I believe that buck's point is that it's a matter of perspective. You may consider them over the top, but someone who hunts large or dangerous game with a handgun would consider them perfectly normal and reasonable hardware for that purpose. They certainly are impressive, but a reasonable use could be argued for any of them................... with the exception of a 45-70 revolver. Those are just stupid given the velocity loss with a short barrel. I see no practical use for them that a traditional handgun cartridge like the 44, 460, or the 500 variants won't do just as well out of a handgun.
Hold one before you write them off all together. For me the grip encouraged the muzzle to flip causing the grip to rotate in my hand no matter how good of a grip I had on it. That motion caused the texturing to chew up the skin on my palm after a few rounds. The S&W grips seem to push back towards the web of my hand which I prefer for the hard hitting rounds.
Which is why they should have smooth grips. Then the question becomes how much recoil can you handle before it slaps you in the noggin. I pushed .475 Linebaugh to the upper limits of published loads in mine. If it had smooth grips I doubt I would of been able to keep a good hold of it, and with the textured grips it chewed up my hands. If I were to do it again I would convert a Ruger Bisley.
