Magnum Research’s BFR long frame revolver was originally designed to fire rifle cartridges. It was later chambered in ultra-high performance pistol calibers like the 500 S&W as they became available. The initial target market for the BFR was handgun hunters, and the 30-30 Winchester chambering has been a staple since the beginning.
Given its intended hunting use, a current production model was reviewed and also used at Handgun Hunters Competition.
In the Box
The BFR received for testing was a stock, brushed stainless steel, standard grip long-frame, with a 10-inch round barrel. It was well packaged in a way to ensure it arrives without damage.
The BFR comes with a serrated ramp front sight and an LPA adjustable rear sight. As with all BFR’s, it is packaged with a Weaver style rail machined from a solid block of aluminum and mounting screws.
Additionally, included with the revolver were tools to remove the grip and adjust the rear sight, along with an instruction manual, gun lock, and a copy of the Constitution of the United States.
Grips, finish, and the specs.
The BFR’s standard rubber grips and brushed finish appeal to me, and I find both quite practical for hunting. As with other BFR’s I have shot, the action was quite smooth with no grinding, rough spots or hangups felt.
The cylinder gap measured 0.004 inches, and its rotation was super smooth with a tight lock up. Straight out of the box, the trigger broke cleanly at 3½ pounds. All of this gave me high hopes that the revolver would perform well.
Testing on the Range
Accuracy and precision were measured using 3 and 6-shot groups at 25 and 50 yards with open sights for that application, and again at 50 and 100 yards with either a Weaver 2.5-8X Classic handgun scope, or Crimson Trace Brushline Pro 2.5-8X pistol scope. Bullet velocities were measured using a Caldwell Chronograph 10 feet from the muzzle and reported velocities and extreme spreads are the average of six consecutive shots.
All test firing was done similar to how I hunt. Shots were fired off a bench from the kneeling position, with the butt and frame of the gun supported by light weight bags I use for hunting.
The Ammunition
Three factory loads were tested. They all demonstrated good precision and produced velocities 500 to 600 fps below the manufacturer’s advertised velocities when fired from a rifle.
Hornady’s American Whitetail 150 gr Interlock® load averaged 1,740 fps, with an extreme spread of just 26 fps. This load produced 3-shot groups of 1.25 inches at 50 yards and slightly over 2-inches at 100 yards, with the smallest 100-yard group measuring 1.85 inches.
Hornady Leverevolution 160 gr FTX rounds left the muzzle at 1,890 fps, with an extreme spread of 56 fps. This was the most accurate factory load tested, yielding 3-shot groups of about three-quarters of an inch at 50 yards and just under 2-inches at 100 yards. As with other factory ammo, firing a full, 6-shot cylinder pushed group sizes 2 to 3 times larger. Something primarily due to my stringing shots vertically as I struggled to develop a consistent follow through due to the heft of the guns long frame.
Winchester 170 gr Power Points were clocked at 1,652 fps with an extreme spread of 24 fps. These were the heaviest bullets tested and produced 3-shot groups averaging 1.5” at 50 yards and about 3-inches at 100 yards, with a best 3-shot 100-yard group measuring 1.75 inches. Similar to the other factory loads, as I fired more rounds in the same test group things opened up, mostly in the vertical plane.
Basically, with factory ammo, the BFR proved to be a 2 to 3 MOA gun in my hands. More than adequate for hunting deer sized game at the effective range of .30 caliber bullets driven at revolver velocities.
Preparing for Competition
To prepare for and compete in the Revolver / Pistol Open Sights division of the 2025 Handgun Hunters Competition, I tested 24 different load combinations using Hogden H335 and Winchester 748 pushing Speer 110gr JHP Varmint, Sierra 125gr spitzer, Hornady 150gr InterLock SP, Sierra 150gr FP, Sierra 150gr GameKing SBT, and even some old Remington 150gr Bronze Points I had laying around.
I found pretty quickly the BFR did not shoot either the 110gr varmint or boat-tail bullets well. My suspicion is these bullets were not contacting the rifling in a consistently concentric manner. In the case of the little varmint bullets, not only was there a very long jump to the lands, but powder charges left a lot of empty space in the cases – not a good combination for consistency. With the boat-tail designs, I suspect the reduced bearing surface and shape resulted in stabilizing issues as they made a long jump through the cylinder and forcing cone to the lands.
Handholds coming soon
Following the Handgun Hunters Competition I worked up some very accurate loads using Cutting Edge 125gr Maximus™ powered by Hodgdon Varget. I plan an article detailing reloading for the 30-30 revolver in a future HHA post.
LPA rear Sight
Point of impact was very similar for my reloads with three of the 150gr bullets, and I used these in the 2025 Handgun Hunters Competition. The BFR and handloads performed admirably over the two-day event. Shooting in the iron sights division, I found the stock LPA rear sight to be very good and have ample adjustment.
This rear sight is also quite user friendly, with solid clicks and stopping points as both elevation and windage adjustments were made. The ramp front sight is of a width that is narrow enough to center well on the target but leaves sufficient gap with the rear sight to be used in lower light conditions.
The Competition
I sighted the revolver for a two to three inch six-O’clock hold at 100 yards, and was able to connect on big game vital sized steel out to 160 yds in the match. As an HHC range officer and Handgun Hunters Charitable Foundation Board member, my score didn’t count. However, if it had, I would have placed extremely well.
I did encounter issues with sunlight at oblique angles to the side causing glare on part of the front sight, which resulted in difficulty centering it on target. A partridge blade front sight, perhaps with brass bead, would help with this and improve consistency and accuracy. Fermin Garza makes excellent replacement front sights; one of which I have on a BFR I used to take mule deer, pronghorn antelope, and elk at ranges from 65 to 123 yards with iron sights.
Round Count
A total of 400 rounds of factory and reloaded ammunition were fired during testing and competition. Not a single malfunction or shooting issue was encountered. Additionally, the gun’s slightly over five-pound unloaded weight with iron sights made felt recoil similar to that of a .357 magnum loads in a BFR short framed model with a 7½ in. barrel. When scoped, the added weight made the gun quite enjoyable to shoot.
Nevertheless, while the cylinder continued to lock up well, it did loosen noticeably over the 400 rounds, but not more so than most other factory revolvers I have shot, and accuracy did not suffer because of it. However, it is critical to use blue Loctite, or a similar compound, on the cylinder pin retaining screw. I did not do this during testing, and twice I found it had loosened and back off. I know to keep an eye on this, as I have had this issue on a couple other BFR’s, and witnessed a shooter in the HHC one year loose his retaining screw in the middle of the competition.
Field shooting Recommendations
The hunter who plans to shoot a long frame BFR needs to practice from a variety of shooting positions with the gun supported in a way that allows consistent follow through. The challenge with the long frame and barrel is tensioning the grip in a similar fashion with each shot due to the forward weighted design.
After trying a number of rests, I found that using a short bag under the grip and taller bag to support the frame worked best. With the bags so located, the shooter can adjust the gun’s position by moving and squeezing the bag under the frame. When the sights are on target, you can then grip the gun more consistently with your strong hand while not moving it off target.
Overall, the 30-30 Win. BFR is a very well made and fine shooting revolver. Ballistically and performance wise, it would make a good choice for taking up to mule deer sized game out to 200 yards with readily available and reasonably priced factory ammo.
One response to “MRI BFR 30-30 Revolver by: Joe Sandrini”
Very nice write up!