500 VS 50AE

[dragman]

Which to buy?? I can't decide!!! I know I want one of them and every time I decide which one I am gonna buy I change my mind before I get to the gun shop!!! I wanna be sure before I drop over a $1000 on a new toy.

[hogger129]

.500 S&W Magnum.

[gendoikari87]

I voted for the magnum but honestly I'd rather shoot a .50 beowulf.

[dragman]

whats the reasons to pick either??

[TheGunClinger]

I picked the DE because I have one and love it. I would love the SW if I had one too. When it comes to feeding either of them it isnt cheap but the .50 A&E is probably cheaper. I make them for about .70 each. I usually have about 500 rounds ready to go. I will have a .500 one day though. Love the shock and awe each one of them inspires.

[gendoikari87]

oh yeah reloading. you know i bet the 500 magnum is easier to reload being that it's in a revolver, and easier to police the brass. Plus it's also REALLLY powerful. but you do have to be careful, the gas escaping from the cylinder can cut off your thumb.

Other than that, the .50 AE is a bit but not a whole lot more powerful than the .45acp, which I'd rather have myself anyway, just becuase of the 1911

[old semperfi]

the 500 sw outpreforms the 50cal ae big time,as was said it is not a great deal more powerful than the 45acp.the other benifit is its easier to buy the brass for the 50 cal s&w. old semperfi

[TheGunClinger]

Originally Posted by gendoikari87

oh yeah reloading. you know i bet the 500 magnum is easier to reload being that it's in a revolver, and easier to police the brass. Plus it's also REALLLY powerful. but you do have to be careful, the gas escaping from the cylinder can cut off your thumb.

Other than that, the .50 AE is a bit but not a whole lot more powerful than the .45acp, which I'd rather have myself anyway, just becuase of the 1911

When you say the .50 A&E is a bit more powerful than a .45 ACP I have to wonder if you ever actually shot a .50 A&E. If you had you would know that it is Immensely more powerful than a .45 acp. Agreed that the &W .500 is stronger than the .50 A&E but the .45 is no where near the class of either of the .50's.

[JLA]

As a handloader, and absolutely hate chasing brass... I choose the big 500, because its a revolver and you can conveniently dump the brass right back in the box Other than that, the Desert Eagle looks meaner, but power wise, they are both more than adequate to kill anything that moves...

[JLA]

Originally Posted by gendoikari87

oh yeah reloading. you know i bet the 500 magnum is easier to reload being that it's in a revolver, and easier to police the brass. Plus it's also REALLLY powerful. but you do have to be careful, the gas escaping from the cylinder can cut off your thumb.

Other than that, the .50 AE is a bit but not a whole lot more powerful than the .45acp, which I'd rather have myself anyway, just becuase of the 1911

Only if youre dumb enough to put your thumb next to the barrel/cylinder gap, which on a X frame smith is a hell of a stretch. Hell its a stretch on my super redhawk alaskan and the cylinger is a half inch shorter...

And the .45acp is less than half as powerful as the .50AE

A fed. hydrashok .45ACP 230 gr is truckin along at 900 fps (and thats above standard) and produces about 415 ft/lb of kinetic energy...

The .50 AE fires a bullet damn near 100 grains heavier (325 vs 230) at more than 1400 fps giving you 1415 ft/lb of kinetic energy, thats 3 times the umph brother...

comparing apples to apples, the .500 mag VS the .50AE both shooting 325 gr bullets.. the .500 produces 1800 fps MV vs the .50AE at 1400, giving you more than 2300 ft/lb of kinetic force VS the .50s 1415...

[hogger129]

Originally Posted by TheGunClinger

When you say the .50 A&E is a bit more powerful than a .45 ACP I have to wonder if you ever actually shot a .50 A&E. If you had you would know that it is Immensely more powerful than a .45 acp. Agreed that the &W .500 is stronger than the .50 A&E but the .45 is no where near the class of either of the .50's.

I thought .50 Action Express was only slightly more powerful than .44 Magnum. I, too, didn't think .45ACP was anywhere as powerful as .50 AE.

[hogger129]

Originally Posted by JLA

Only if youre dumb enough to put your thumb next to the barrel/cylinder gap, which on a X frame smith is a hell of a stretch. Hell its a stretch on my super redhawk alaskan and the cylinger is a half inch shorter...

