The .45 Long Colt in the factory loadings has a similar overall recoil impulse as the .45 ACP; however, perceived/felt recoil for the two operates somewhat differently depending on whether you're shooting a revolver or semi-auto. The slide cycle of the semi-auto takes a lot of the brute force "kick" out of the perceived recoil. Firing a .45 ACP out of a revolver will feel quite different, and very similar to the .45 Long Colt factory loads.
That being said, if you can handle a .357 Magnum, I'd think you'd be able to handle a .45 Long Colt with little to no problems. If you can handle a .44 Magnum, you'll think the .45 Long Colt is a popgun.
Don't confuse the .480 Ruger with the .460 S&W. The .460 can also fire the .454 and .45 Long Colt ammunition; the .480 CANNOT. I've visually compared the .480 to the .45 Long Colt, and there's a definite diameter difference.
AFAIK, if you buy a .480, the ONLY thing you can shoot in it is .480 Ruger.
Now, the .454 Casull can shoot the .45 Long Colt as well. Ruger makes a Super Redhawk in .454, and it's quite a sturdy (and heavy) pistol.
If you want .45 Long Colt/.45 ACP interchangeability, get a Ruger Blackhawk "Convertible." It's a single-action revolver that has seperate cylinders for the two cartridges; due to the fact that .45 ACP, the shorter cartridge, headspaces on the case mouth, it's not possible as far as I know to shoot both out of the same cylinder.
Again, a .480 Ruger Super Redhawk CANNOT fire .45 Long Colt. A .454 Casull Super Redhawk CAN.
The .45 Long Colt is a very easy-shooting cartridge, as normally loaded. Factory "cowboy" ammunition typically runs at an easy, soft-recoilling 700-800 feet per second for a 250-grain slug. .357 Magnum out of a revolver kicks considerably more.
With either the Ruger Blackhawk or the Redhawk, though, the .45 Long Colt can be "hot-rodded" very nearly to .44 Magnum levels (and in a couple instances, actually slightly faster than the .44). And if you own the Super Redhawk .454, you can shoot the full-blown Casull rounds as well.
A brief comparison of the velocities involved here, using Hornady's data for their .45 caliber 250-grain XTP-HP bullet:
.45 Long Colt "Normal Loads" (appropriate for Colt SAA replicas, and non-Ruger pistols)
Top speed, around 850 fps.
.45 Long Colt "Ruger Only Loads" (also can be used in the Thompson Center single-shot pistols)
Top speed, around 1400 fps.
.454 Casull (no data for the 250-grain, as it's jacket is probably too thin for these velocities)
Top speed, around 1850 fps (240-grain)
Top speed, around 1650 fps (300-grain)
I have no data for the .460 S&W.
My own "hunting handgun" is a Ruger New Model Blackhawk, chambered in .45 Long Colt. This fall, I'll be packing it with some 250-grain Hornadys, running around 1300 feet per second, more than adequate for ANYTHING I'll run across. Unless I plan on hunting Grizzly, I simply have no need for anything stronger than the "Ruger Loads" in this caliber.
BTW, if you look at Ruger's "Vaquero" line, do be aware there is a difference between the "Vaquero .45 Colt" and the "New Vaquero .45 Colt." New Vaqueros, for some odd reason, weren't built to handle Ruger-loads, but regular Vaqueros supposedly can. A friend of mine carries a regular Vaquero as his hunting handgun, and is quite fond of it.
My mother can and has handled them as well; while they're not her cup of tea (as she prefers .38 Special and .45 ACP), I've not noticed them giving her any problems.