Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Which 629

I’m thinking about getting rid of some handguns I never use, and replacing them with a .44

I have always liked the 4” S&W 629. If you were out looking for one, which variant would be your most desired?
I’m assuming most here would prefer an older pre-lock 629?

Thank you.

Mountain Gun

Check out the 69 too, love mine

It would have to be a pinned and recessed no dash for me. Bring your wallet.

Would that be a -2 variant, same as the 29? Or only no dash were pinned and recessed??

How much would you think one might run?

I have a very nice wather PPK (Interarms) and a S&W 39 I’m thinking of parting with to cushion the blow.

How much are you going to shoot it and how often are you going to shoot heavy loads?

My favorite .44 Special is a 329PD. It is uncomfortable to shoot with .44 Magnum loads, but great with .44 Special level loads.

I have had 4" 625 and 629 MGs and found the 625 easier to shoot with heavy loads.

I like the Mountain Gun but the thin barrel makes it really snappy, especially with full-house loads. Another option is the 329 PD which is a 629 but titanium. Its also snappy. But my main application is backup when salmon fishing so I really prefer something lighter, and just deal with the barrel flip.

For all around use a straight 29 or 629 in a 4 or 6" would be optimum. I like the older ones with the pin on the hammer. Not sure the technical name for that. But a lot steadier, especially with X frame grips.

And one year, right after shoulder surgery, I used a long barreled 629 as my only deer "rifle". It was all I could handle, left hand no less, and I'm a rightie.

Well I’ll be handloading for it, so will cook up some reduced loads for shooting fun, and make up some heavy stuff for pig and backpacking.
I’ll check out the 625 as well as the suggested Mountain gun, which if memory serves me, is a pretty light revolver, made to carry.

The 29-2 is the last of the P&R blued version of the same gun.

The only stainless 629 that is P&R is the 629, with no dash.

Nice 4"ers usually bring 1k plus.

N-Frame Mountain Guns are quite a bit heavier and larger than the 329PD. Lots of people have put the cushioned grips from a 460 on the 329PD to help handle the recoil.

Have been reading a lot of reviews, most seem to prefer the straight 629 over the MG, preferring the heavier barrel to the lighter one. Zoned in on those reviewers who owned both.

I think I’ll stick to a straight 629, put the x- grips on it.
Anyone know which varients were pinned and recessed? That info is proving hard to find.

629. No dash.

I would prefer the pre lock models. Be sure you get one after the "endurance" upgrade. Not sure which "dash" model that was. Having said that I carried a 629-8 for several years, very heavy on a belt holster. Anything over 4" will be a hassle to sit down with in a belt holster. I finally settled on a rather rare S&W, the 357PD which is a 41 Mag scandium titanium like the 329PD 44 Mag. Not near as nasty with full house loads. One deer season I even forgot it was there and walked into a Walmart in Nebraska and nobody said anything. Always knew that the 629 was there, listing to one side..

What am I missing?

K, L, And X frames have the same grip.

N's are bigger.

The X grips are bigger than the N's. So an improvement on a 629 would be the x frame grip. They are a bit bigger but also wrap around the frame so the grip doesn't pinch you when it goes bang.

Actually the X and the N frames have the same grip. K and L are the same also.

I should say that X frame grips and N frame grips will fit each other. Not exactly the same. K and L frame fit each other as well.

The endurance package started with the 629-3’s, they were completed with the -4’s. Early -4’s still had the square butt grip frame, but changed to round butt during that model numbers production run.

Ditto.