Finally have the funds for a new handgun. Thought I knew what I wanted, but now that I can actually buy one not sure about my choices. Don't really like the single actions, never felt right in my hands. Partial to DA and S&W in particular. Want a big bore, 41 or 44mag. Gun would be used as backup and perhaps deer if the situation was right. Was thinking of a performance center hunter or light hunter but at 7.5" and 50+ weight now not sure. The 329PD looks good as well but very light and 4" barrel. I would guess that like a rifle when hunting more time is spent carrying than shooting. Read reviews on the 329PD and I know that recoil will be shall we say will be stout. Not really recoil sensative but have not shot one of these. Basically for a gun that is to be carried more than shot what are your opions?

If you want to enjoy shooting your new pistol but still want a handy belt gun I expect the S&W 629 Mtn Gun will be a more practical choice than the Airlite job. Have fun shopping.

Yup, I agree. If you want a DA revolver for backup and occasional hunting duty, you can't go wrong with the 629. I think it would be the most practical choice. JMHO.

I will echo the other two and add Model 29s in the 6" barrel length are another handy option.

Forget the 329PD , it is more than stout.
If you have to have a S&W get a model 629 Mtn Gun.

I would have to agree with the 629 6 1/2" assessment. I have always wanted a 329PD but I tend to shoot them alot and the light weight would be brutal with full house loads.

JM2CW

Light weight is nice for carry and lousy when it comes time to shoot. JMHO.

Have a 329. Lovely carry gun, but not something I want to shoot even with moderate target loads. Would suport mountain gun configuration of a 629!

If it is purely for carry and close range take a good look at the Taurus 5 shot .41 mag.

I was considering the 41M Taurus, but it is not legal in my state.. Wondering about the 44m tracker however. Anyone have one? Heard many things about Taurus, both good and bad. Guess that I have read a bit on the S&W 329PD as well.

You need to ask yourself if being lightweight is more important than controllable. A 329 is considerably lighter than a 629, but I don't consider the 629 cumbersome from a weight standpoint, but it is a world better to shoot than any of the true lightweights.......

If you can find a good condition mountain gun…..and imho I think any gun that you can smash the front sight like the 329PD is a fad, but being that you’re not only looking at S&W but Taurus also / how bout a shorter quicker draw 44 Magnum able to handle full power loads?
Look at the Ruger Alaskan snub a good back up and self defense gun, if the round doesn’t kill em the noise will scare em. lol
Seriously, I have a Smith & Wesson 629 Light Hunter and it’s a good gun but I wouldn’t feed it a constant diet of heavy cast bullets that are preferred by many here. Again imho hunting / protection are two different things and it’s hard to bring two different worlds into harmony.

The only reason to consider the Taurus is that it is a 5 shot revolver and so less bulky than a 6 shot 329. A few ounces is weight is neighther here nore their. I carried a steel M58 for years and after the first three days on the hip at the begining of each season , never noticed the weight. For town carry the .329 is much better though, as the various modes of concealment are not as comfortable as a plain hip holster in the field (and I used to carry a 5 shot .38 spl in town until I got the 329).

One important consideration for me is barrel length & holster design. The barrel mustn't stick into the ground or car seat when I sit down. With a very high ride hip holster I can get away with a 5" barrel. Generally only a 4".

Despite what one thinks of African hunting, you actually spend quite alot of time sitting down- in the truck, in a camp chair for lunch or arround the fire in the evening...under a tree while the morning coffee brews. If the gun/holster combination hangs too low and the barrel is always hitting on something causing the holster to push your trounsers towards your arm pits...you are going to have left the gun off the day you need it! Beter a 3" .357 on the hip than a .454 in the safe!

Last consideration. Dual use. I have never got great accuracy out of a taurus. More than good enough for defence, but not enough to give me real satisfaction on the range. With my 5" 629 I periodically compete in the local olympic pistol matches - and win against guys using walther .32 self loadders. Using the same gun I have managed a 3rd in our national silouette champs shooting out to 200m. It gives real pleasure of ownership as well as field function. The old M58 was just as good, but the .329 is just a carry gun.

Heh, I went through this and decided to split the difference:

Smith 357PD in .41 Mag.

Enough power for defense, light weight, and at least marginally controlable with full loads. I'm considering getting a steel cylinder to add a few more ounces to the gun.

Personally, what I really wanted was something around 35oz weight in a .41 or .44 mag. Instead I got 27.5oz in a .41. I'm working on my handloads: my goal is a 265gr. WNFP GC bullet moving at around 1000 fps or so (588 fpe) up to 1200fps (850 fpe). I'm thinking that the 1000fps load should be pretty darn manageable without being horribly punishing.

Anyway, the real question I came away with was "How much power is enough" in a defensive carry gun"? I'm thinking either defense w/in 25 yards or hunting to 50-75 yards. To that end, on deer, one just doesn't NEED a max load. In a .44 mag, a 280-300gr. bullet at 1000fps is huge horsepower.

I'm not denying that more fps isn't better - it is. I'm simply trying to balance weight and recoil (confidence) against "enough power".

For me, I'm quite happy with the .41 mag in the Smith 357PD frame. And if recoil really does get to me, I'll drop a steel cylinder in and pick up a few more ounces.

