.44 S&W Special / .44 Mag - Great Gun!

S

Spencer

New member
Every once in a while you buy something – anything – and it turns out to be a treat; my 629-4 is no exception. I was in the market for my first revolver for two reasons: (1) I like to go to the range to shoot my long guns, but they are expensive to shoot, and (2) we had an unexpected visitor in elk camp last year and I wanted something on my hip that could stop a bear. So after a lot of reading and asking questions here (thanks again), I settled on the S&W .44 Special / .44 Mag.

I picked up a used stainless 629-4 with a 6” barrel for a very fair price & took it to the range to get to know it. WOW! This is exactly what I was looking for. I put 3 .44 Mag rounds through it & decided very quickly that it would kill just about anything I pointed it at, so that takes care of need #2. Then I proceeded to put 50 .44 S&W Special rounds through it & enjoyed every shot. I was shooting Winchester “white box” ammo that ran me about $20 for 50 rounds, and easily I could have shot another full box without any discomfort. This combo of .44 S&W Special and .44 Mag is outstanding! I have a revolver that I enjoy target-shooting with, and I have a reliable bear-stopper. What more could I ask for?

I know, I know… Bear spray. This isn’t about that. Take this for what it is worth: The .44 S&W Special / .44 Mag is a great combo! If you hunt big game in bear country and enjoy target shooting, this is a great revolver…
 
I agree that the .44 Magnum is a great revolver round. I've loved it since my first encounter when I was 13, which was 8 years ago, and have had several different makes and models pass through my hands. My 21st B-day gift to myself was a 6" S&W 629-1. Wonderful pistol.

My suggestion would be to learn how to reload. You will save big $$ on shooting your new Smith and can tailor the loads to do exactly what you want them to do.

Cost wise: locally I buy lead bullets to load for $24/500. No tax, so price per bullet is 4.8 cents. A pound of powder costs $20-21 and will give me ~700 rounds of middle-level magnum practice ammo. Figure 3 cents there. Primers cost $20/1000, so 2 cents per each. Reuse your brass, if you have friends that shoot but don't reload beg, borrow or steal their brass (I've found most willingly give it to you rather than throw it out or leave it on the shelf) and your brass cost is minimal to non-existant. Each round of .44 loaded costs 9.8 cents. One hundred rounds of .44 Magnum will cost you $9.80, or less than half of a box of 50 factory rounds of similar loads. Sound worthwhile?

And trust me, you will shoot up that ammo in hurry while enjoying your new Smith. :D
 
Been looking for a nice S&W 29 or 629 not much luck so far.Did find one model 29 that was just like new must have belonged to Dirty Harry almost $1000 :eek: Will find one sooner or later :)
 
I found my 629 on gunsamerica.com and the price was very fair. I purchased from an individual, not a FFA, but he shipped to my FFA & all was good. Do a search under Smith & Wesson Revolvers and type "629" in the keyword box. There are several there now under $600, and some under $500.
 
I paid under $500 for mine, which was used but LNIB.

Just got back from a range trip with my brother and one of his friends. Turns out that when loaded with .44 Specials, even an N-frame is a good gun to teach somebody how to shoot a handgun with. Brother's friend took to it and was shooting pretty well after a couple of spins around the cylinder.
 
I purchased from an individual, not a FFA, but he shipped to my FFA & all was good.
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Future Farmers of America (FFA) is a great organization but I don't THINK they do transfers!

Sorry...
 
bear country

If I'm heading into bear country I'll be takeing some serious RIFLE power with me. Bringing a hangun into bear country is like showing up with a knife at a gunfight. Just one man's opinion. Fleiger
 
Future Farmers of America (FFA) is a great organization but I don't THINK they do transfers!
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Right, I ment FFL... FFA is my employer. Doh!

If I'm heading into bear country I'll be takeing some serious RIFLE power with me. Bringing a hangun into bear country is like showing up with a knife at a gunfight.
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My .300 RUM has plenty of power, so I see it as bringing both a gun and a knife to the fight!
 
Don't count on that .44mag to just stop a bear unless you hit one of a few places on it's body. Hopefully the noise will frighten it more than the pain of the shot will anger it.
The .44 revolver is better than nothing, but way down the scale on bear stoppers.
 