And the .45acp is less than half as powerful as the .50AE

A fed. hydrashok .45ACP 230 gr is truckin along at 900 fps (and thats above standard) and produces about 415 ft/lb of kinetic energy...

The .50 AE fires a bullet damn near 100 grains heavier (325 vs 230) at more than 1400 fps giving you 1415 ft/lb of kinetic energy, thats 3 times the umph brother...

comparing apples to apples, the .500 mag VS the .50AE both shooting 325 gr bullets.. the .500 produces 1800 fps MV vs the .50AE at 1400, giving you more than 2300 ft/lb of kinetic force VS the .50s 1415...

The .500 S&W Magnum is also available in heavier bullets too ain't it? I thought they used one of those really heavy 700 grain ones to take down that Hogzilla awhile back.

[gendoikari87]

Originally Posted by JLA

Only if youre dumb enough to put your thumb next to the barrel/cylinder gap, which on a X frame smith is a hell of a stretch. Hell its a stretch on my super redhawk alaskan and the cylinger is a half inch shorter...

And the .45acp is less than half as powerful as the .50AE

A fed. hydrashok .45ACP 230 gr is truckin along at 900 fps (and thats above standard) and produces about 415 ft/lb of kinetic energy...

The .50 AE fires a bullet damn near 100 grains heavier (325 vs 230) at more than 1400 fps giving you 1415 ft/lb of kinetic energy, thats 3 times the umph brother...

comparing apples to apples, the .500 mag VS the .50AE both shooting 325 gr bullets.. the .500 produces 1800 fps MV vs the .50AE at 1400, giving you more than 2300 ft/lb of kinetic force VS the .50s 1415...

isn't the .50ae only a 45 necked up?

also the .500 has 3000 joules out of a 9 inch barrel!? That's more than a .308 out of a rifle.

[TheGunClinger]

The .50a&e's head,rim? has been necked down to .44 size but the rest of the case is much bigger. The .44 is pretty strong but has along way to go to be as powerful as a .50. I load the .50 with 32.2g of H-110 and the .44 with 23g H-110. Lot of bang from both. Makes the .45 look and feel tiny compared. S&W is way bigger. When I shoot the .50 I have a dedicated brass chaser to go fetch before the range officer sweeps it up.

[dragman]

Bought the 500! it's on order. now to pick grips for it.

[TheGunClinger]

Originally Posted by dragman

Bought the 500! it's on order. now to pick grips for it.

Congrats!
I am sure you are aware of the YOU MUST POST PICS forum law,right? If we ca'nt hode it we must look at it.

[dragman]

Yes sir I will

[gendoikari87]

did you get it with or without that wicked looking compensator?

[JLA]

Originally Posted by hogger129

The .500 S&W Magnum is also available in heavier bullets too ain't it? I thought they used one of those really heavy 700 grain ones to take down that Hogzilla awhile back.

Up to 500 grainers, which is one hell of a chunk of lead from a hand cannon... That5s a chunk of lead you would normally find fired form creedmore silhouette rifles, remington rolling blocks, and sharpses chambered in .45/70 and bigger...

[JLA]

Originally Posted by gendoikari87

isn't the .50ae only a 45 necked up?

also the .500 has 3000 joules out of a 9 inch barrel!? That's more than a .308 out of a rifle.

not at all, the .50 AE is its own monster, it has what is referred to as a rebated rim so it will work with an action designed for a smaller casehead (i.e. the desert eagle uses the .44 mag casehead, so the .50AE uses the same casehead diameter. thereby making the desert eagle a viable kit gun with interchangeable barrels for different calibers)

You cannot neck up a straightwall case, its as big as its ever gonna be, thats why its referred to as a straightwall case. If it were bottlenecked say like a .308, you could neck one up to the diameter of the case body, thereby making it a straightwall case... make sense???

[gendoikari87]

I meant I thought it was based on the .45acp, but looking at it now, it's not just wider, it's also a bit longer. it still doesn't impress me much, the .45acp is all your ever going to need to take anyone down. making your firearm more massive is going to slow you down. A bad place to be in a gun fight. However on the other hand if you are using it as a fun/project/hunting gun, thats a different story, one where the .500 beats it hands down.

So for what it is, it's overkill, compared to the .500, its anemic. Still a cool round but one relegated to just being a fun at the range round. I still prefer my .22lr though. can shoot a lot more for half the price.

