I have a scandium S&W 44 mag. I find the recoil with 240gr bullets to be less than my Freedom Arms 454 with 260gr loads. The gun is absolutely wonderful to carry in the woods all day, it is not an encumbrance. If I know I am going to be doing a lot of walking this is my handgun of choice. My favorite hunting handgun is a Freedom Arms 97 in 41 mag. It shoots well, has moderate recoil, and does not pull your pants down. It is not available in 44 mag, I don't know how hard 41 ammo is for you to get.

Hi 457 & Mete

I personally carry a Smith M58 whith which I have personally shot elephant and buffalo on a demonstration on handgun hunting for senior parks officers here, and have used to to protect myself twice on other occasions.

The reason I ask about durability of the lighter guns is that - most people here are restricted to one handgun, for home protection, cash in transit and whilst guiding! You hope never to have to use the handgun, and many guides leave the big Ruger redhawks that most companies seem to own tucked up out of the way since they are too heavy to wear all day, every day. I reckon you get used to the weight but many couldn't be bothered - and consiquently when there is a problem, the handgun, like the guides rifle has been left somewhere else! If they are small/light enough you might just get the guys to keep wearing them.

Also, as a PH or guide, If you can see a problem developing you are going to reach for your rifle- but bitter experience shows that lives are usually lost when the rifle has been safely tucked away in its case for the night or to keep it dry etc.

Since you own an old Mod 58, moving up to a Mod 629 would be a good way to go. The 44 doesn't kick much and if you can find a Mtn. Gun, all the better. After all these Smiths don't weigh as much as a Redhawk and you'll definitely carry it more often than not. I believe there are several on this forum who carry their 44 Mags on a regular basis. The 44 is definitely something that can be handled with practice and after a few hundred rounds for familiarity, you can load it down for small stuff and for durability.

Hi 475

Not thinking of myself, am thinking of the industry and what to import. Getting an export approval from the states to here for civiallian firearms can take years. We have an agreement that the USA will allow one shipment through. Since the last shipment in was of stainless 5" 629 in 1999... (got one before the duty went up)We can get Taurus no trouble but are they durable? With shipping and Duty a 329 now lands at US$5000 and a year to 18 months of paper work for the licence. A 629 isn't much cheeper.

OK, I understand. I think that when some of these guys finally get a chance to light one off with 300 grainers, there'll be a like-new 329 for sale. I guess it's like shooting a 6 1/2# 375 or a 7# 458.

Can't answer the durability question yet, but I have put 40 or 50 "full house" 240g loads thru my 329. They are stout, but not as bad as any full power .454 Casull loads in a standard weight revolver. The 329 is an awesome backup gun. No problems to date. I've loaded some practice/"city" loads down to about 1000 fps with 240 JHPs and it's very comfortable to shoot. When I'm in dangerous game land, I carry it with full power 250g Nosler HG Partition loads or 240g JHP loads.

MKane160

I have a S&W Scandium Model 386 PD in .357 Mag. that I absolutely love. I have a Milt Sparks holster for it, and it has quickly become one of my main handguns.

Like you, I enjoy the light carrying weight, plus accuracy has been superb. I also like the appearance, finish, and feel of this revolver. These are high-quality revolvers, some of the best S&W has ever produced.

As I understand it, S&W has tested J-frame Scandiums in .375 Mag. by firing over 10,000 full-power loads through them with no measurable setback, loosening, etc. I believe you can count on your revolver to be there for the long-haul.

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WARNING!

I 've seen 6 go back to the factory for rebarreling. Two of the six were out of time and shaving lead/copper off the bullet heads.

My brother has one he had to sent it back because the barrel became loose. The fixed it. He hasn't ran a bunch of rounds through it sence I has it back unknown how long tha fix job will last.

I find the comments about the scandium framed revolvers shootability curious. I shot one cylinder of 357 loads through my buddies, and it was the most sadistically painful gun I have ever fired. Even worse than a 4 5/8" blackhawk 500 Linebaugh shooting 440 gr loads. Based on the 357 exerience, I couldn't imagine shooting one in 44 maybe they roll more in recoil

I can't testify to durability since I have only shot maybe 500 rounds in mine, mostly 38's. I do agree the 357 mag, even with 125 grain loads is something else on the wrist and hand. I MUCH perfer to shoot a 454 SRH with full power loads (OK only 240 to 300 grain) to the scandium 357. I think the light 44 mag would be way out of my league. Got to admit that light 357 is nice to carry though.

Well, then maybe Scandium framed .44's will be ideal guides guns. Hurts too much to shoot unless you know you are going to die if you don't... Not a bad policy for operators.

quote:

Originally posted by Ganyana:
Well, then maybe Scandium framed .44's will be ideal guides guns. Hurts too much to shoot unless you know you are going to die if you don't... Not a bad policy for operators.

The only problem with that theory is, how does the guide become proficient with the gun if he never practices with it? And if it is brutally painful to shoot, can it be shot accurately enough to be worth while?

I personally find I can pick up a rifle after having not shot one for year, and shoot it proficiently. For a handgun, I need frequent pratice to be proficient with it. I've also found that I can't accurately shoot a 475 and 500 linebaugh due to recoil, and the same would hold for a titanium 44 mag, which would be even more brutal to shoot.

the 329 .44 does kick like a mule. the .460, .45-70 and .500 are nothing to some 300 grain cor bons in that gun. but, the sights are very nice, and it is a very accurate gun. some people can't shoot it, some people anticipate the recoil so much that they close their eyes and can't hit a damn thing. the harder it kicks, the happier i am, and this is the worst gun for recoil that i own. it would make an excellent guide gun, haven't had a single problem with mine.

Been using a 329 for about a year now. Ken Stuart’s 270grn Steel Jacketed solids at 1250fps are not pleasant to fire, but they haven’t shaken the gun or the Laser Grips to bits yet! And I lend the gun out a lot for learner hunters and guides to try. See product review in the May issue of the African Hunter magazine.