The .700 WTF : For Hunting Dinosaurs
A member of the Cast Boolits forums posted photos and video of a rifle and .700 caliber cartridge he designed. The only component he did not make himself was the barrel.
The cartridge, named the .700 WTF ("What The F...") and is made by fire forming a .50 BMG brass case, trimming it to 3" in length and then sizing it. The round is loaded with a 1132 grain paper patched .700 lead cast bullet.
The rifle, with just a 16.25" barrel, can push the 1132 grain of lead up to 2300 fps. Thats 13,000 ft/lbs of energy, right up there with the .50 BMG and far exceeding the .700 Nitro Express. The cast lead bullet has enough energy to pass clean through a 1/4" steel plate.
The rifle uses a shell-holder style action. My understanding is that the difference between a shell holder and a bolt action is that a shell holder lacks an automatic ejector and must be entirely removed from the action in order to load a new cartridge. Note how in the video below the shell holder, holding the cartridge, it loaded into he rifle.
The rifle is accessorized with a Magpul pistol grip (probably the largest caliber gun to ever be fitted with a Magpul accessory), a Limbsaver recoil pad and a Aimpoint comp M4.
Juding by the video case extraction is tough. If you miss your shot at a charging Rhino T-Rex, you need to be able to reload quickly.
UPDATE: The inventor believes the rifle is not classified by the BATFE as a destructive because it is a sporting weapon. There is sporting weapons, such as shotguns and big bore double rifles, are exempt, the usual procedure it to obtain a letter from the BATFE stating that the particular weapon is a sporting weapon.
[ Many thanks to James T for emailing us the link. ]
Muchos Gracias for your blog article.Really looking forward to read more. Great.
Oh look; it’s a spammer.
People in America have a right to make what they like, with the right approvals They also have a right to call the gun and the bullet whatever they want. If you don’t want one because you don’t like it or the name, then don’t buy one. Even better, don’t even comment, if all you have is a negative comment…
and who are the retards who shot this video??? isnt the impact, what the round does to the target what people really want to see?
I’m thinking the video is mostly for those doing the shooting & don’t we all like to see ourselves doing cool stuff?
I thought the “after action” look at the bullet & plate was pretty informative.
there are sporting weapons. every single article i read on the internet has a grammatical error, and im getting sick of it.
“there are sporting weapons. every single article i read on the internet has a grammatical error, and im getting sick of it.”
Okay, if you want to complain about articles with poor grammer, you’ll need to learn grammer for yourself. Try this –
“There are sporting weapons. Every single article I read on the internet as a grammatical error, and I’m getting sick of it.”
Much better.
“Grammar”. Not “grammer”. It’s “grammar”.
You missed the “h” off has……:-)
Anyway: If there’s one thing I love about firearms, it is their sheer diversity & this is one more added to the pool.
Where would we be without the innovators & “off the wall” thinkers?
Still shooting muskets most likely.
Great invention, awesome idea, but I agree with the comment up towards the top – EXTRMELY POOR FIREARM SAFETY. You guys need to do this cool stuff AND set an example that won’t get your video clip posted on Brady’s website as an example of why we shouldn’t be allowed to own even single-shot weapons…..
Agreed: It’s no excuse to relax safety because it’s a single shot firearm, as this breaks the instinctive habit we should all have about safe practices.
Im surprised that the kick doesn’t look all that bad in the video. Well, it looks bad, but I mean limbs are still attached afterwards and such.
Wow, nice muzzle control while sweeping his friends. I mean it happens at times while training, but come on…
For overkill purposes, I’m going to need one with an expanding bullet. Those pesky squirrels just don’t learn, do they?
Put a longer barrel on it and make a FMJ round for it. Would make an excellent anti-material rifle. It could easily crack an engine block or blow the tracks off a tank with a well placed shot.
Or you could take it deer hunting…if you really hate deer.
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Now what we need is the actual Jurassic Park.
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
We’ll talk when it’s a necked up 20mm.
Rob: That would be the .950 JDJ.
I’d like to add that the gun DOES have an extractor, just no ejector. The shellholder style action will extract the fired case, but you will then have to remove them from the bolt. P.S I’m NOT the inventor of this gun, I just followed the design and build closely and talk to the designer frequently.
Forgive me if this has already been asked, or is a dumb question…. but I gotta know: where can I get one? or more appropriately, how much would it set me back?
He built it at home… I’m sure he’ll send you the specs!
But the whole point of this rifle seems to be 50BMG level of power in a gun that you can run cast lead bullets through.
how much are a couple of spare bolts that you can keep loaded with cartridges for quick reloads?
Pop out the spent bolt, slap in a new loaded one…
Is the short barrel so it can be used for home defence?
So, for a “quick followup” you have to have a bandoleer with extra bolts and .700 rounds?
I’m guessing he’s not keeping a spare bolt in the magpul grip?
