The .460 S&W round was explicitly created for the Smith & Wesson Model 460 revolver.
The .460 S&W round's primary role is being a powerful long-range hunting cartridge for handguns, especially the S&W Model 460.
.460 S&W Overview
The .460 S&W round is a suped-up .454 Casull, and the .454 Casull is a more powerful version of the .45 Colt round.
.460 S&W is considered a super magnum round, allowing firearms that fire the .460 S&W to fire the .454 Casull and .45 Colt rounds. This isn't always the case so make sure you check the specific gun models specifications.
.460 S&W Purpose
The main purpose of the .460 S&W is for long-range hunting. This round is also great for dangerous game hunting and defensive purposes, while it might be overkill for close-range defense purposes on anything other than large game.
The Model 460 is well known in Alaska and other remote areas as the go-to gun for protection from Bears and other large predators.
The Model 460 is an extremely large revolver; owners can even equip them with optics and bi-pods.
The .460 S&W Mangum ammo length completely fills the Smith & Wesson X-frame cylinder.
The cartridge has more powder than the 464 Casull and other rounds. The extra length allows a lot more powder but prevents the 460 S&W Magnum round from being used in certain rifles.
.460 S&W Performance
The .460 S&W is the highest-velocity revolver round in the world, it clocks in at 2,409 feet per second.
The chamber pressures top 65,000 psi, typically seen in rifle cartridges. This means revolvers that shoot these rounds have to be built to withstand such high pressures.
However, even with all that pressure, the recoil on this round is similar to 9mm or .380 due to the revolver's weight.
Guns that shoot .460 S&W can typically fire cartridges like the .45 Colt.
A 300 grain .460 S&W round can deliver 2,826 ft-lbs of energy on target at nearly 2,060 feet per second.
.460 S&W Price and Availability
The 460 S&W is not a wildly popular round but you can find a selection of them in stock at online ammo retailers like Optics Planet.
Sportsman's Guide also has some inventory of .460 S&W as of this writing.
Lucky Gunner is also known to keep some 460 S&W Mag in stock.
The most popular manufacturer of .460 S&W Magnum is Federal and Hornady.
The prices vary but typically start around $2.45 /per round and are sold in 20-round boxes.
Guns that Shoot .460 S&W Magnum
The .460 S&W Magnum is mainly thought of as a revolver round. The most common revolver is the namesake of the round S&W Model 460.
S&W Model 460
The cartridge gets its namesake from the gun it was created for, the S&W Model 460.
The Model 460 is a large bore, five-shot revolver made by Smith & Wesson. The gun was developed for self-defense against large game.
The overall design of the S&W Model 460 revolver is based on the x-frame design.
The Model 460 has a number of different models and options, including:
- Model 460 ES, Model 460 V 5" Barrel
- Model 460 XVR 8.38" Barrel
- Model 460 XVR Performance Center 10.5" Barrel
- Model 460 XVR Performance Center 12" Barrel
- Model 460 XVR Performance Center 14" Barrel
You can see Model 460's for sale here. The most popular Model 460 Revolver is the Model 460XVR, a stainless steel revolver made by Smith and Wesson.
Big Horn Armory Model 90
The Big Horn Armory Model 90 is one of the only rifles that shoot .460 S&W Magnum round.
The Model 90 is currently on backorder but it's an exciting gun and looks extremely high quality.
If you want to learn more about some exciting cartridges, look through our Ammo articles.
