A gun that'll make Dirty Harry quiver

ASSOCIATED PRESS ^ | February 14, 2003 | TRUDY TYNAN

[ZULU]

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Dirty Harry is now outgunned: Smith & Wesson has introduced its biggest handgun ever, a .50-caliber Magnum.

The five-shot revolver with an 8 1/2-inch barrel weighs about 4 1/2 pounds -- roughly a pound more than the black .44-caliber Magnum wielded by Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry movies. It fires a new .50-caliber cartridge that the company said produces nearly three times the muzzle energy of the .44 -- or enough stopping power to bring down a charging bear.

[ZULU]

"It boggles the mind," said Tom Ortiz, executive director of the Violence Policy Center. He predicted the new Magnum would create "a new order of threat to law enforcement."

Now they are getting into the act of gun design and determining limits to a gun's power. When are these jerks just going to screw off????

[Citizen Tom Paine]

From reading the small print in an article awhile ago, I learned that the BATF has rulled that 50 calibre is the largest calibre which may be used in a handgun. It is quite easy to find larger calibre flintlock and percussion pistols. Seventy calibre used to be quite common.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

News of S&W's new revolver was on this page earlier this week. The "boggles the mind," quote was predictable.

[Jack Black]

When are these jerks just going to screw off????

Sadly, never. That's a sobering thought. We shall spend the rest of our days arguing for our Constitutional rights over and over and over again, or lose them without a fight. That's the choice.

[Henchster]

"But Smith & Wesson, long the industry leader, also lost business in recent years after striking a deal with the Clinton administration in 2000 to install safety locks on all its guns and change its marketing practices. Other gunmakers decided not to follow Smith & Wesson's lead, and gun advocates accused the company of selling out.

In 2001, the ailing gunmaker was sold by its British owner to an Arizona startup company that all but abandoned the agreement with the government and adopted an aggressive and unapologetic marketing stance."

HA-HA-HA! Clinton gets the bird, and we get one of our oldest firearms manufacturers back in the hands of real Americans who don't take no Sh!t. Now THAT'S a Twofer!

[tictoc]

They could just call it the Lincoln Tunnel gun.

[anniegetyourgun]

I want one.

[Jimmyclyde]

"I know what your thinking boy, Did I fire 6 shots or only 5? And to tell you the truth mist all this confusion, I've forgotten myself. But seeing this is a .44 magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and can blow your head clean off; You've got to ask yourself one question. Do I feel lucky. Well do ya, You feel lucky punk?"

[rdb3]

Now my friends will be jealous!

I adore my two Mark XIX .44 Desert Eagles. Now this.

Hmmm... Maybe they won't be too envious if I get one of these, huh?

T-minus 30 days until the birth of Tha SYNDICATE, the philosophical heir to William Lloyd Garrison.
101 things that the Mozilla browser can do that Internet Explorer cannot.

[bruoz]

"From reading the small print in an article awhile ago, I learned that the BATF has rulled that 50 calibre is the largest calibre which may be used in a handgun."

Under Federal law any firearm with a bore larger than .50 caliber is a destructive device and must be registered as a NFA weapon. Only those firearms with bores larger than .50 calibre that the Secretary of the Treasury decides are suitable for "sporting purposes" are exempt. BTW, muzzleloaders are not "firearms" under federal law.

[VOA]

The five-shot revolver with an 8 1/2-inch barrel weighs about 4 1/2 pounds

Sounds like a great modern update on the Colt Walker .44 black-powder revolver...

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I guess that's why I should keep my spud gun under cover...

[VOA]

The introduction of the big gun marks a sharp departure for the 150-year-old company,
which for the past five years has concentrated on the development of
lightweight revolvers using alloys of rare metals.

Any journalist worth their salt would have celebrated Smith & Wesson for this
strategy because it shows they "value diversity".

[ZULU]

Yes, flintlocks were available in calibers above .50. I have seen Hawken style percussion caps in .54, and Revolutionary war era styles in .69 and .75. Maybe the idea was to have a pistol whose caliber matched the musket or rifle.

At any rate, why in the heck did ATF select .50 as a maximum, and why are we still plagued by this group?? We don't need ATF. They should be dissolved and their personnel incorporated into the FBI or retired or laid off.

From my perspective, they spend more time harassing legitimate gun owners than going after bad guys. I thin Reagan originally wanted to kill that agency off - but a government agency or beaurocracy is immortal - it keeps growing, developing a life of its own like a living creature, and just can't be killed off.

I read about the head of some small agency in Washington who was its only employee. The agency no longer performed any functions. The agency head kept trying to get the feds to dissolve the agency - but they ignored him. It just lived forever.

[Protagoras]

I want one.

I'm not a gun maven, but I'm guessing you had better be pretty handy to use this weapon effectively. Take a bit more practice than normal, just a guess.

[anniegetyourgun]

Given the added weight, I suspect you're right. I really like my .44.

[null and void]

scandium frame???

There's a metal you don't encounter every day!

[dfwgator]

"It shoots through schools."

[VadeRetro]

The five-shot revolver with an 8 1/2-inch barrel weighs about 4 1/2 pounds -- roughly a pound more than the black .44-caliber Magnum wielded by Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry movies. It fires a new .50-caliber cartridge that the company said produces nearly three times the muzzle energy of the .44 -- or enough stopping power to bring down a charging bear.

This will not be a fun gun to shoot. They've upped the muzzle energy 3X over the .44 magnum. They've upped the weight by less than a third. By Newton's good old F=ma, you're going to feel a lot more force.

[Protagoras]

Given the added weight, I suspect you're right. I really like my .44.

And I suspect that you are competent in using larger weapons. A typical user has much better results with a lighter pistol.

I'm guessing you should graduate to these larger calibers.