Magnum Research's New .45/70 BFR Revolver
Now This Is
A Serious Hunting Handgun
By Steve Comus
From a company with a name like Magnum Research, one would expect
products to be anything but subtle. So it is with the new BFR
(Biggest, Finest Revolver), a stainless steel single-action handgun that
stretches the imagination while it expands the hunting horizons for
those who prefer to go into the wild with short-barreled firearms.
The author, left,
and Jim Skildum show the
two
hogs taken with the
new BFR revolvers in .45/70. 
As the exotically potent single-action revolvers go, the BFR
represents one of the best buys on the market. It is well done and
stout enough to do the job, and to keep doing it for a long, long time.
Essentially, the BFR is what one would get if it were possible to
s-t-r-e-t-c-h a Ruger Super Blackhawk, beef it up here and there and
then finish everything off so the fit, finish and action were all true,
smooth and slick. Slap a 10-inch barrel on the rig, chamber it for
the .45/70 Government cartridge, and you would have a BFR. Or, one
could simply acquire a BFR ready to go from Magnum Research. It is
that easy.
To be blunt, the BFR is a handful. It is a real gun in every
sense of the term. But there is nothing to fear here. It actually
feels good when it shoots. Yes, there is a lot of muzzle blast,
noise and that sort of thing. But the felt recoil is about the
same as one would expect from a standard .44 Magnum loaded to full
potency.
Because of the size of the cartridge, the BFR in .45/70 is a
five-shooter. That's okay, because really rapid sustained fire is
not what this handgun is all about. It is designed for deliberately
aimed fire, and because the configuration is correct, it rolls in recoil
in a way that allows for surprisingly quick follow-up shots.
As pleasant is the fact that this substantial handgun carries well in
the field in a standard holster. Oh, for those who are interested,
this handgun definitely turns heads when a shooter shows up at the range
with it. It makes a statement about the person handling it, and
I'll leave the interpretation of that statement to the reader.
I don't recall exactly when I first learned about Magnum Research's
BFR, because it didn't seem like really new news at the 1998 SHOT Show
in Las Vegas, and seemed almost old hat when I saw it on display at the
NRA convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania this past spring.
Regardless, the saga of satisfaction with it began at the NRA
convention when I was talking with the folks from Magnum Research about
all kinds of things, including the state of the firearms industry at the
time.
The convention evolved into a plan which would allow for some
hands-on hunting with the big gun this past summer. The plan
called for Magnum Research's Jim Skildum to travel to California where
his firms West Coast Representative Owen Brown would take Skildum and
the author on a wild boar bonanza at the sprawling Tejon Ranch, which is
located between Los Angeles and Bakersfield in Southern California.
It sounded like a good idea, and a month or so before the expedition,
a beautiful BFR wearing iron sights showed up at GUN WORLD headquarters.
With it was an extremely well done holster by Gould &
Goodrich. Although it was a standard open top holster with
retaining strap, the author opted to carry it in the cross-draw made.
It's a personal thing, but had its Genesis in the fact that there
have been times when the author has hunted with both rifle and handgun
holstered on the right interferes with a rifle slung on the right.
So much for such trivia. Suffice it to say that hunting
handguns feel better in the cross-draw mode.
Trips to the range revealed a number of things. They proved
that the BFR can shoot as well as the shooter holding it. Initial
shots with factory loads from both Remington and Winchester
indicated that bullet holes overlapped when shot off the bench at
25 yards. At 50 yards, with the open sights, shots remained within
a four-inch circle generally, and it wasn't uncommon for them to be
within two inches.
This performance level had more to do with the pilot than the
handgun. At 100 yards, the groups opened up enough that it was
decided that with the author at the helm, using open sights, that this
really was a 50-yard pr closer hunting rig. There was no doubt the
handgun itself would be valid at 100 yards.
