Rob41
Member
Hi all, this is my first post here.
Just thought there may be some folks interested in the first impressions from a casual shooter and hunter of the Smith & Wesson .460XVR.
When I was looking for a new wheel gun for hunting mainly whitetail, I considered the S&W .500, .460, .44 Hunter and another Ruger Super .454. Obviousley I decided to go with the S&W .460.
There are a few reasons I chose the .460 XVR with the 8 3/8" barrel. Firstly, I was impressed with the smoothness of the trigger in both single and double action. Wow, after using my Super Redhawk it's just silky smooth. I don't mind the built like a tank Redhawk with it's less than smooth pull but the S&W action is very nice.
Secondly, I wanted to be able to use more than one different caliber so the .500 was the first one to be eliminated. Being able to fire .460, .454 and .45 LC was important for me. In the future I want to focus more on the .45 LC rounds with hotter loads and better bullets. I'm partial to the idea of using the .45 rounds for my close in Northern Michigan deer hunting and I'm sure this x frame will have zero issues handling any .45 round I use.
Lastly, I chose this revolver because of many of the same reasons other people do. It's capable of amazing ballistics up to around 2,200 fps so it will fly true out to a couple hundred yards if desired. And of course it really is a very nice firearm.
So I bought the gun yesterday, brought it home and cleaned it, and withing an hour I was at the range with a couple boxes of Hornady 200 grain .460 FTX rounds and two boxes of Federal American Eagle 225 Grain .45 Colt Jacketed soft point rounds. I thought I had a couple boxes of .454 rounds but I must have gone through them so I cannot comment on using that caliber yet.
First, I wanted to just fire five round of the .45 through the new S&W and as expected, the felt recoil was about as much as a hot .38 in a snub nose. Really quite pleasant for just spending a day in the field plinking. At about 25 yards I could see the lead was landing where I expected.
I then chambered five rounds of the Hornady 200 grain FTX offerings and before I even pulled the hammer back I got a big grin on my face. I fired the firs round at which point the grin got even bigger. I thought to myself "I like this gun". I followed up with the remaining four rounds and couldn't be happier. Of course the recoil is on the stout side but not nearly what I had expected. The recoil from my .454 in my Super Redhawk is a bit more punishing and the way the recoil behaves is more unpleasant than in the S&W. I think a few things contribute to my opinion on this. The rounds I used in the .454 were heavier at 300 grain but I believe the porting on the S&W to be superior as well.
I cleaned the revolver after 20 rounds of the .460 and 50 rounds of the .45. I then proceeded to fire the other half of the rounds I bought and fired back and fourth between calibers. It is worth noting that at no time did any of the casings become jammed in the cylinder or even a little snug. I have read accounts here of difficulty removing the brass but in my case this was not an issue. They always ejected with a gentle one finger push on the extractor rod.
At about 50 yards I was shooting 3 to 5 inch groups while standing freehand with open sights. It was the latter half of my day when the groups were getting the 3 inch groups and I have no doubt it will improve further. If not, it certainly won't be the fault of the S&W. I just took an hour out to go to the range while I write this and ran through another 20 .45 Colt and another 20 .460 rounds. I got 3 1/2 inch 5 shot groups at 50 yards and a best 2 1/2 inch group with the 200 grain .460 rounds.
The fit and finish on my example of the Smith & Wesson .460 is flawless, the timing is spot on and it is performing perfectly. I wouldn't change anything with the revolver but as my wallet can attest, I really need to start reloading my own rounds. If my initial experiences are any indication, the S&W is exceptionally well designed and executed example of what a modern hunting revolver should be. That's my opinion of course, but I'll bet I'm not alone.
Just thought there may be some folks interested in the first impressions from a casual shooter and hunter of the Smith & Wesson .460XVR.
When I was looking for a new wheel gun for hunting mainly whitetail, I considered the S&W .500, .460, .44 Hunter and another Ruger Super .454. Obviousley I decided to go with the S&W .460.
There are a few reasons I chose the .460 XVR with the 8 3/8" barrel. Firstly, I was impressed with the smoothness of the trigger in both single and double action. Wow, after using my Super Redhawk it's just silky smooth. I don't mind the built like a tank Redhawk with it's less than smooth pull but the S&W action is very nice.
Secondly, I wanted to be able to use more than one different caliber so the .500 was the first one to be eliminated. Being able to fire .460, .454 and .45 LC was important for me. In the future I want to focus more on the .45 LC rounds with hotter loads and better bullets. I'm partial to the idea of using the .45 rounds for my close in Northern Michigan deer hunting and I'm sure this x frame will have zero issues handling any .45 round I use.
Lastly, I chose this revolver because of many of the same reasons other people do. It's capable of amazing ballistics up to around 2,200 fps so it will fly true out to a couple hundred yards if desired. And of course it really is a very nice firearm.
So I bought the gun yesterday, brought it home and cleaned it, and withing an hour I was at the range with a couple boxes of Hornady 200 grain .460 FTX rounds and two boxes of Federal American Eagle 225 Grain .45 Colt Jacketed soft point rounds. I thought I had a couple boxes of .454 rounds but I must have gone through them so I cannot comment on using that caliber yet.
First, I wanted to just fire five round of the .45 through the new S&W and as expected, the felt recoil was about as much as a hot .38 in a snub nose. Really quite pleasant for just spending a day in the field plinking. At about 25 yards I could see the lead was landing where I expected.
I then chambered five rounds of the Hornady 200 grain FTX offerings and before I even pulled the hammer back I got a big grin on my face. I fired the firs round at which point the grin got even bigger. I thought to myself "I like this gun". I followed up with the remaining four rounds and couldn't be happier. Of course the recoil is on the stout side but not nearly what I had expected. The recoil from my .454 in my Super Redhawk is a bit more punishing and the way the recoil behaves is more unpleasant than in the S&W. I think a few things contribute to my opinion on this. The rounds I used in the .454 were heavier at 300 grain but I believe the porting on the S&W to be superior as well.
I cleaned the revolver after 20 rounds of the .460 and 50 rounds of the .45. I then proceeded to fire the other half of the rounds I bought and fired back and fourth between calibers. It is worth noting that at no time did any of the casings become jammed in the cylinder or even a little snug. I have read accounts here of difficulty removing the brass but in my case this was not an issue. They always ejected with a gentle one finger push on the extractor rod.
At about 50 yards I was shooting 3 to 5 inch groups while standing freehand with open sights. It was the latter half of my day when the groups were getting the 3 inch groups and I have no doubt it will improve further. If not, it certainly won't be the fault of the S&W. I just took an hour out to go to the range while I write this and ran through another 20 .45 Colt and another 20 .460 rounds. I got 3 1/2 inch 5 shot groups at 50 yards and a best 2 1/2 inch group with the 200 grain .460 rounds.
The fit and finish on my example of the Smith & Wesson .460 is flawless, the timing is spot on and it is performing perfectly. I wouldn't change anything with the revolver but as my wallet can attest, I really need to start reloading my own rounds. If my initial experiences are any indication, the S&W is exceptionally well designed and executed example of what a modern hunting revolver should be. That's my opinion of course, but I'll bet I'm not alone.
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