These revolvers have a huge advantage over steel models in terms of weight and durability. Titanium is less than two-thirds the weight of an equivalent volume of steel, so an all-titanium revolver actually weighs less than a same-size aluminum-frame/steel-cylinder revolver. The .41 Magnum Titanium Tracker weighs exactly 24 ounces. A similarly featured, 4-inch, adjustable-sight, stainless-steel Taurus Model 66SS .357 Magnum weighs 38 ounces. The Tracker is nearly a pound lighter--37 percent lighter, in fact. As for durability, titanium comes as close to being indestructible as any manufactured material can be. Even the best stainless steel will eventually rust or corrode. Titanium won't.

Taurus Model 500

The Tracker grips are the patented Taurus Ribber design, which absorb recoil and increase controllability to an amazing degree. Molded from a soft-textured polymer, the Ribber's backstrap is thickly cushioned around the reduced-dimension inner titanium grip frame, and the front and sides of the grip are formed by wraparound, closely spaced small elastomere ribs, which deform and squeeze together when grasped, shaping themselves into natural finger grooves that mold to the individual shape and surface of the palm and fingers of the specific hand.

Released, they return to natural, ready for the next different grasp. Plus, the many small ridges greatly increase the surface area contact between the grip and your palm as compared to conventional solid-surface grips. This grip, combined with the Tracker's integrally ported 4-inch full-lug barrel, makes the gun genuinely comfortable to fire, even with full-power .41 Magnum ammunition. As an exercise, I've rapped five rapid-fire rounds of Winchester's 240-grain Platinum Tip out of the gun just as fast as I could pull the trigger, and the ported barrel's quick recovery kept them all in a 12-inch circle on a seven-yard target. Which is as close as I'm inclined to let a mama bear get.

Guns For The Wilderness
Ruger's offering to the field-sidearm category is the Super Redhawk Alaskan, introduced in 2005 in .454 Casull/.45 Colt and .480 Ruger calibers. Now in 2006 it's available in .44 Magnum as well. The Alaskan features a 2 1/2-inch hammer-forged barrel fitted inside the unique Super Redhawk extended frame manufactured from proprietary Ruger stainless steel. The short-barreled, easy-to-carry, backcountry revolver features Ruger's famous triple locking cylinder mechanism and is equipped with a special-design wraparound Hogue Monogrip to help cushion recoil. The grip is similar in design to the Hogue/S&W X-Frame grip.

Dick says if you ever actually have to fire a big-bore powerhouse in an emergency situation, the last thing you'll be paying attention to is its recoil. (Pictured: Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan).

Nonetheless, the double-action Super Redhawk's hump-shouldered frame design (like S&W's) transmits recoil energy impact directly backward into the palm and wrist without the moderating rotational vector associated with a smooth-shouldered single-action grip design. Compared to a single-action .454 Casull revolver, which will rotate in the shooter's grip to a near-vertical barrel position after firing, the recoil force that is dissipated through the rotation of the grip sliding through the shooter's hand in an SA design is transmitted straight back through the grip into the shooter with the DA design. It hits you.

That's the bad news. The good news is that should you ever have to use the Super Redhawk Alaskan model .454 for its intended purpose, the last thing in the world you'll be paying attention to is recoil. Using full-power .454 ammunition, the Alaskan's purpose is close-up protection from in-your-face predators with fangs and claws, and you'll actually be best off with the loads that have the most power and recoil possible.