I have a Super Blackhawk in .44 Mag, and I love the thing. I myself use it for shooting random trash like cans and such, since I don't hunt. My only complaint is the ammo cost, since I have very little cash...

On the bear note; I have heard several things about the ultimate bear gun, but something tells me the most effective would be alternating 00 buck and lead slugs from a 12 gauge ;)
 
Ultimate bear defense gun???

:eek: The best one, is one that you will have with you. I work as a "bear guide" in Alaska during the late spring and summer. We take people to various locations so that they can get there "yogi" pictures. It's a fun job and keeps you on your toes. The firearm I carry depends upon the location we are going
to that day. Some locations require that we literally crouch down to crawl through some heavy brush to get back to the best stream locations. On those
days I carry a 3" S&W 629 Classic loaded with 300 grain castcore bullets. A
rifle or shotgun would be useless. If we are going to run into a bear it will be
in the brush. This is thick stuff. I tried carrying a shortbarrelled shotgun and
then a rifle. It was nothing but a fight. The best defense is keep your firearm
ready and make some noise but not so much that you can't hear what's going
on. It's a catch 22. Make too much noise and you aren't going to see squat.
That's bad for tips. You just gotta stay in "red". There are other times where
we hike down some wide open trails going to the salmon spawning streams.
They I carry both. My 629 and my rifle. This summer I will pick up a S&W 329
for open trail use. Ruger's 44 mag's are also good. I just prefer the Smiths.
If your gonna carry a Taurus, bring 2. I have had too many problems. Their is
a reason they are so cheap. "Bear pepper spray" is actually good stuff. I have
used it twice to turn bears that were just getting too close for comfort. Mind
they weren't being overly aggressive but 15 feet is just getting too close. If
I was by myself it wouldn't have been a big deal. But when you are responsible for 10 other people your thinking changes. Bear spray has a lot of
limitations though. Best to use it when the wind isn't blowing and it isn't raining too much. To be effective I wouldn't use it until the bear was within about 12 to 15 feet. Otherwise the stuff will mist out and lose it's effectiveness. A lot of people panic and want to start spraying when the bears are 50 feet away. You might as well spray yourself. Bears do like spicy
foods. We found that when we deicded to try "skunk cabbage". The roots on
those plants are very spicy. And that is the part of the plant they like to eat.
It is also supposed to have a natural laxative effect but I didn't want to try
that part out.

Now I am sure some people are gonna say "this" or "that" I've been doing this
for a while and haven't lost anyone yet. I've had some close calls. There are
times when things don't feel right or times when we come across problem bears and you have to alter how you do things. You have to pay attention.
You can't day dream or talk to your buddy about his 401K. Stay focused, know what is going on around you. Don't carry a bunch of stinky food or fruit
with you. Lay off the after shave and stink water. Leave the women at home
during their monthlies. Bears have incredible noses. I wish we could train them
to work as police K-9's.

Bears are neat animals. Fun to watch. But I am not taking anyone on polar
bear tours. You gotta draw the line somewhere. Good luck and hope to see
everyone on the creek this summer in the Land of the Midnight Sun.
 
Hi again.
I don’t’ want to start another bear-stopping thread; my guess is that most folks here haven’t even seen a bear in the wild. I have been in “bear country” here in Colorado for 11+ years and have only seen 3. I spent a summer on Kodiak Island, saw tons of bears, and managed to survived – unmauled – without a side arm. All I was trying to say is that I am really happy with my revolver choice. I made it through a bear going after a hanging elk in camp last year without a side arm, and I will probably endure elk camp for the rest of my life without a side arm. HOWEVER, I wanted a side arm that I could justify for hunting and target shooting. I picked the .44 & really like it.

I am not hunting bear with this thing, but if I get into trouble, and my 3450 Ft/Sec, 4221 Ft-Lbs .300 RUM isn’t a convenient choice, then my .44 Mag is a good weapon on my hip. As far as the rest of my life goes – that is when I’m not battling wild bears to the bloody death in leather skivvies – I like the idea of having a nice target revolver.

BTW, anyone that thinks a .44 mag won’t get a Colorado black bear’s attention is being dramatic. They are scared scavengers, and much smaller than most folks think. If you have ever chased a fat coon off your deck, then you have dealt with a skinny black bear. I’m not talking grizzlies here, I’m in CO... Black bears are nothing more than fat squirrels. Clever, greedy, fun to watch, and, upon occasion, a potentially-dangerous pain in the ars…

Did I mention that I like my new revolver?
 
