Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch – Superb Hunting Revolver

Description

The Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch is the most powerful production revolver in the world, in the barrel length that lets the cartridge do everything it is capable of. When Smith and Wesson set out to build a handgun for serious hunters in 2003, they had to design an entirely new frame to contain it. The X-Frame and the 500 S&W Magnum arrived together.

Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch What 500 S and W Magnum Actually Is

Five hundred S&W Magnum is a rifle cartridge in a revolver cylinder. It launches bullets from 275 to over 700 grains and produces muzzle energy that exceeds many centerfire rifle rounds, which puts it in a category no other production handgun occupies.

That is not a novelty. It is the reason the Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch is a legitimate choice for the largest game on the continent and beyond, and why guides in bear country carry them. Very little that walks is beyond a well-placed 500 at handgun ranges.

The eight and three eighths inch barrel is where the cartridge produces its best numbers. Velocity is a function of barrel length, and a cartridge with this much powder behind it rewards length more than most.

Managing the Recoil

The X-Frame is the largest revolver frame Smith and Wesson builds, and every ounce of it exists to absorb recoil. Combined with the long barrel, that mass is what makes a cartridge this powerful shootable rather than merely survivable.

Two muzzle brakes are included, one for jacketed bullets and one for lead. That is a genuinely useful inclusion, since lead fouling behaves differently in a brake and having the correct device fitted keeps the system working properly. A brake makes a very large difference on a cartridge like this.

A fiber optic front sight gathers ambient light into a bright dot your eye finds instantly, which matters on a hunting revolver used at dawn and dusk when a plain black post disappears against dark game.

Capacity is five rounds, which is what a cylinder this size accommodates with chambers this large. The action is double action and single action, and most hunting shots are taken single action from a rest.

Shooting the Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch

Work up to the Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch deliberately. Even experienced big-bore shooters find the first cylinder memorable, and the correct approach is a firm two-handed grip, a stable stance, and a small number of carefully fired rounds rather than a long session. Fatigue and flinch build quickly with a cartridge this energetic.

Most hunting shots are taken single action from a rest, and that is how the revolver should be zeroed and practised. A rest removes the variables that matter most, and it is also considerably kinder on the shooter than offhand work with full-power loads.

Consider an optic. A long eye relief handgun scope or a red dot makes precise placement far easier at the ranges this revolver is capable of, and it removes the front sight focus problem that limits a lot of shooters as their eyes age. Pay close attention to eye relief: a scope mounted too close on a gun producing this much recoil is a mistake you make exactly once.

Maintenance Notes

The muzzle brakes on the Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch collect carbon quickly and should be removed and cleaned on a schedule rather than left in place indefinitely. Use the brake matched to your bullet type, since lead fouls differently from jacketed, and keep the threads clean and lightly lubricated so the devices continue to come off easily.

Keep the cylinder face and the forcing cone clean. A cartridge producing this much pressure and this much fouling makes regular attention there more important than on a milder gun, and build-up can eventually affect both function and accuracy.

Check that the ejector rod stays tight every single time you clean the revolver. Recoil of this magnitude will back out fasteners that would stay put on any other handgun, and a loose ejector rod locks the cylinder closed at exactly the wrong moment.

Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch Specifications

• Manufacturer part number: 163501
• UPC: 022188635010
• Caliber: 500 S&W Magnum
• Capacity: 5 rounds
• Barrel: 8 3/8 inches, stainless steel
• Frame: X-Frame, stainless
• Sights: fiber optic front, adjustable rear
• Muzzle: two muzzle brakes included, one for jacketed and one for lead bullets
• Action: double action and single action

Why Buyers Choose the Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch

For the largest game and for bear country there is no more powerful production handgun. If that is the requirement, this is the answer, and it comes off a shelf rather than from a custom shop.

Recoil is severe even with the brake and the frame mass, and this is not a revolver for a shooter who has not worked up to it. Nobody should make this their first big-bore handgun, and everyone should shoot one before buying.

Ammunition is expensive and heavy, and it is not stocked everywhere. Budget for that, and consider that 500 S&W is a cartridge many owners handload precisely because factory ammunition costs what it does.

Who Should Buy It

The Smith Wesson 500 Magnum 8 3/8 Inch suits serious handgun hunters and outdoorsmen: hunters after the largest game, guides and backcountry users in bear country, and enthusiasts who want the most powerful production revolver made.

Learn more from Smith and Wesson, or browse the rest of our firearms selection.

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