I’ve watched the late Bob Munden on TV and I’ve also shot one-on-one with him. I fantasize I could shoot like him if I just practiced enough. I’ve watched Jerry Miculek on TV and I’ve also shot one-on-one with him, and again I fantasize I could, too, if I just practiced enough. But then I’ve watched the late Tom Knapp handle a shotgun and I don’t even bother to fantasize—there is no way in 1,000 years I could ever do what he could do with a shotgun.
For me, sixguns, semi-automatic pistols, and rifles have two sides: They are used for serious and fun purposes. However, when it comes to shotguns, the only serious use I will never put them to (and I hope it never happens) would be that of self-defense. I have what are normally referred to as home shotguns at the ready and I’ve also use several double-barreled shotguns when I participated in Cowboy Action Shooting. For me the latter was never serious but simply fun, whether using sixguns, leverguns or shotguns.
Another Fun Gun From Magnum Research, Inc
Here’s a comparison of the scope set-up on .30-30 BFR (top) with the ventilated rib of the .45 Colt/.410 BFR.
The Magnum Research BFR .45 Colt/.410 accepts five .45 Colt rounds or five 3-inch .410 shotgun shells.
The BFR looks large, but when compared with a conventionally-sized
single-action sixgun, the BFR .45 Colt/.410 does not loom as big.
The Hunt
I’ve been fortunate to do a lot of hunting in my lifetime but only about 1 percent or less has been with a shotgun. I’ve only bird-hunted a couple of times, and it was less than satisfactory. When I was younger my friend and I used to spend a lot of Saturday afternoons chasing jackrabbits through the sagebrush. At these times we often traded firearms. He would use my Marlin 39A Mountie .22 and I would shoot his Ithaca 20-gauge single-shot. The latter shot like a rifle for me and I took down quite a few jackrabbits with it, but this was all fun shooting.
I’ve tried clay pigeons and sporting clays and they were both also less than satisfactory. The only time I’ve been good on birds with a shotgun was when I mounted a Bushnell Holo-Sight on one. I think subconsciously, although I’m fascinated especially by lightweight over/under shotguns, I’m afraid to get too involved as I spend way too much already in dollars, time and energy on sixguns, semi-automatic pistols and leverguns. Perhaps that is what holds me back from becoming too serious about shotguns. They remain basically fun guns for me, which brings me to the latest offering from Magnum Research.
Sixguns have always been my first love and Magnum Research has combined a shotgun with a sixgun in this BFR (Biggest Finest Revolver). The BFR has been offered in .45-70, .454 Casull, .444 Marlin, .450 Marlin, .475 Linebaugh, .50 Action Express, .500 S&W, the diminutive .22 Hornet, and recently, .30-30. The latest offering is their Long Cylinder Model which accepts .45 Colt and 3-inch .410 shotgun shells.
The small rear bead on the ventilated rib (above) is lined up with the larger front bead for aiming. The top of the rib
is ribbed to reduce glare. The BFR .45 Colt/.410’s ventilated rib (below) is reminiscent of the steel girder on a bridge.
Now here’s a shotgun I can really have fun with as it is not something to mount to my shoulder, which I’ve always seemed to have trouble doing very efficiently and quickly, but rather handles like a sixgun… albeit a very heavy sixgun. This BFR weighs in at 4-1/2 pounds with its 7-1/2-inch barrel. After handling the BFR .30-30, which weighs almost a pound more, this sixgun/shotgun almost feels light.
In the past I’ve tried to hunt turkeys in Idaho with a shotgun (it’s required). I’ve even purchased two hunts through the Turkey Federation Banquet and felt jinxed both times even hyperventilating under the almost-required camouflage face netting. I gave up and started hunting turkeys in Texas where I can use a sixgun and wound up taking several trips resulting in six gobblers, all with a sixgun—a scoped .357 Magnum, which I could use for head shots.
The BFR .45 Colt/.410 from Magnum Research has a screw to ensure the cylinder pin
doesn’t walk out under recoil, but takedown for cleaning is still quick and easy.
Now the BFR .410 combines the sixgun with a shotgun. In test firing with No. 4 shot at 20 yards, I have no doubt it could be used for taking turkeys at close range. (Of course, check your state’s game regulations closely to see if this “shotgun” is allowed.)