My first and only .44 mag revolver. Makes a great companion to my .44 mag. Trapper lever rifles!

Smith & Wesson Model 629-1 Lew Horton Special ~ .44 magnum ~ 3" barrel - Ahrends Rnd Grips
M629_Left.jpg


M629_Right.jpg


M629_LF.jpg
 
If I'm heading into bear country I'll be takeing some serious RIFLE power with me. Bringing a hangun into bear country is like showing up with a knife at a gunfight. Just one man's opinion. Fleiger
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Since FLIEGER wishes to use the knife to a gunfight scenerio, let's look at it. The "Tueller" drill is taught to police officers for one reason, up close (21 feet or less) the knife will win against the gun almost every single time. Let's read an excerpt from an article on Police Training:

Myth 3: "I carry a gun every day, so I have nothing to fear from knives"

Fact: Under 21 feet a knife will win almost every single time against a shooter. Many people refuse to believe this until they see an actual demonstration. Time after time, Many instructors in the law enforcement community demonstrate the "Tueller" drill and watch as the faces of our officers show concern and fear because their myth of "a gun as a superior weapon" was demolished by this simple demonstration where a knife wielding attacker covers the 21 feet and cut the officers throat with a training blade while they fumble with their weapon. Knives are actually one of the biggest threats to officers. Knives are a dangerous weapon that can be employed at point of contact, creating massive permanent wound cavities, causing mechanical and biological trauma with excessive blood loss leading to shock and death. 10% of all officers who are shot in the line of duty die whereas 30% of all officers attacked with a bladed weapon die[3]. These facts become truly terrifying when we also consider that the majority of all self-defense shootings occur under 10 feet, which is well within the kill zone range of bladed weapons.
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I know this seems off thread, but I will connect the dots for you.

IT ISN'T ALWAYS PREFERRABLE TO HAVE A GUN IN A GUNFIGHT!

Now getting back on track! The .44 special / .44 Magnum is a great combination that with handloading will perform any need you will most likely have as a civilian. I carry the Model 696 .44 Special everyday for CCW, and have several .44 magnum pistols that I use for Hunting. Have a great day.

.44mag
 
I love my 6.5" 629!

It's easily the most accurate gun I own. I didn't think I'd get one after buying a 8 3/8" M57 (.41 mag for those that don't know). I got it because I remember how much of a rip snorter my dad's Blackhawk was in .41mag. When I shot my m57, it didn't match up with my memories, so I quickly snapped up a .44 mag. It was just what I was looking for! I knew I was a recoil junkie. What surprised me was how accurate this gun was. I was getting cloverleafs regularly! When you mix the percieved recoil and the boom, you'd think I'd have large groups, but when you know what you're doing, keep the correct sight picture and don't let the recoil scare you, small groups aren't a problem. It makes me smile when I look over at the people that are either newbies or bad shots, shooting their cylinder choked 9mm semi-autos. There's always hope as long as they keep practicing! Great hearing about your experience with your gun!
 
Don't count on that .44mag to just stop a bear unless you hit one of a few places on it's body. Hopefully the noise will frighten it more than the pain of the shot will anger it.
Click to expand...

If I'm heading into bear country I'll be takeing some serious RIFLE power with me. Bringing a hangun into bear country is like showing up with a knife at a gunfight. Just one man's opinion. Fleiger
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If I am right, about 90% or more of those who are worried about bears live in black bear country. Now, I KNOW some blackies can get quite large, but here in New Hampshire, you're looking at a 200 pound creature or smaller on average. I've seen exactly ONE black bear outside of a zoo, and it was crossing the road while I was driving.

Very few people I know would not consider our New Hampshire "North Country" to be real "bear country," but you'd look a little odd among all the leaf peepers and such-not hauling around heavy artillery. Heck, running around with a large-framed, long-barreled .44 is a little unnerving for most of the masses. But a 3-4" model you can tuck under a shirt tail would be perfectly adequate. With a black bear the encounter is probably going to be bear beating a hasty retreat while you figure out what you're looking at.
 
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