Are they planning on making a magnum version?
i agree matt, the stopping power just isnt enough
and here comes the ienvitable chuck norris joke…….
chuck norris called and he said he wants his BB gun back
Maybe with a magazine (3 rounds + 1 in the chamber) and a Mauser-style action, then I’d hunt T-Rex or Giganotosaurus with it. Otherwise, no thanks.
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Or, it’s what someone builds when they have way more skill than time to spend watching Dancing with the Stars.
Sporting Exemption should be easy to get. JD Jones does it often enough. Same with the 12 Gauge From Hell and its variants.
Excellent concept and execution. The world needs more garage designers like this fellow.
Best,
JBR
I’ve been wanting a new squirrel gun…hmmmmm….
i am assuming your “hmmmmm” is to be said, stroking your beard (or wear your beard would be) and looking out to the upper-right and direction
The name has a lot of win!
I am afraid I’ll have to side with gvass: rifled barrel, over .50-caliber, definitely a DD. I don’t think the BATFE will be much prone to give this an exemption.
I would have to say that if there is a public youtube video up with 15,000 views, and the ATF has not come knocking on his door, it is not a destructive device. Besides, if an over 50 caliber rifled gun is illegal, that puts alot of 577 t-rex’s and nitro express guns in an odd place.
Looks like you’re underestimating the facts that:
#1 – Most of the over-.50 “safari” cartridges are well-established “sporting” calibers, some of them as old as over 1 century, and that would be hard for the BATFE to reclassify them, unlike what they could easily do for new developments.
#2 – The guns normally chambered for those calibers are not “evil-looking”, this one is… and we all know what BATFE thinks about.
#3 – The BATFE is usually “strong with the weak, weak with the strong” – a well-established gun company will have more chances that an amateur.
Is not like I am saying that this *should* be a DD. I am just saying that I don’t trust the BATFE’s judgement in taking the right decision; we all know their well-established “position”, and we all know it’s all but permissive.
Isn’t it a Destructive Device? .50+ caliber, rifled barrel.
We all know dinosaurs are dead there for hunting terminators LOL. By the way ouch looks painful.
Put a 20-24″ barrel on it, give it an extractor, and I’ll take one! I’m surprised to see how easily those guys are taking the recoil too!
I think that tank brake on the muzzle has a lot to do with that, same as on most .50 bmg rifles.
Don’t let the makers of COD see it, or all the COD nerds will jump around ‘quickscoping’ and dual wielding it in the next Modern Warfare
As an actual nerd, I take good hearted offense. COD kiddies are not nerds by any stretch of the imagination. Real nerds are busy either writing their own games or playing games that have some actual value to them beyond hype. /nerd
Hey, I’m not trying to offend anyone. I love to play video games. I’m just hating on COD. Next time I will remember not to use ‘nerd’ if people are going to get so touchy about it.
Take that and shove it, “don’t kill any Dinos” Terra Nova Emo Series!
I wonder what the tax stamp costs for a destructive device like that?
$200, like most other class 3 items.
Some are only $5.
This may be eligible for a DD exemption but I don’t know all the criteria for exemption.
The requirement for exemption is the ATF deciding it’s worthy. Technically, a cartridge must have sporting purpose, but thing s like the .950 JDJ, which has no such purpose, have gotten through before, as have all the big Safari calibers.
Really, the ATF just doesn’t want 20mm Vulcan and similar stuff getting through.
incredible…utterly incredible.
Wow! That is all.
Best quote from the video:
“The bullet only started out as 1132 grains.”
Oh, is that all?
What powder and charge weight?
it hovers around 190 grains of W748 powder
how much does the rifle weigh? (trying to figure the recoil impulse, not counting the brake)
He said it weighs 14 lbs. with the aimpoint.
Perfect weapon for Burt Gummer.
exactly my same thought :p
It’s just so . . . so full of win
he should try n sell it to the FBI
Yeah, I wonder if it’s a 100% stopper per FBI guidelines?
AWESOME job on the machining and build! This man is obviously skilled…
Which makes me wonder why he didn’t build an extractor…?
AND
how much does it weigh!?!?!?!?!
it looks incredibly light yet everyone is handling recoil like it’s nothing at all!!!
14lbs minus the weight of the muzzle break.
That. Is. Awesome.
God Bless America!
Heh. Reminds me of a Chris Titus joke.
To paraphrase:
Terrorists messing with America? Are you sure you want to do that? We build drag cars that go from 0 to 300 in a quarter mile because we’re bored. Imagine what we’ll build if you really piss us off.
Wow! Awesome Gun, that would knock down a T-Rex for sure, Now make one to take down a bunch of Zombies! LOL!!
The zombies would have to line up.
I think the name is quite appropriate.
Oh, come on. Have a sense of humor.
Reading is fundamental…