Freedom Arms Model 83 .500 WE

Model 83 .500 WE
Type	Revolver
Place of origin	United States
Production history
Designer	Dick Casull
Designed	1950s
Manufacturer	Freedom Arms
Specifications
Mass	51 oz (3.2 lb)
Barrel length	4.75 in (121 mm), 6 in (150 mm), or 7.5 in (190 mm)
Cartridge	.500 Wyoming Express
Action	Single-action
Muzzle velocity	1,300 ft/s (396 m/s) with 420 gr (27 g) projectile
Feed system	5-round cylinder
Sights	Rear square notch, front blade

Model 83 .500 WE is a single action revolver manufactured by Freedom Arms chambered for the .500 Wyoming Express round. In the 1986 film Armed and Dangerous, John Candy brandishes a Freedom Arms Model 83 chambered in .454 Casull (with scope), claiming it's "a .50 caliber," designed for "hunting buffalo...up close." Candy adds that the firearm is only legal in two states, and "this [California] ain't one of them."

Nate Romanowski - a continuing character in the C. J. Box series of “Joe Pickett” books - falconer and former special forces - carries a model 83 chambered in .454 Casull which he shoots with uncanny accuracy and without an electronic sight. Later in the series, he begins to carry a model 83 chambered in 500 Wyoming express, noting that the heavier projectile recoils more smoothly and tends to pass through a target, lessening the chance of a forensics team finding the projectile.

References

• Smith, Gary. "50 Caliber Shootout Archived 2020-10-03 at the Wayback Machine." Handgun Hunter Magazine, June 2008.
• Quinn, Jeff. "The .500 Wyoming Express from Freedom Arms." www.gunblast.com, 7 November 2005.