The barrel lenght is an issue with me as well. Had a 586 357 6" and on a hip carry always banging the barrel when sitting. Plenty of power for a whitetail deer at a reasonable distance but not nice to carry as a backup. Guess I'm trying to get my cake and eat it too. Mountain guns are hard to find, and the few that I do find will not ship to CA.. 357PD's are really really hard to come by but are CA legal. Perhaps a V comp 4.25" expensive but available. I may just get a hunting revolver alone, found a couple of 657 7.5" I always have liked the 41 mag. 4" is about the minimum barrel lenght that I can shoot well past 50 yards. With stubbies I open up beyond 25 yards or so perhaps the eyes are not what they used to be. I can always use the old 1911 standby as a backup, can still dump a clip into 4" at 25 yards rapid fire. But then I've shot this pistol for 20 years. Just not as comfortable with an auto as a backup. It's rare, but the old 1911 does on ocassion jam or stovepipe. Murphy has a habit of things happening at the least opertune times..

Smithrdj

I would recommend a 44 Mag. Much easier to find ammo, and a much wider selection. Same goes for reloading componets, especially in Calif.

Also Speer shotshells in 44 are very effective for snakes and small game.

I would take a look at a 4", 5", 6" and if you can find one an older 6.5".

Get the one that feels the best to you.

My wife and I carry a 44 Mountain Gun when in the field.
I am using mine as a daily carry gun 100% of the time now. I use a Milt Sparks Summer Special.

For field carry I use the DeSantis Dual Action Hunter, worn cross draw.
It has a very "radical" rake and is very comfortable walking, even in rough country and with a pack, and also when seated.

My 3-inch M29 (Lew Horton) is my nearly daily carry gun as well, and the weight isn't bad at all IMHO in an Uncle Mike's shoulder holster. I agree whole heartedly with NE 450 that the .44 would be a better choice by virtue of the vast variety of ammo available for it........

Well I got a chance to hold a bunch today, went south about 50 miles and a much greater selection. Finally decided on a 629-6 4" not really very different from the Mountain gun depending on the year. The 6" was nice but have been there before, sight radious was not that much different. The 4" felt good in the hand steady and not really muzzle or butt heavy kind of balanced. The full lug 6" was a bit muzzle heavy. Will see how it shoots after the waiting period.

Thanks,

Ron

4 inch 629 enough said

quote:

Originally posted by smithrjd:
Well I got a chance to hold a bunch today, went south about 50 miles and a much greater selection. Finally decided on a 629-6 4" not really very different from the Mountain gun depending on the year. The 6" was nice but have been there before, sight radious was not that much different. The 4" felt good in the hand steady and not really muzzle or butt heavy kind of balanced. The full lug 6" was a bit muzzle heavy. Will see how it shoots after the waiting period.

Thanks,

Ron

Excellent choice, Ron. You won't be disappointed. When do you get it and when can we expect the first range report??

Very good choice.

If I could have only one handgun it would be a S&W 4" 44 Mag.

And I really like custom 1911's, but they "ain't no 44 Mag".

The standard waiting period is 10 days. Have a business trip back to DC next week and a half so around the end of the month should get out to the range. Looked at several others, the stealth hunter was a nice one, but not as a carry pistol. Got a box of 44 specials to learn the pistol with first before some full 44mags. The old 1911 is my Frankenpistol, 1927 Argentine frame and slide everything else is from Wilson Combat. Actually my favorite pistol for now.

Well I had a chance to get out to the range today, really like the revolver, very good fit and finish. Trigger pull both SA and DA is typical S&W IE very nice. Shot some 44 SPL harley any recoil at all. Shot some 200g and 240g XTP's over a medium charge of VV N110 and again the recoil was not that much at all. Been about 20 years since I shot a 44mag, but this was much less than what I thought it wold be. Perhaps the 300g ar what I was remembering. Figured a 4" would be a bit nasty but it was not at all. Accuracy was good, about what I can do IE 4" to 6" offhand at 50 yards.
Going deer hunting in two weeks and wonder with what I have would be the best load. Hornady 240g XTP with VIHT N-110 at 1350fps or Hornady 200g XTP with VITH N-100 at 1550fps. I will be using a rifle, but if the chance presents itself I will use the revolver.

That's great, Ron! I knew you would like it! I would be more inclined to use the 240 grain XTP over the 200 grainer. That's awesome! I hope you get to blood it in a couple of weeks. Keep us posted!

Need to type slower or proof read... Like to use some hard cast bullets but doubt I could get them in time. Will try the 240g and 20 to 21g VITH N-110 should be around 1350fps. Most shots in the area I will be hunting will be around 50 yards, ocassional 100 yard shot but would use the rifle for that.

Ron, they will work fine on deer, don't worry about it!

you can't go wrong with the 629.

Going through the same decision here. Kind of leaning toward the 629 "Trail Boss" (3" barrel) in .44M. I was also looking at the really light weight guns but I think I'll go with a standard gun. Most of my shooting will be at the range and I want to be able to enjoy shooting the gun regardless of the situation.

Thoughts on the Trail Boss?

Last June I was in Idaho and a bunch of my buddies came up to hunt bear.

Before we went into the bear cam we all shot our and each others revolvers.

While I have been shooting 44 Mags since 1970, it is nice to be able to shoot several of them side by side.

I shot the 3" Trail Boss, 4" 329, 4" Mountain Gun, standard 4" 29, a 5" 29 with the under lug, a 6" and an older 6.5".

If I wanted one for full time handgun hunting It would have at least a 6" barrel.

For full time carry when hunting with a rifle I like my Mountain Gun, it is a little lighter than the standard model.

I like the 4" better than the 3", probably just because that is what I am used to.

If you are only going to have one 44 and for your first 44 I would definately not recommend the Scandium 44 Mag.

Handle, and shoot if possible, the 3" and the 4" and get the one you like the best.