Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns What revolver do I need?

So, say you have $800-$1000 to spend on a revolver, and you want something from .44mag on up to the smith and wesson 500. You're going to use it for deer, blackbear, punching paper, etc. What do you look for, new, used, manufacturer, etc. Give me some ideas here.

S&W Model 629, 6" barrel.

Pretty wide-open question, depending on your preferences for SA, DA, irons, optics, bbl length, and on and on.



My only big bore revolver is a Ruger Super Blackhawk 44 Mag. Had it since 1978. It's always a sensible choice for a outdoors revolver.

A couple others I like, but do not have,

- Ruger Redhawk 5.5" stainless
- Ruger Blackhawk 45 Colt/45 ACP Convertible

Yeah, I'm pretty open to ideas at the moment. I guess I'd say double action, irons(but not opposed to optics), and somewhere around a 6" bbl.

Double action .. I'm not a fan of the Smith and Wessons, the hump behind the hammer hits the joint at the base of my thumb and gives me a thrashing even in .357.

If you can find a 5.5" barreled Redhawk in .45 Colt that'd be a really flexible choice. So would any 7-1/2 inch barreled Redhawk R series or Super Redhawk.

If you want a S&W, I'd suggest the 629 Classic.

If you can find a used Colt Anaconda, those are pretty decent and at least for me more comfortable than the Smith.

I have 2 .44s I hunt with, both Super Blackhawks, a 4-5/8" barreled blued gun that's my day to day holster gun and a 7-1/2 inch bisley hunter I bought fairly recently and haven't really shot a lot ... but I like it!

629 4"

A Ruger Redhawk 44 or a Smith 29 in 44 for decent cast or jacketed dimensions, economy and ease of simplicity.

If you want to get beyond simple and take the reward to another level, the Redhawk, Smith 25-5 or a Colt Ananaconda, all in 45 Colt, get my personal vote. A 44 Anaconda also fits the bill in this category.

With your criteria, I would suggest a a 7.5" Redhawk .44 Magnum with the sight base cuts in the barrel. Used, if I could find it. If you don't care about easy scope mounting I might go S&W 629-6" or Blackhawk-6.5".

I like 629's a lot and have a couple of Blackhawks but IMHO the Redhawk offers strength, they are easy to scope, all stainless construction,reasonable weight, easily interchanged iron sights and a long enough cylinder to handle heavy bullet loads.

For a simon pure hunting revolver either the Ruger Bisley Hunter or Super Redhawk. Both have the weight and grips to really tame recoil of full house .44's, both have a long sight radius to allow pinpoint aiming out to 100 yards or more if your eyes are up to it and both come equipped for easy scope mounting if you want to use optics. I've never had an inaccurate Ruger .44 and I've had a bunch of them, they seem to get the dimensions right on those. Downside is their weight and size, they're hunting revolvers, not daily carry type firearms. But I carried a 7 1/2" Super Blackhawk quite a bit while hiking when I was younger and never found it to be a bother, the length only gets in the way if riding in a vehicle.

I used to shop used firearms almost exclusively, but there are sooo many bubba 'gunsmiths' and crappy handloaders around here that it has switched to almost exclusively new. The exceptions are the firearms I know a lot about and am comfortable appraising in the limited way most gun shops or owners allow.

I have purchased exactly one firearm sight unseen, and that was new and rare enough that I had to locate it on the web.

I like the Ruger Super Blackhawk Bisley Hunter is quite a gun. Comes in 44 Mag or 45 Colt (harder to find) Comes with rings and you can carry it with or without the scope.

I also like the BFR 475linbaugh/480Ruger Single action. They go about $1000.

Dan Wesson 715 - - - 357 Magnum - $1,168.00
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Don't know if these are actually available? Worth looking into . . .

> http://cz-usa.com/product/dan-wesson-715/ <

I have a M29 (8 3/8" ) and P&R'd M629 (4") that would fill the bill. But I am not unloading 'til I retire in a few months.

I'm liking the feedback so far guys, all good info. I'll add to the mix that I already have a colt anaconda .44mag. I've hunted with it, but it's in pristine shape, and has the box, and every piece of paper it ever came with when it was brand new. Blank warranty card, letter from colt, etc. So, it's hitting collector status and taking up residence in the back of the safe. Which is why I need to get another. So far, it's looking like the Ruger redhawk and the smith 686 are getting the most votes. I'll be reloading for whatever I get if that makes any difference as well. Keep the info coming guys!

If you are going new vs. used .44 I would go the Redhawk 5.5". I had one in .41 Magnum and it is built like a tank. Also had a 7.5" .44 that I took one deer with.

If you want a little bigger take a look at the Ruger .454 Super Redhawk...

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=466088989

Personally I like the grip on the Super Redhawk over the standard Redhawk...

Bob

Blackhawk, Redhawk, (Super or standard) or 29 in .44 mag.

If you don't shoot double action, I wouldn't buy a double action handgun.

In my opinion "do-all" pistol cartridges start and stop with the 44 mag.




Travis

Travis, 41 mag, it's the cartridge of champions. I agree with you about SA vs. DA. I'm looking for a Bisley now to compare with the standard Blackhawk.

If you like single actions I would start with one of the 5.5 Ruger Bisley 45's ( if you are a 1911 guy, make it a 45LC/ACP convertable). It will be way under your price ceiling, so I would spend a few bucks and have the cylinder reamed, a white outline rear sight blade, and a trigger job and a good holster or two.

They're cool. No doubt. But there's no .41 Specials on any shelf I've walked past.

That pretty much rules it out as a "do-all" in my opinion.



Travis

S&W Model 69 .44 Mag