Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns S&W 29 Heavy Loads

Hi: How strong is the S&W 29 for heavy defense loads?I have only shot light loads but would like some heavy loads for possible protection from bears. Dan

Strong enough to save your bacon when the chips are down.

load a 310 grain lee cast 44 caliber bullet over 21 grains of H110 , size .430 , cast from 95% ww alloy and 5% tin
that has been my almost exclusively used load, in my S&W 29, for the last 15 plus years and it flat works, use a firm crimp, seat out to near max length that the cylinder allows and PRACTICE!!

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/51...0-diameter-310-grain-flat-nose-gas-check

Thanks. Practice is what i will need with heavy loads that is why i wanted to know if the gun can take it or should i get something heavier built. Dan

Practice shooting the 29. Just don't over do it.

General practice with 44 mag handgun. long-term? Try a Ruger!

Heavy? You mean Bullets or pressure? Or both?

My favorite load in all my 44 mag's including the Smith 29 and 629 is the Keith 250 gr SWC , 20 gr of 2400 and CCI 300 Primers . If this load won't get it done in the 44 magnum , then you need to go to a bigger magnum, 454 , 500 just to name a couple.

bea175-

That's my philosophy too. Take care of your guns. Buy "more bigger" when needed.

That 29 should take care of most applications real well. I love them. I baby then though. 20.5grs of Win 296 under Sierra 240 hollow points is my favorite when not using hard cast.

Hi: I mean magnum loads which will pound the gun harder. That is my concern. Dan

Bug-

Do you hand load?

If you don't handload try the Federal 300 CastCore round. It will get the job done but doesn't appear to be loaded quite as hot as BuffaloBore, Garrett or CorBon.

Any good 250-300 grain hardcast bullet with a large meplat will get the job done if pushed in the 1200 fps range.

If you have a private piece of land or a sand pit, for practice...start with an empty 5 gallon plastic sheet rock bucket. Tie a 50' piece of paracord to the handle and the other to a fast friend. Have him stand next to you and then RUN so that the bucket is pulled right toward you. See how many hits you can get in the bucket before it hits you. After you get the knack of hitting the five gallon, try a paint can or gallon plastic jug. Filled with water it will tell you how far out you can connect...a paint can is about the size of a bears head.

If you just can't do it you have two choices...take a shotgun with you...or stay home.... :-)

Bob

Gold Dot Personal Protection - 44 Magnum
44 Magnum 210 gr GDHP

This would be the factory load i would carry if using my 44 magnum for Personal Protection .

Gunbug,
Here comes an opinion.....I think the 29's/629's are a lot tougher than a lot of folks think, especially the ones made after about 1995 that have the endurance package. These are a few changes that Smith made to make them a little more durable. My thoughts are that most folks won't shoot enough HEAVY loads in one to reach that worn out stage.

I used to shoot nothing but the 250 gr. Keith bullet loaded over 24.0 to 24.5 grains of H110/296 and shot thousands thru both Smiths and Redhawks every year, and I never had a problem with either. Mind you, I'm not saying you can abuse a Smith; just that they will hold up to a LOT of shooting.

I still shoot the same bullet, but my preference now (getting old) is to gear it down to a more manageable, for me, velocity of about 1000 fps. It will do anything I'm going to need of it. I don't have any bears to worry about.

Elmer's load'll rattle it loose.

When the .44 Magnum came out, Elmer Keith, because of his extensive field experience, choose to download the .44 Magnum with his 250 gr. bullets. Not out of any concern for the gun's strenth, but because he knew that that sort of load would do anything he needed to do in the field. All he really wanted, again, based on many years of expereince and that of the other fans of his heavy .44 Special handloads was a 250 gr. SWC bullet doing 1200 fps out of a 6 inch barrel.
But these days, everybody is convinced they must have a 300 gr. hard cast, wide flat point to kill a deer. E

Bristoe-

you got that right!

I loosened up a early model Super Blackhawk with Elmer's load.

But I shot it a lot. That was my first 44mag. Bought it new. Never sent it back when Ruger had their recall.

That is exactly why I "baby" my Smith's.

Hi yes i hand load and cast my own. Dan

"Elmer's Load" was 22 grs. of 2400 under his 250 gr. cast bullet. That was with the old version of 2400. For the new version of that powder, it would be 20 grs. 21 grs. is the listed maximum with a standard primer. Magnum primers make that load run too hot. The maximum with the old 2400 was 23 grsa. with a magnum primer. E

23 grains of 2400 on 1978 was a hell of a stout load that would stick cases in a M-29. I know from experience.

On big bears I would certainly prefer a wide me plat hard cast of 300 or so grain for the adde penetration ability over a 250

I run 22.5 grains H110 with 300 to 320 grain cast SWC loads for a heavy load. That being said, I use them sparingly in my Smiths.

Anything from 19 grains on up with the 300-320 grainers will do just fine on large animals.

For most of my shooting though, 10 grains of Unique with a 240/250 cast SWC gets the ticket. It will hammer large bodied Mule Deer, big pigs, etc. Plus it is easy enough to shoot (recoil wise) that a person can really focus on fundamentals and make better hits.

Plenty strong. The shooter is the weak spot.

The strength issue comes up because of one-tooth, two-digit IQ, Ruger owners who deliberately overload the 44mag. That and there is this forum old-wives tale that 29's somehow are weak.