A little New Year’s fun with 22Plinkster. He’s been making videos with more than just .22LR for some time now, so this isn’t his first time covering the .500 S&W. It is, however, his first time covering it while it’s loaded with Underwood’s .500 S&W 700 grain Lead Wide Flat Nose ammo. First, a little background.

The .500 Smith and Wesson Magnum cartridge was designed in a collaborative effort between Cor-Bon and Smith & Wesson and was officially announced at SHOT Show 2003. It was Smith & Wesson’s project manager, Herb Belin, who was credited with presenting the idea of the revolver to the company’s sales team. The idea was simple, really: create a revolver – and, of course, accompanying cartridge – capable of delivering greater power than any other handgun made thus far. It was meant to be an awesomely powerful hunting round able to take down all manner of game, and it certainly delivered (and then some).

Today it’s pretty standard to find ammunition for your Model S&W 500 with bullet weights ranging from 300 grain to 500 grain. But Underwood took things a step farther when they came out with 700 grain rounds; these rounds aren’t just super-sized, they’re mammoth-sized.

There are quite a few big, bad-ass cartridges out there that are fantastic for hunting with handguns. In fact, you don’t technically need a massive round to make a deadly impression. I can attest to the fact that my 10mm will drop deer and feral hogs with no problem whatsoever. Then again if you’re going after truly large game and want to use a handgun you will definitely benefit from a .44 Magnum or, yes, a .500 S&W. I will readily admit I would love an opportunity to hunt with a .500 S&W.

Take a look at this somewhat festive video from 22Plinkster. If you have an awesome hunting handgun of your own, drop a picture in the comments (anyone with a .500 S&W want to go hunting?).