Although several flavors of factory ammo were tried, delivered
velocities from the 10-inch barrel suggested that the best bullet weight
was 300 grains. For example, when measured with other Oehler 35P
chronograph, Remington's 300-grain loading delivered a median velocity
of 1,384 feet per second out of the BFR's 10-inch barrel.
Remington's 405-grain loading delivered 1,092 fps. PMC's
405-grain cast loading also was shot, and it shot well. However,
the added velocity of the 300-grain loading (which was equaled with
Winchester's 300-grain loading) got the nod for the hunt.
A few more practice sessions at the range revealed that the BFR is
truly a well made piece of equipment. The single-action cocking
was smooth, and the trigger was crisp. The front sight ramp was
bright orange, and that was to prove exceedingly handy when it was time
to cap off a round at a huge, black hog.
Owen Brown opted to
take a nice sow with his
Mountain Eagle rifle in
.338 Winchester Magnum. 
During the hunt, Skildum drew first blood. He was using a
.45/70 BFR which was configured a bit differently than the author's.
Skildum's BFR was wearing synthetic (rubbery) Hogue grips, while
the author's had beautifully contoured and figured wood stocks.
Skildum's BFR also had been fitted with a Leupold 2x handgun
scope.
A shot by Skildum from the sitting position at roughly 125 yards put
a 300-grain hollow-point bullet from a Remington factory load into the
350-pound boar, taking out the rear of the big pig's lungs.
The animal ran less than 50 yards, fell to the
ground and was unable to get up again. A follow-up shot dispatched
the beast. This was right at dusk.
The next morning, another group of pigs was spotted, climbing up from
a steep canyon. The quickly arranged plan called for the author to
get into position to be able to ambush a hog from the group as it topped
the ridge. The only problem was that the pigs spotted on the
hillside were stragglers in a group that had its vanguard members
already almost to the ridge.
As the author sat down and prepared for a shot, several pigs appeared
from the other side of a clump of bush, all of them generally walking
toward the shooting position. There were a couple of relatively
small pigs (about 100-pounders) being followed by some larger hogs (300
to 400-pounders).
When the pigs first appeared from the bush into the open, they were
about 50 yards from the author. That was well within effective
range of the shooter and the BFR, but there was a problem. There
wasn't a clear shot. At first, the two smaller pigs were in the
way, and then later, two of the larger pigs kept getting in front of
each other, precluding a clean shot at either.
The BFR in .45/70 is a lot of handgun, as Jim Skildum demonstrates
here.
There was no question that a shot would be taken, so the author
cocked the big revolver, keeping its muzzle directed towards the small
herd as the pigs kept coming. Problem number two came into play
when the smaller pigs began to increase their distance from the large
animals following them.
One wants to make any shot as close as possible, but the situation
was becoming intense. Unless the two larger pigs in the background
separated for a clean shot, soon the two pigs would literally be in the
author's lap and no doubt spook the larger animals when they figured out
that all was not well. To that point, the pigs had not detected the
author's presence.
Then it all happened. The smaller pigs were probably about five
yards or less away from the author when the two larger hogs parted
company just enough to allow a clean shot at the larger of those two
animals. The larger hog was generally coming right towards the author,
but angling slightly as it moved away from the other huge hog.
The logical shot was a frontal one which would put the big 300-grain
Winchester hollow-point into the heart-lung area, just inside the front
of the right front shoulder. When the top of the bright orange
front sight post found the proper shot on the coal black hog, the BFR
barked. Barked? No, it roared!
This sound sent the two lead pigs into a full run down the far side
of the ridge, followed by the second and uninjured large hog. The
larger of the large hogs, which had been hit, attempted to follow them,
but wasn't able to keep up.
As the BFR came down from the recoil of the first shot, the hammer
was re-cocked in the process, and a second shot was loosed as the big
pig passed to the right and only about 10 or 15 yards from the author's
position. That round hit rather high in the shoulder, just below
the spine and literally knocked the 400-pound beast a couple of inches
sideways as it then began to stumble and slide as it moved forward and
down the hill.
