Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 44 Mag - 2 Questions

Great pics MacKay.

Best quality would be anything worked over by a master, like Bowen

but in production, I'd say go with a pre-lock, pre-MIM S&W Classic DX. They have the endurance package, and the DX models came with a factory test target showing they'd shoot 2 inches or less at 50 yards (some targets show 1" or less at 25 being the standard).

I have a 5", and a 6�" Classic. One of these days I'd like to add a 5" DX, but they are not common.

Best buy? Redhawk. Or a Super Blackhawk. Honorable mention to a Dan Wesson 744.

Thanks .270

TexnCal,

Here is a 5" Classic:
Absolutely love. It.

And classic DX 5"

Both just ooze quality and I truly love shooting them though I keep the DX in reserve, shooting it only on occasion.

Not a good pic. Need to get some good family shots.

Yep, I had one of those blued 5" full lugs, and was silly enough to let it go The 5" full lug guns are just about the smallest gun in which I want to shoot a full house .44 load

This is the 6.5" Classic 629. That day at the range it out-shot a scoped .44 Contender



I am partial to the full lug Smiths

Time for a new family photo, these are getting rather old.

4.2" and 7.5" The 4.2 is a hand full with the 320 Buffalo Bores!

The 7.5 shoots the 300 Noslers with H110 great.






Though I may be adding one of these to the family!

http://www.ruger.com/products/redhawkDE/specSheets/5028.html

I meant quality as in indexing accuracy, trigger, and shooting accuracy.

It would be a hunting/riding gun and will suffer the afflictions of use and some abuse, so "prettiness" is of less concern.

Also, I'll want it in stainless.

Overall, over the years...who knows? I've owned most of them and am not a huge Ruger fan for the most part, but I have to rank the Redhawk right up there with the Smith. When it comes down to it, Dan Wesson's offering was pretty good too. Some people are fans of the Anaconda. I guess it was all right. When it comes down to it, the four major US made brands are pretty much a wash. I owned the Astra model and it seemed nice, but I didn't shoot it enough to form an opinion. Skeeter Skelton liked the Llama Super Comanche but I never owned one. I've never owned a Super Redhawk either.

I don't know which would be the best bang for the buck because right now, prices seem to be all over the map. When the prices were more stable, I'd have had to give the nod to Ruger's Redhawk. It's easy enough to throw the Anaconda out of this one since they command such tremendous prices now. I seldom see a Dan Wesson anymore.

If you have no personal preference, I'd get whichever I came across with a decent price, first. Either the Redhawk or the Smith. I have a new Smith 69 L frame which seems pretty sweet, but I haven't shot it enough to really wring it out yet. Also, it remains to be seen how it handles hot loads.

A big +1 on this^^^ One of my Smiths is an 8 3/8" Classic DX and I refer to it as my favorite light-weight deer rifle.

Are you a Guns 'n' Roses fan by any chance?

Well, it's going to be a Ruger or a Smith.

As for best bang-for-the-buck, you're going to have to shoot them both. A couple of hundred rounds each.

Keep the one you shoot best. Sell or trade the other.

Or you can do it the hard way, which is buy one and wonder about the other.

That's about the best advice I've seen here in a while...

That's a good plan, but at least for new revolvers, I figure that to be about $1500 - $2000 proposition.

That's why I'm seeking input from folks that have owned either and perhaps both. I don't want to reinvent the wheel.

Thanks all. Good thoughts.

1. Smith & Wesson Mod 29
2. Ruger Super Redhawk

If these are too expensive go with a single action. My favorite = Ruger Super Blackhawk

The early Ruger's had some issues with their barrels being out of spec. My brother called the barrel on his Super Redhawk a gas pipe. Nothing shot well in it.

By far the most accurate revolver that I've owned is a Ruger Super Blackhawk.

The problem is that BOTH is too expensive.

And I'm afraid I won't sell the second one and I want to stay married.

Have a SBH and want a DA, hence this thread.

I'll probably look for a SRH. Thanks.

S&W Mountain Revolver circa 1990. Guess which shot was called...

Very attractive gun with those grips.

I have a friend who's had a pair of redhawks tuned by magnaport and I think the smith fan's might rethink their comments that a redhawk can't have a smooth trigger action. MNP work isn't cheap, but having a hell for stout and smooth as silk 44 mag isn't a bad thing.

They can be worked on and turn out pretty nice.

As an aside.....I posted several pictures earlier on page 2 of this thread; now it says that I removed them. Anybody got a idea how this happens? I did not remove them......