Posted: 9/14/2026 11:13:01 PM EDT
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Freedom Arms has a model 83 revolver which is chambered for the 500 Wyoming Express, 475 Linebaugh, 454 Casull or 44 magnum. The 500 Wyoming Express is supposed to be between a 500 S&W and a 500 AE. Supposedly the 500 Wyoming Express can handle higher pressures than the 50 AE plus can use a heavy roll crimp. The 500 Wyoming Express is close in power to the 50 Beowulf and fit in revolvers smaller than the X Frame S&W 500. I have shot Freedom Arms revolvers in 454 Casull and 475 Linebaugh plus a Desert Eagle in 50 AE. I have also shot the 500 S&W all with full power loads. Another interesting revolver is the 45-70 or 50-70 single action revolver developed by Earl Keller in Evansville, Indiana in the 1970’s. The revolver developed by Earl Keller was sold under the name Century Manufacturing, inc.. I had a chance to visit Earl’s manufacturing operation and later shoot his 45-70 revolver. The 50-70 might be another option to consider. https://www.forgottenweapons.com/ludicrously-huge-45-70-and-50-70-revolvers/ I hope you find a solution but I think ultimately your going to be reloading all your ammo. https://freedomarms.com/product/model-83-field-grade/ |
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Yeah, I’ve been seeing pretty limited options. Zero 50 Alaskan pistols. Very rare here and there 500 Linebaugh Maximum. And basically one maker for 500 Linebaugh. I was just checking to see if there is some big secret Linebaugh club. It’s seems to have really been eclipsed by the other 500s since. Best for me will be to trim/seat the rolling block ammo to just under 1.9”, and get a BFR. Otherwise I’m looking at getting custom work done to an x-frame or something. BFR will not make the BFR in 50 Alaskan. They will not make the lone frame/cylinder in 500 Linebaugh like they will a short frame. Probably because they know people will shot 500 Linebaugh max and 50 Alaskan in it if they did. This revolver is one the list to get- But my list also includes an 1873 lever action to short stroke, a pair of SASS vaqueros, an SKB coach gun, and various other limited/hard to fine nonsense. |
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Originally Posted By JTMcC: https://www.singleactions.com/50AlaskanBFRs2.html Yes. That guy has had a BFR converted and shoots 500 Max and 50 Alaskan. The Buffalo Bore owner guy has one too I think. I just want a handgun to pair with the old rolling block. The closest I can get off the shelf, or at least to custom order, is a BFR in 500 Linebaugh, And I’ll just have to drop my OAL from 2.0 to under 1.9”. I have made ammo and only shot the old gun about 50 times. Even then, the modest recoil is hammering the buttstock and rattling loose the forestock. It’s 150 year old wood. When I got it the leather wrap holding on the cut down/previously cracked foresrock was dry and cracking off. The trade cloth was a tracing paper thick disintegrating into dust layer.   In the decade since then, just being a wall hanger, most of the leather had broken off. Under the forestock, which is just the front half, the back half must have cracked and been cut off, was a smelly resin/lead block to “fit what used to be the middle of it to now the rear of it. The military sight has been replaced by a three folding leaf. A front sling mount had been soldered on the barrel. I don’t have the right barrel ring, but I do have a much better condition front and rear stock. Using that would take away the decoration my great great grand father had done and were on it when my great grand father got it. Some say I should have left it as a wall hanger. I elected to let it shoot again. I have an unhealthy desire/fetish for handgun/rifle pairs. I’m pushing 60, have a ton of other guns, and realistically will maybe take it out once a year and shoot five through it. There is no practical need for me to have a handgun to go with it. I just want to. |
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Originally Posted By ramairthree: Yes. That guy has had a BFR converted and shoots 500 Max and 50 Alaskan. The Buffalo Bore owner guy has one too I think. I just want a handgun to pair with the old rolling block. The closest I can get off the shelf, or at least to custom order, is a BFR in 500 Linebaugh, And I’ll just have to drop my OAL from 2.0 to under 1.9”. I have made ammo and only shot the old gun about 50 times. Even then, the modest recoil is hammering the buttstock and rattling loose the forestock. It’s 150 year old wood. When I got it the leather wrap holding on the cut down/previously cracked foresrock was dry and cracking off. The trade cloth was a tracing paper thick disintegrating into dust layer. https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/515c08f6-5b52-47be-b26c-c72d76775391.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds" target="_blank">https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/515c08f6-5b52-47be-b26c-c72d76775391.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/288f899c-99a7-49e7-8db8-4a4f0d24771f.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds" target="_blank">https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/288f899c-99a7-49e7-8db8-4a4f0d24771f.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds In the decade since then, just being a wall hanger, most of the leather had broken off. Under the forestock, which is just the front half, the back half must have cracked and been cut off, was a smelly resin/lead block to “fit what used to be the middle of it to now the rear of it. The military sight has been replaced by a three folding leaf. A front sling mount had been soldered on the barrel. I don’t have the right barrel ring, but I do have a much better condition front and rear stock. Using that would take away the decoration my great great grand father had done and were on it when my great grand father got it. Some say I should have left it as a wall hanger. I elected to let it shoot again. I have an unhealthy desire/fetish for handgun/rifle pairs. I’m pushing 60, have a ton of other guns, and realistically will maybe take it out once a year and shoot five through it. There is no practical need for me to have a handgun to go with it. I just want to. Originally Posted By ramairthree: Originally Posted By JTMcC: https://www.singleactions.com/50AlaskanBFRs2.html Yes. That guy has had a BFR converted and shoots 500 Max and 50 Alaskan. The Buffalo Bore owner guy has one too I think. I just want a handgun to pair with the old rolling block. The closest I can get off the shelf, or at least to custom order, is a BFR in 500 Linebaugh, And I’ll just have to drop my OAL from 2.0 to under 1.9”. I have made ammo and only shot the old gun about 50 times. Even then, the modest recoil is hammering the buttstock and rattling loose the forestock. It’s 150 year old wood. When I got it the leather wrap holding on the cut down/previously cracked foresrock was dry and cracking off. The trade cloth was a tracing paper thick disintegrating into dust layer. https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/515c08f6-5b52-47be-b26c-c72d76775391.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds" target="_blank">https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/515c08f6-5b52-47be-b26c-c72d76775391.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/288f899c-99a7-49e7-8db8-4a4f0d24771f.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds" target="_blank">https://hosting.photobucket.com/b6660180-ed36-4231-a3fb-f0f972c77716/288f899c-99a7-49e7-8db8-4a4f0d24771f.jpeg?width=1920&height=1080&fit=bounds In the decade since then, just being a wall hanger, most of the leather had broken off. Under the forestock, which is just the front half, the back half must have cracked and been cut off, was a smelly resin/lead block to “fit what used to be the middle of it to now the rear of it. The military sight has been replaced by a three folding leaf. A front sling mount had been soldered on the barrel. I don’t have the right barrel ring, but I do have a much better condition front and rear stock. Using that would take away the decoration my great great grand father had done and were on it when my great grand father got it. Some say I should have left it as a wall hanger. I elected to let it shoot again. I have an unhealthy desire/fetish for handgun/rifle pairs. I’m pushing 60, have a ton of other guns, and realistically will maybe take it out once a year and shoot five through it. There is no practical need for me to have a handgun to go with it. I just want to. Your earlier posts were fairly detailed, so I did catch all that. Just giving a possible option for what (as you know) is a search for something that's going to be very, very uncommon. Good luck with it. Lee Martin made a BFR in 50 Alaskan (only one as far as I know). A guy in Germany has as well. They are very large revolvers of course. |