Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black 8.38in Ported — Superb Hunter

Description

The Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black is the middle barrel length in Taurus’s .500 S&W Magnum line: an 8.38-inch ported barrel, five rounds, a full-length Picatinny rail moulded into the top of the shroud, and matte black oxide over the whole gun rather than the two-tone treatment.

Barrel length on a big-bore revolver is a trade, not a ranking. Ten inches gives the most velocity and the longest sight radius; five inches is what you will actually carry. The Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black sits between them, and for most hunters who walk to a stand rather than drive to it, that is the one that gets used.

What the 8.38-inch barrel buys you

• Most of the velocity of the ten-inch gun. The last two inches of a .500 barrel are worth less than the first eight, and you give up much less than the numbers suggest.
• A sight radius long enough to shoot irons properly, and a rail long enough to put an optic where your eye wants it.
• Ports near the muzzle that vent upward and hold the front sight down between shots.
• Roughly half a pound less to carry than the ten-inch, which matters on the fifth mile.
• The all-black finish on the Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black is matte black oxide throughout — frame, cylinder and barrel assembly, with nothing to glint in a stand.

Living with a .500

• Recoil on the Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black is real, but the gun is built to manage it: weight forward, ports at the muzzle, and a cushioned insert down the backstrap of the rubber grip.
• Expect to shoot a cylinder or two per session rather than a box, and expect the ports to make it loud for everyone nearby. Hearing protection is not optional, and not just for the shooter.
• Ammunition spans 325 grain practice loads to 440 and 500 grain hard-cast bear loads, with muzzle energies that differ by more than double. Match the load to the job.
• Work up. Learn the trigger on the lighter loads before putting a 440 grain bullet through it.
• The barrel is a steel tube inside an aluminium shroud, which is why the Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black weighs what it does rather than twice that.

Specifications

• Manufacturer part number: 2-500081RH
• UPC: 725327624028
• Calibre: .500 S&W Magnum
• Capacity: 5 rounds
• Barrel: 8.38 in, ported, target crown
• Barrel assembly: steel barrel in an aluminium shroud, matte black
• Frame: large, black steel
• Cylinder: matte black oxide
• Sights: adjustable rear, fixed front; full-length Picatinny rail
• Action: double action / single action
• Grip: black rubber with cushioned insert

.500 S&W Magnum is a standardised cartridge with a maximum average pressure published by SAAMI, and it is worth reading the box rather than assuming: the difference between a 325 grain practice load and a 440 grain hard-cast is not a detail, it is a different shooting experience and a different job.

The same revolver is stocked with a ten-inch two-tone barrel and a 5.12-inch barrel. For a cartridge that costs a third as much to practise with, the Raging Hunter in .44 Magnum is the sensible alternative, and the .350 Legend version covers straight-wall deer seasons.

Why the Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black earns its place

• The Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black has the barrel length that balances velocity against what you will actually carry.
• Factory porting and a cushioned grip on the most powerful production revolver cartridge there is.
• A rail moulded into the shroud, with no separate base to shoot loose.
• Dual cylinder lock-up, front and rear, built for the pressure.
• An all-black finish that stays quiet in the field.

This is a handgun hunter’s revolver for elk, big hogs and bear, and a defensive sidearm in country where something large might take an interest. It is also the version to buy if the ten-inch gun looked impressive in the case and impractical on a belt. What the Taurus Raging Hunter 500 Black is not is a range toy, a first revolver or anything to do with concealed carry.

In stock now at MAG5 Firearms in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Handgun sales ship to a licensed dealer in your state, where you will complete a Form 4473 and the background check before taking delivery.