Cool concept but like that .95 jdj rifle someone posted, not my cup of tea, I like a higher velocity, not just high energy. I'd like to see a mach 5 cartridge, but untill then i'm stuck with my .220 swifts and .223 WSSM.

[JLA]

That I can agree with 100%, in fact im a huge fan of the std velocity .45ACP from a govt length 1911.

But keep in mind these giant loudenboomers are mostly aimed at the hunting market, where the .45ACP may not drop a bull elk on the first shot...

That .950 JDJ is just stoopid IMO

[gendoikari87]

Originally Posted by JLA

That I can agree with 100%, in fact im a huge fan of the std velocity .45ACP from a govt length 1911.

But keep in mind these giant loudenboomers are mostly aimed at the hunting market, where the .45ACP may not drop a bull elk on the first shot...

That .950 JDJ is just stoopid IMO

I thought the Desert eagle was marketed as the "gangsta" pistol? if it's really marketed for hunting the .500 beats it, both are about the same price (expensive), but the ammo for the .50ae is a little bit cheaper, about $1.10 a round, as opposed to $1.50ish a round.

and yes the .950 JDJ is stoopid, I don't care about muzzle energy of my rifles, I don't normally hunt, and i'm not a military sniper. I do however want to someday plink long range and for that I need an extremely high muzzle velocity.

Speaking of which does anybody know what caliber/cartridge has the least drop at 600yrds? the best I could find is the .223 WSSM with 24"

[JLA]

Originally Posted by gendoikari87

I thought the Desert eagle was marketed as the "gangsta" pistol? if it's really marketed for hunting the .500 beats it, both are about the same price (expensive), but the ammo for the .50ae is a little bit cheaper, about $1.10 a round, as opposed to $1.50ish a round.

and yes the .950 JDJ is stoopid, I don't care about muzzle energy of my rifles, I don't normally hunt, and i'm not a military sniper. I do however want to someday plink long range and for that I need an extremely high muzzle velocity.

Speaking of which does anybody know what caliber/cartridge has the least drop at 600yrds? the best I could find is the .223 WSSM with 24"

The desert eagle was developed my IMI israel for israeli miltary special forces, its initial purpose was an all out manstopper that would be effective even when the man being shot with it was wearing body armor, they were imported by magnum research and offered to the hunting market, the newest edition to the desert eagle family had scope mounts milled right into the barrel as well as an option for a 10 incher. It is a very effective round against anything 2 or 4 legged.

The desert eagle is not market as a 'gangsta' gun and the 'pimptastic' finishes were only recently offered (say within the last decade), and the desert eagle has been arount since the early 80s.

for hunting purposes, both the .50AE and the .500 mag will blow a giant hole clean through most anything on the planet, where the .500 bests the .50 is in bullet weights, the .500 is capable of much heavier bullets because overall cartridge length isnt as much of an issue in a revolver as it is in an autoloader.

shooting long range, you really dont need an extreme amount of muzzle velocity, what you need is the right equipment and skill. The .50bmg is capable of extreme accuracy at 1.5 miles, and the round isnt going but 2600 fps or so from the muzzle, what makes it a superb long range round is its extremely high BC and extremely stable platform and of course shooter skill, without which the best of equipment is merely a well oiled club...

the .308 winchester is capable of 1/2 MOA at 1000 yds, and again the proper projectile has an extremely high BC and muzzle velocity is around 2600 fps,

Your .223 WSSM is a super fast hunting round, not a target round. The problem with small light projectiles is they lose velocity very quickly and are more affected by conditions (i.e. wind, temperature, and atmospheric pressures) all of which drasically effect long range accuracy.

My advice to you, if you indeed wish to try long range target shooting, is to do alot of research and find a range that accomodates 600+. youll quickly find your .223WSSM is not the best for long distance precision. Id be willing to bet you find yourself behind a quality .308 or something similar.

[mesinge2]

Originally Posted by old semperfi

the 500 sw outpreforms the 50cal ae big time,as was said it is not a great deal more powerful than the 45acp.the other benifit is its easier to buy the brass for the 50 cal s&w. old semperfi

Did you mean to say .50 GI?

As stated above the .50 AE is a world above the .45 ACP, but the .50 GI is not. The .50 GI is slightly slower and heavier (240gr. to 300gr.) but due to the weight it is marginally stronger. (http://www.guncrafterindustries.com/...artridge.shtml)

So, if you ment the .50 GI. your right.

If you did mean .50 AE, refer to JLA's Post #10