Everything said in the November 2014 issue about the .30-30 BFR’s operation and quality basically applies also to this version: “The BFR is an exceptionally well-made single-action revolver, all brushed stainless steel. The cylinder has a capacity of five rounds and is 3 inches in length. Opening the loading gate allows the cylinder to rotate clockwise for loading and unloading or counterclockwise if the need arises (it has what is known as a free-spinning pawl). This feature is normally only found on custom revolvers. The action, which is quite smooth, has a transfer bar safety such as found on the Ruger Super Blackhawk.
John found the .45/.410 surprisingly accurate even with the twin shotgun-style bead sights.
At 20 yards the BFR shot just under the beads with both .45 Colt and .410 slugs.
In fact, some of the parts used in the BFR are Ruger parts or copies. Most noticeable are the hammer, trigger, transfer bar and sights. The rear sight is 100-percent Ruger with the Ruger emblem on it. The grip frame, although it does not have the totally square back triggerguard of the super Blackhawk has checkered rubber grips, which fill in behind the triggerguard and are marked on the inside for the Super Blackhawk. The cylinder pin uses a locking screw rather than the spring-loaded cylinder pin latching system, which often unlocks under recoil. The action is smooth, the cylinder locks up tight and the trigger pull is a creep-free 4 pounds.
Unlike the .30-30 version, the .45 Colt/.410 does not come with typical sixgun sights but rather has a full-length rib mounted on its 7-1/2-inch barrel. This shotgun rib has a silver bead mounted at the front and a much smaller bead about 5 inches back. The rib itself travels the full-length of the barrel and topstrap and is very attractive, reminding me of steel girders on a bridge. The same massive topstrap is present as found on the .30-30 version and is also drilled and tapped for a scope base, or standard rear and front sights can be installed. If you so desire, a Weaver-style base can be mounted to the top of the frame allowing the use of a traditional scope or red dot, either one of which would be quite handy for turkey hunting.
As mentioned earlier, I patterned this .410 at 20 yards by lining the two beads up and getting excellent results on a paper turkey target at 20 yards. The barrel of the .45 Colt/.410 BFR is threaded to accept a choke, which is designed to give a modified pattern at 30 yards. This tube must be removed before shooting .410 slugs or .45 Colt bullets. A special key is provided, which I put on a keychain to better keep track of. If the choke is not removed nasty things may (will?) happen if slugs or bullets are fired with it in place.
Shooting .410 3-inch shells (above) loaded with No. 4 shot, no turkey would have a chance
at 20 yards. John’s results shooting .410 slugs and .45 Colt bullets at 20 yards (below) show
the sights are pretty darn close even though they are just the twin shotgun beads.
After removing the choke I fired this BFR at 20 yards using both slugs and bullets. There are no traditional sights in play, so I tried to line up the rear bead so it centered the front bead placed on target. I was pleasantly surprised at how well slugs and bullets shot with this set-up. My .45 Colt load, consisting of a hard cast 260-grain Keith bullet over 8.5 grains of Unique, clocked over 940 fps, grouped four shots in about 3 inches and about 3 inches low. Both muzzle velocity and groups surprised me when shooting from a 3-inch long cylinder and without typical sights. Both Federal and Remington .410 slugs clocked out at over 1,500 fps with three shots in less than 3 inches and about 2 inches below point of aim. I would expect .410 slugs and .45 Colt bullets to both shoot even better with traditional sights or a red-dot scope in place.
Used as a .410 shotgun and carried in a shoulder holster, this BFR could be a real fun gun for close range birds and/or varmints. Of course, once again, check your local game regulations.
BFR Long Cylinder Model
Maker: Magnum Research
12602 33rd Ave. SW
Philager, MN 56473
(508) 635-4273
www.magnumresearch.com
Action type: Single action
Caliber: .45 Colt and .410
Capacity: 5
Barrel length: 7-1/2 inches
Overall length: 15 inches
Weight: 4.5 pounds
Finish: Stainless steel
Sights: Vent rib with dual beads, tapped for scope base
Grips: Pachmayr checkered rubber
Price: $1,269
