The Super Mags

by
posted on September 10, 2012
wiley-clapp.jpg (1)

In the very earliest days of International Handgun Metallic Silhouette Association, one of its founding gurus, the late Elgin gates, designed some new cartridges for the sport. This was long-range handgun work—50, 100, 150 and 200 meters. The distant targets were hard to hit because of their size and hard to knock down because of their weight. You needed an accurate, flat-shooting, high-velocity, heavy-bullet load in your handgun, particularly when shooting revolver class. That’s why we have the Gates’ Super Mags—.357, .375. .414 and .445. It is an interesting array of cartridges that achieved varying degrees of popularity. All of them required special long-frame, long-cylinder revolvers made mostly by Dan Wesson. All four have a rimmed case that is 1.61 inches in length. Since I worked a great deal in the 70s with three out of the four, I have some impressions to contribute.

The .357 Super Mag. was easily the most popular of the series, largely because Ruger made a special Super Blackhawk revolver to fire it. Intended for a hefty bullet at good velocity, the concept fell into the hands of the firewallers who tried to move a short little bullet of between 110 and 125 grains at Klingon speed. They burned out barrels at the forcing cone and destroyed top straps in an afternoon of heavy shooting. Bill Ruger heard about it and pulled the guns—no more of those beautiful long Dragoons. Dan Wesson made some and they came with an extra barrel for a while. The concept was effectively ruined by shooter mishandling.

In theory, the .375 Super Mag. should have succeeded brilliantly. It took a special jacketed revolver bullet of 220 grains made by Hornady. Ergo, there was nothing wrong with the bullet and certainly nothing defective about the handsome DW revolver. But somehow or another, the darned things just didn’t shoot very well. It was rather unceremoniously dropped. Not many of these were made and the Star-Line brass is likewise rare.

It’s another story with the .414 Super Mag, which is my favorite of the bunch, mostly because of a custom Hamilton Bowen Ruger with a ribbed S&W .41 Mag. barrel in place. The Ruger is re-bored from one of the .357 Super Mags., and is an elegant gun. Most shooters used the Dan Wesson (and even the current CZ DWs) and got excellent service from them. The last time I looked, the maker even had ammo in stock.

With the .445 Super Mag., you have a slugger. This is a sort of .44 Mag. Long, maybe even Extra Long. It takes commercial bullets up to 300 grains. I spent a long week of handloading and shooting for a story once. I got very fine accuracy—close to 2 inches at 100 yards—but the recoil was pretty severe. This was the big end until S&W came along with the .460 and .500 S&W Mags. I have another of the re-bored Rugers in this caliber. All you can say about all four Super Mags is power, power and more power. If you need it, it’s there.

Latest

OA Defense 2311 pistol left-side view on concrete shown with optic and light attached accessories black gun
OA Defense 2311 pistol left-side view on concrete shown with optic and light attached accessories black gun

Review: OA Defense 2311 Compact

Despite having been made popular by John Moses Browning over 100 years ago, his sacred M1911 design has soldiered on into the modern era, and companies like OA Defense are taking to the classic military platform in all-new ways, improving functionality by nearly tripling the design's capacity with double-stack mags, adding optic-mounting capabilities and more.

New For 2025: POF-USA LMR & P15 BASE Rifles

POF-USA's LMR and P15 BASE rifles are designed to get the company's patented rifle technology into the hands of more users than ever before.

Preview: Athlon Midas TSP1

The unmagnified Midas TSP1 from Athlon Optics features an etched-glass reticle and a nitrogen-purged, one-piece aluminum chassis.

Gun Of The Week: KelTec KSG410

Watch our Gun Of The Week video this week to learn about an American-manufactured bullpup pump-action shotgun in .410 bore made by KelTec CNC Industries of Cocoa, Fla.

The Armed Citizen® Dec. 6, 2024

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

All In The Grip: Angles, Contours & Texturing In Modern Handguns

After thousands of rounds sent downrange, the author has some insights on the nuances of handgun design and marksmanship, and it all revolves around the gun's grip.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.