A .50 caliber handgun is a handgun firing a bullet measuring approximately in

diameter In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid ...

. Historically, many

black powder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate ( saltpeter). ...

pistols fired bullets with diameters well above a half inch. However, following the development of

smokeless powder Finnish smokeless powderSmokeless powder is a type of propellant used in firearms and artillery that produces less smoke and less fouling when fired compared to gunpowder ("black powder"). The combustion products are mainly gaseous, compared to a ...

, the focus shifted to smaller-diameter bullets propelled at higher velocities, and the development of .50 and larger calibers in handguns became uncommon. In the twentieth century, several new cartridges of half-inch diameter were developed, the first by John Linebaugh of

Cody, Wyoming Cody is a city in Northwest Wyoming and the seat of government of Park County, Wyoming, United States. It is named after Colonel William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody for his part in the founding of Cody in 1896. The population was 10,066 at th ...

, in 1986 with the development of the .500 Linebaugh, and then later with the .50 Action Express (1988), which was the first to achieve wide popularity. The .500 Linebaugh utilizes a bore diameter of .500" with the corresponding bullet diameter of .510", the same as the .50 BMG and other .50 caliber rifles, while the .50 Action Express, .500 S&W Magnum, and .500 S&W Special use .490" bore diameters and correspondingly smaller .500" bullet diameters. The smaller .500" diameter was further popularized by the development of the .500 S&W Magnum in 2003. There are semi-automatic,

revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six ro ...

, and single-shot .50 caliber handgun designs. Handguns of this caliber tend to be larger and heavier than most others of their type with the exception of the Linebaugh line of revolvers. The Linebaugh revolvers are based on the standard Ruger Blackhawk with Ruger Bisley grip frames, although the cylinders have been enlarged for both structural integrity and absorbing the

recoil Recoil (often called knockback, kickback or simply kick) is the rearward thrust generated when a gun is being discharged. In technical terms, the recoil is a result of conservation of momentum, as according to Newton's third law the force re ...

associated with firing these rounds as have the previously mentioned .500 handguns. Despite being featured in many

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedback ...

s and

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include li ...

s as the weapon of choice for some members of elite military and law enforcement units, these guns in reality are used primarily for

hunting Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, horn/antle ...

target shooting Shooting sports is a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities involving proficiency tests of accuracy, precision and speed in shooting — the art of using ranged weapons, mainly small arms (firearms and airguns, in forms such as ...

, and silhouette shooting.

Examples

.50 Action Express

* Magnum Research Inc. Desert Eagle *

Magnum Research BFR The Magnum Research BFR is a single-action revolver manufactured by Magnum Research. Modelled after the Colt Single Action Army, it is made from stainless steel and chambered for a number of very powerful pistol calibers, such as .500 S&W Magnum ...

* Arcadia Machine & Tool AutoMag V * LAR Manufacturing Grizzly Mark V * Freedom Arms Model 555

.50 GI

*Conversions for the Glock 20/Glock 21 * Guncrafter Industries Model Nos. 1, 2, 3

500 GNR

* Gary Reeder Custom Guns Ultimate 500

.500 S&W Magnum

* Smith & Wesson Model 500 * Taurus Raging Bull Model 500 *

* JTL-E .500 S&W Magnum 12" * Gary Reeder Custom Guns Ultimate 500

Other

* Ruger Bisley ( .500 Linebaugh) *

( .50 Beowulf) * Freedom Arms Model 83 .500 WE ( .500 Wyoming Express) * Triple Action Thunder ( .50 BMG) *

RSh-12 The RSh-12 is a Russian-made revolver chambered in 12.7×55mm STs-130. It fires from the bottom chamber of the cylinder (like the Chiappa Rhino and Mateba Autorevolver) rather than the more common top chamber, and is chambered for the same ammu ...

( 12.7×55mm STs-130) * WTS .50 ( .50 BMG)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:50 Caliber Handguns Handguns