It wasn't long until the huge hog was on the ground, having gone
roughly 50 or 60 yards from the point it was at when the first
shot hit it. Lacking a head or direct spinal shot, big animals
generally do not fall in-place, regardless the size of the bullet.
All in all, it was considered to have been a classic experience.
With two huge handgun hogs already hanging on the meat pole, Owen
Brown decided he would opt for a barbecue size sow - something in the
125 to 150-pound class. He also decided to use his Mountain Eagle
rifle in .338 Winchester Magnum for the job. It was a rifle he had used
successfully on many other hunts, including one in Africa where it took,
among other things, a really impressive kudu. He was using Hornady
factory loads with 225-grain bullets, and the rig included a 6x Zeiss
scope in Conetrol bases and rings.
First, Brown passed a 150-yard shot at a nice boar which was in the
200 to 250-pound class. He was after a sow, remember?
The next day, it would happen. A herd of pigs was spotted along
the same ridge as the group from which the author took his first hog.
But this herd was spotted running along the ridge about a mile
away from where the shots had been taken the day before.
Following a mechanized maneuver in Brown's 1947 Willys Jeep, he,
Skildum and the author dismounted and stalked on foot to a hillside
overlooking a small pond. Timing was dicey, because the main body of the
herd was just disappearing into some thickets as Brown got to a spot
from which to make a shot.
Then there was the sound of more hogs coming to the pond from the
left. Among them was The Sow. In a gastronomic sense, she was
beautiful: 150 pounds of eating pleasure. She was with some other
pigs, and they quickly jumped into the pond in an obvious effort to cool
off, for the day already was beginning to heat.
Brown had to wait for what seemed like an extremely long time for the
animals to come out of the water and then separate enough for a clean
shot. When they did, the sow was standing for a moment, perfectly
broadside to Brown's position. He had taken a sitting position
with the rifle, and at the shot, the sow dropped in place. She was hit
behind the shoulder, and the bullet took out her heart and both lungs.
She literally never knew what hit her.
And that ended a truly memorable expedition which had accomplished
all of its objectives, and more. During mid-day hours, the trio of
hunters had ample opportunity to go on squirrel safaris with Magnum
Research's Magnumlite .22 rimfire rifles. These are Ruger 10/22
semi-autos that are fitted with Magnum Research's 16 1/2-inch
steel-lined carbon fiber barrels. The barrels, which include an
effective muzzle break, weigh a scant 13 ounces. This means the
rifle is really light and handles well - and is exceedingly accurate.
With most factory loads, groups in the 3/8-inch category at 50
yards are common.
To
give an idea how big things are, the cartridge on the right
is the
.45 ACP, while the .45/70 is on the left.
The two rifles on the hunt wore different stocks. One was
fitted with a synthetic stock from Hogue, while the other sported a
laminated stock from Fajen. Both rings were impressive.
Squirrels were taken routinely at distances ranging from a few
yards to over 100 yards, with most being hit at 50 to 75 yards.
Yet as the expedition came to and end, it was clear that both BFRs
had performed admirably under the kinds of conditions one would expect
for the configuration of each. The scoped handgun had dropped a
350-pound boar at 125 yards, while the iron-sighted one had done its job
at 25 yards on a huge hog. And frankly, those are the logical
extremes at which a handgun would be used in most hunting situations.
However, there is another outdoor situation in which the BFR would be
right at home: In Alaska for both hunters and anglers. There is no
question that a .45/70 is superior in bear country to something like a
.44 Magnum. It makes total sense.
Meanwhile, it became clear that the BFR delivers the kind of
performance it takes to be successful in the wild. What more could
one want?
The BFR is available in a number of other chamberings and barrel
lengths. Barrels of 6 1/2, 7 1/2 and 10 inches are available, and
chamberings include .45/70 Govt., .454 Casull, .444 Marlin, .45
Colt/.410, .45 Colt +P, .50 Action Express and .22 Hornet.
Cylinder lengths vary, and are appropriate for the chambering.
GW
