{"id":348101,"date":"2022-10-12T13:00:22","date_gmt":"2022-10-12T19:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gunmagwarehouse.com\/blog\/?p=348101"},"modified":"2025-06-10T12:20:54","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T17:20:54","slug":"the-500-bushwhacker-do-you-feel-lucky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunmagwarehouse.com\/blog\/the-500-bushwhacker-do-you-feel-lucky\/","title":{"rendered":"The .500 Bushwhacker: Do You Feel Lucky?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Well, do ya punk? Sorry, but big ol\u2019 revolvers just affect me like that. And while Clint Eastwood was technically correct when he said the .44 Magnum was \u201cthe most powerful handgun in the world\u201d in 1971, the new TII Armory .500 Bushwhacker almost makes it look quaint while laying claim to the same title.<\/p>\n

\"Magnum
The Magnum Research BFR is the perfect platform for the .500 Bushwhacker cartridge. (tiiarmory.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What is the .500 Bushwhacker?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The .500 Bushwhacker is the biggest, baddest handgun cartridge in the world right now. TII Armory\u2019s James Tow says it\u2019s powerful enough to ethically take any game animal on the planet, including all the African Big 5. Assuming, of course, that you\u2019re brave enough to get within handgun range of those animals.<\/p>\n

But you can\u2019t fire the .500 Bushwhacker from just any handgun. James and Keith Tow designed the cartridge specifically for the Magnum Research Long Cylinder Big Frame Revolver (BFR), which James describes as \u201cthe largest and strongest single-action revolver in production today.\u201d Even then, the 10.5-inch barreled BFR required a muzzle brake to handle the new cartridge.<\/p>\n

Magnum Research chambers the Long Cylinder BFR in .30-30 Winchester, .444 Marlin, .450 Marlin, .45 Long Colt<\/a>\/.410<\/a>\/.45-70 Gov\u2019t<\/a>, .460 Smith & Wesson, and .500 Smith & Wesson<\/a>. The latter cartridge only takes up part of the cylinder\u2019s length.<\/p>\n

James and Keith say \u201cThe .500 Bushwhacker concept is simple: retain the head size and operating pressure of the .500 S&W but extend the round to fully utilize the cylinder of the BFR. The end result is a round dimensionally reminiscent of the .50 caliber buffalo cartridges of the 19th<\/sup> century yet possessing certain important advantages in a handgun platform. The name \u201cBushwhacker\u201d itself is a reference to the rugged guerilla fighters of the American Civil War such as Jesse James, William Quantrill, and \u2018Bloody Bill\u2019 Anderson. These men were anything but civil, but then again, neither is the cartridge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\".500
L-R: .375 Ruger case; Early .500 Bushwhacker case formed from a .375 Ruger case; Bertram .500 Bushwhacker case; and a .500 S&W case. (tiiarmory.com)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

James initially used the .375 Ruger as a parent case since it is essentially a longer, rimless, bottlenecked .500 S&W. He altered it to fit his new brainchild, but eventually contracted with Bertram Brass USA and Bertram Bullet Company of Australia to make dedicated .500 Bushwhacker cases.<\/p>\n

Performance<\/strong><\/h2>\n

James writes that the new cartridge\u2019s performance \u201cgreatly exceeded our expectations\u201d from the 10.5-inch barrel:<\/p>\n