The .500 Bushwhacker is a .50 caliber semi-rimmed revolver

cartridge Cartridge may refer to: Objects * Cartridge (firearms), a type of modern ammunition * ROM cartridge, a removable component in an electronic device * Cartridge (respirator), a type of filter used in respirators Other uses * Cartridge (surname), a ...

developed by TII Armory for the

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 ...

revolvers. It is currently the most powerful revolver cartridge in the world, offering a similar level of ballistic performance to African stopping rifles, such as the

.416 Rigby The .416 Rigby is a rifle cartridge designed in 1911 by London based gunmaker John Rigby & Company, for hunting dangerous game. It is the first cartridge to use a bullet of .416 inch (10.57 mm) diameter. The rifles, as built by John Rigby & Co ...

and

.470 Nitro Express The .470 Nitro Express is a rifle cartridge developed by Joseph Lang in England for dangerous game hunting in Africa and India. This cartridge is used almost exclusively in double rifles. It is in wide use in the Southern and Central-East Afr ...

. Given comparable barrel lengths, it is nearly twice as powerful as the .500 S&W Magnum.

Cartridge history

Brothers James Tow and Keith Tow of

Halsey, Oregon Halsey is a city in Linn County, Oregon, Linn County, Oregon, United States. The population was 904 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. History The city was founded in 1872, and legally incorporated by the Oregon Legislative Assembly on ...

developed the .500 Bushwhacker in 2021 to produce a repeating handgun capable of ethically harvesting dangerous game. They initially used the

.375 Ruger The .375 Ruger (9.5×65.5mm) is a rimless, standard-length rifle cartridge designed for the hunting of large, dangerous game. It is designed to provide an increase in performance over the .375 H&H cartridge, yet to be chambered in a standard-len ...

for a parent case, fireforming the brass cylindrical and threading the bases for rims. The result was a cartridge that is essentially a lengthened .500 S&W Magnum. New manufactured brass is now produced by the Bertram Bullet Company.

Design, specifications, and use

The .500 Bushwhacker is designed to operate at comparable chamber pressures to the .500 S&W Magnum. Since the case is simply a lengthened version of the .500 S&W, the cylinder wall thickness remains the same on a firearm converted to the larger cartridge. Accordingly, the same pressure level can safely be maintained in firearms capable of accommodating the additional cartridge length. Firearms converted to the .500 Bushwhacker are also capable of firing .500 S&W, .500 JRH, and .500 S&W Special ammunition. To ensure manageable recoil in converted revolvers, all .500 Bushwhacker conversions produced by TII Armory include the installation of a rifle-style muzzle brake. Since the .500 Bushwhacker is capable of firing equivalent weight bullets at nearly twice the velocity of other large bore handgun cartridges, such as the

.480 Ruger The .480 Ruger (12.1×33mmR) is a large, high-power revolver cartridge, introduced in 2003 by Ruger and Hornady. It was the first new cartridge introduced by Ruger, and when introduced, was the largest-diameter production revolver cartridge, at ...

and

.500 Linebaugh The .500 Linebaugh is a .50 caliber handgun cartridge designed for use in revolvers. It is considered one of the most powerful handgun cartridges designed in terms of kinetic energy and power factor (momentum). History The .500 Linebaugh cartri ...

, it is advisable that monometal bullets be used for dangerous game hunting, so as to guard against bullet failures. Commercial loadings of the .500 Bushwhacker outperform all rifle loadings of .45-70 Government, making the cartridge not only the most powerful revolver round but also very powerful by rifle standards.

Footnotes

References

* �
The .500 Bushwhacker: Do You Feel Lucky?
�� " by William Lawson * "The .500 Bushwhacker: Do You Feel Lucky?" " by William Lawson *
Wheelgun Wednesday: New .500 Bushwhacker Cartridge for BFR Revolvers by TII Armory
" by Hrachya Hayrapetyan * "Wheelgun Wednesday: New .500 Bushwhacker Cartridge for BFR Revolvers by TII Armory " by Hrachya Hayrapetyan *

* "Making Harry’s Day: The .500 Bushwhacker Story" " by James Tow {{DEFAULTSORT:500 Bushwhacker Pistol and rifle cartridges Magnum pistol cartridges Weapons and ammunition introduced in 2022

Cartridge history

Design, specifications, and use

See also

Footnotes

References