454 Casull Ammo

History of 454 Casull Ammunition

.454 Casull ammunition is among the world's most powerful handgun cartridges - in fact, it held the title of the world's most powerful for decades. First introduced in 1958, the 454 Casull was developed by lengthening a .45 Colt cartridge case by 1/10" and also making it thicker to handle more pressure. Unlike other handgun ammunition, 454 Casull cartridges use small rifle primers because of the extremely high pressures involved - over 65,000 PSI.

For comparison purposes, all .45 Colt standard pressure ammunition on the market today is limited to 14,000 PSI or less. Despite their external similarities, the 454 Casull is far more powerful, developing nearly 2,000 ft-lbs of muzzle energy, as opposed to the 400 ft-lbs or so of standard .45 Colt loads.

Because of the power of the cartridge, firearm manufacturers were slow to develop revolvers that could withstand the power of the 454 Casull. The first 454 Casull revolvers were made by Freedom Arms in 1983, but the cartridge was not accepted as standardized ammunition by SAAMI, the organization that regulates ammunition in the United States, until 1998. After that, several major manufacturers started making guns in .454 Casull, including Ruger with the Super Redhawk Alaskan and Taurus with its 454 Casull Raging Bull and Raging Judge Magnum.