Well, Graybeard put it so eloquently I dont think I could really add much. All I can say is that even though my pick would be the .454 the .480 is a complete different beast. Among the many reasons for its invention one great benifit of the .480 is that it wont beat ya as much as the Linebaugh (not that there aint a big reduction in the kick.) If you own a Linebaugh your probably reloading so this the shooter has the option of downloading. But factory ammo is a different matter. Its usually full throttal or nothing. But the big benifit, as Graybeard says, comes from keeping the same bullet diameter. Back when Blackpowder was all there was our ancestors learned something from its limited potential. Since BP will only get your gun shooting so fast, and you take a small diameter bullet and a large diameter bullet, the big round is what kills the best. Why? Its all about momentum and wound channels. Rifles kill because they are moving so fast that the majority creat some degree of hydrostatic shock. Normally you need to get a bullet going around 2500 fps (I believe was the speed I read,) to create the HS shock. Most handguns dont generate that kind of velocity, so they rely on large wound channels, and heavy bullets (which equal increased momentum,) to do the job. What does all this mean? Well it is an example why two generally weak hunting rounds (at least compared to modern rounds) like the .357 Mag and .45 Colt (in standard velocity ranges), when put head to head, would find the Colt a bit better in the kill department. Sorry for the long, elaborating lecture. I bet your bored now so Ill stop. Ill just finish by saying that, ESPECIALLY if you handload, you cna not go wrong with either round.
Brian M.
