Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns S&W 629 44 mag ---stout?

I tell ya what. I'd hate to see him send substandard stuff to AZ, so he outta send it to VA first, and I can see if they are up to your standards.....(grin)

That it a nice combo!

Thanks.

I shot my old 629 for years and years with the 300 gr Sierra [yes Sierra] jacketed flat point soft point just shy of 1200 fps, my revolver, dont remember the numbers, but it was stainless with rubber Hogues, had a smooth cylinder, and a 6" barrel, it was a double tough and accurate bullet, NEVER got to recover one on ANY deer or pig I poked.

I purposely shot a buck from a tree stand high on the left hip [iirc 18 yards], bullet ranged across the body through the liver and lungs and exited low right shoulder, he crumpled at the shot.

I WANTED A RECOVERED BULLET DAMMITT! no deal.

Back on topic, and sorry for the ramble, my revolver was still tight and in very good serviceable condition when I handed it off to a Bud for a nice fistful of cabbage, still miss that revolver sometimes, it was nice.

Your revolver should have stayed tight since your 1100+ velocity is not high enough to over stress a S&W M-29/629.

10-4 JWP, that and the EFFECTIVENESS of that bullet was some easy cool hunting power.

Exactly.

John what is your favorite cast load in the 44 mag....if you do not mind. I have plenty of H110 and LILGUN.

I do not cast my own so can you also recommend a cast bullet that can be bought. (Lasercast beartooth cast performance Xtreme bullets etc,)


Thanks

I have used Cast Performance, and Rim Rock and they were both good. I have used H-110/296 since the mid eighties.

With a 240 hard cadet 23 to 24 grains H-110/296

With a 300 hard cast 18 to 19 grains H-110/296

thank you JOHN! Now are gas checks required at these speeds?

As long as the bullets are hard enough and not undersized the are not required in my experience. I have seldom used them even at higher velocities and no longer use them at all.

I've got a S&W 629-3 (4" bbl) and a S&W Model 69 (5 shot on L frame). I generally uses moderate loads for shooting/plinking and stout loads for walking in the woods. I've never had any issues.

I owned 5 29's over the years and shot the lights out of them. I had to shoot a lot of factory loads back in 56 and 57 to get brass. They were so hot you can't come close with hand loads. If you damage a S&W with normal weight bullets, you are doing something wrong. My favorite load was the 429421 with 22 gr of 2400 and when 296 came out I moved to it.
I never shot mouse loads. Not what I wanted a .44 mag for.
You do not need gas checks in them unless you shoot softer lead. The check is a skid stop only. Stop skid with hardness.
Most clean and shoot dry guns that wear. Shoot fast double action that beats the parts. Cylinder stop and notches in the cylinder. Then complain about the gun "shot loose." Jerry has the whole S&W factory behind him, we don't.
I know the gun and what you should not use and have nothing bad to say about them.
Ruger's are stronger and my old SBH is at 80,000 heavy loads with no wear you can measure. Proper lube. No fanning the gun.

I haven't had the luck with S&W 629s mentioned here. I had two 629 early models which begin rotating backwards. I didn't overload them either, using 240 grain cast SWC and 8 grains of Unique. I shot 50 rounds a day for two years with each and sold the guns after problems developed. The first went to MagNaPort and got chopped to 5 inches and the second 4 inch stayed stock. I have read of endurance packages that have solved these problems. I have a six inch 629-1 and a four inch Mountain Gun 629-4 so my love affair with S&W 44 Magnums isn't over. My new factory engraved anniversary model 29-10 6.5" blued 29 is fun to shoot but I want it in one piece for years into the future. I'm pretty well settled with 8.5 grains of Unique and 240 grain cast SWCs unless I'm hunting. Any endurance issues with these models that anyone knows about?

Cylinders going backwards happened on some, the cylinder stop spring is too weak and inertia drops the stop. Torque from twist will spin the cylinder backwards. Easy fix is a better spring.
One other thing that S&W fixed with the new package, the unlocking pin in the center of the cylinder would peen so the gun got hard to open. Pin was too soft. All the problems have been simple things.