Is there a cheap .510 Whisper alternative?

CanFire

CanFire

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After reading up a little bit on the the whole "Whisper" cartridge thing, it's sunk into my head that I need to use some ridiculously big bullets to terminate gophers with! :D

The .510 Whispers use expensive brass, expensive bullets, expensive actions and an exotic chamber. I like that it uses big ass bullets, miserly little powder, can be subsonic, is accurate, and produces light recoil though.

Can anybody recommend a rifle/caliber that:
1) can use 200+ grain cast lead bullets (bigger would be better!)
2) is gopher accurate to 100 yards (perhaps not with cast bullets?)
3) uses relatively little powder (subsonic would be a plus, but not req.)
4) doesn't hurt to shoot a hundred rounds out of
5) would be fairly inexpensive to buy/build (<$800)

A single-shot rifle would be fine. Whew! Got to love all those arbitrary requirements huh? If I'm asking for the impossible, can someone point me to a wildcat forum where I could read up on what unusual stuff is currently available?
 
.358 win, .35 whelen, any .30 cal with 210 gr cast, You have to be careful with non varmint bullets as they will not break up on contact with the ground.

44Bore
 
44Bore said:
.358 win, .35 whelen, any .30 cal with 210 gr cast, You have to be careful with non varmint bullets as they will not break up on contact with the ground.

44Bore
Click to expand...

Is there a lead alloy or special mold pattern that one could use to cast their own "ground safe" varmint bullets? I was kinda hoping a big, slow moving bullet might be safer than a .22 as far as ricochet's go. I know it would have more momentum, but after contacting the ground or rock, I thought it's weight coupled with it's loss of aerodynamics might cause it to shed it's energy quicker than a faster/lighter .22.

Thanks for the NEF rifle suggestion Prosper! Forgive my ignorance, but does the 500 S&W NEF rifle use a 500 S&W Magnum pistol cartridge? I wonder what the recoil would be like out of a 7 lbs. rifle....
 
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Conventional varmint bullets blow up real good cos they travel real fast and have thin jackets and hollow points etc. A big lump of lead is less likely to break up on impact so Rick o'Sheas are a possibility but hey interesting craters in the ol' gopher patch.
 
I have a win 94 in 45lc.. One could load up to 400grain bullet in it if you want... I have only a 255lee mold. I have shot a few gophers with the .45slugs... I think a good 22lr hp is acualy more effective on them.
 
Can anybody recommend a rifle/caliber that:
1) can use 200+ grain cast lead bullets (bigger would be better!)
2) is gopher accurate to 100 yards (perhaps not with cast bullets?)
3) uses relatively little powder (subsonic would be a plus, but not req.)
4) doesn't hurt to shoot a hundred rounds out of
5) would be fairly inexpensive to buy/build (<$800)
Click to expand...
The 7.62x39 can do everything you listed.

Is there a lead alloy or special mold pattern that one could use to cast their own "ground safe" varmint bullets? I was kinda hoping a big, slow moving bullet might be safer than a .22 as far as ricochet's go
Click to expand...
Nope, the bigger and heavier the bullet, the worse it is going to ricochet. If you think .22 rimfire is bad, a large, heavy subsonic is going to be much worse.
 
Prosper you are right on with that news. Silverback and I hmmed and hahhed about 500 S&W in rifle or pistol, and on looking up the velocity and energy specs, it is right up there with my 458 American. Almost identical in both respects except trajectory at longer ranges. As well my 458 is stocked in a 8 pound, boyds laminate stock with a hard rubber recoil pad and a benelli mercury recoil reducer in the stock. This is head and shoulders above the guide gun for shooter comfort. Of course it is pretty heavy for all day hunting.
 
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