Pistol .50
GTA V's high-caliber semi-automatic sidearm — the heavy-handgun tier of V's pistol catalog, available at Ammu-Nation as a late-progression purchase and one of V's most-recognizable sidearm silhouettes.
Skeleton entryQualitative description only — specific stats, locations, and customization paths are added when verifiable against community-measurement archives or Rockstar Newswire posts.
Pistol .50
The Pistol .50 is Grand Theft Auto V's high-caliber semi-automatic sidearm — a large-frame handgun in V's pistol catalog, above the standard Pistol and Combat Pistol in firepower while sitting alongside other heavy-tier handguns (V also has a separate weapon called the Heavy Pistol; the Pistol .50 and the Heavy Pistol are distinct entries). The Pistol .50 has been present since V's 2013 launch, available as an Ammu-Nation purchase at a late-tier progression point, and is one of the small handful of V handguns players reach for when they want sidearm legibility plus stopping power.
What's confirmed
- Class: Sidearm — high-caliber semi-automatic pistol (large-frame handgun, distinct from V's separately-named Heavy Pistol)
- Game: Grand Theft Auto V (2013 original, 2014 PS4/Xbox One re-release, 2022 PS5/Xbox Series X|S "Expanded and Enhanced") and GTA Online
- Acquisition path: Available at Ammu-Nation as a heavy-pistol-tier purchase (specific price tier and unlock progression deferred)
- Tier position within V's pistol catalog: Above the Pistol, Combat Pistol, and AP Pistol; one of V's most damage-tier sidearms
- Variants over V's lifecycle: The Pistol .50 nameplate has carried into Online updates with cosmetic / customization variants (specific variant catalog deferred to verifiable archive review)
What this entry doesn't yet include
Deferred until verifiable:
- Exact damage / fire-rate / recoil / accuracy stats (community-measured numbers vary by patch)
- Magazine capacity and reload speed
- Specific Ammu-Nation price and unlock-progression beat
- Customization catalog at Los Santos Customs / Ammu-Nation (silencer, extended magazine, scope, finish options)
- Specific real-world handgun aesthetic inspiration
- Specific mission appearances (the Pistol .50 is available across V's open-world but specific mission-by-mission citation deferred)
- Spawn locations beyond Ammu-Nation purchase
Why it's catalog-worthy
Of V's sidearms, the Pistol .50 is the one that most players upgrade to once they've worked through the cheaper handguns. It's the legible "I want a real sidearm now" option in V's pistol tier — neither the entry-level Pistol nor the auto-fire AP Pistol. That position makes it one of V's most-purchased weapons across player progression curves.
The Pistol .50 is also the V handgun most commonly seen in player highlights and in GTA Online's PvP free-roam clips — its silhouette is distinctive enough that players can identify the weapon from a distance, which gives it an outsized presence in V's broader visual register.
For GTA VI's eventual sidearm catalog, the question is whether the heavy-handgun-tier Pistol .50 returns under the same nameplate or gets reskinned as a successor large-frame pistol. Either decision is structurally legible; the bigger question is whether VI keeps the multi-tier pistol architecture V established, or simplifies it.
What's connected
- Sticky Bombs · RPG — V's other most-recognizable weapons in the broader catalog
Sources
- Grand Theft Auto V (2013) — base game, primary source for V's Pistol .50
- Rockstar Newswire archive — weapon catalog context across V updates
Skeleton entry. Specific damage stats, magazine capacity, customization catalog, and price-tier specifics land when sourced.