensively, all in the FA Mdl. 83 platform. My favorite is the .475. All of them will kill anything on earth, given the right load and shooter skill level.

I'd go with the .454 for it's versatility if I were looking for one single action, but if others were in the future.......

Of the three, Ive only had experience with the .454. In the right gun, I'm a big fan of the caliber. I havn't shot it out of a SA however. I wish Ruger still manufactured the 9 1/2" SRH because I would buy another one in hopes that it would shoot better than the last one.

I would go with the 475, it's a nice compromise between the 454 and 500. I own 475's and the 500 and the 500 is more of a push but it's still not an easy gun to handle properly, even though the recoil is different it's every bit as harsh as my 475's I'm just not getting the muzzle flip.

pab1 said about everything. I am a FA fan; therefore, I recommend FA if you can afford it. The caliber is up to you. They will all do the job. I prefer the 454 because of the variety of things that can be done with it. However, I find myself shooting only 300 gr loads in mine because they group the best.