629 43 inch barrel too short for 44Mag?

B

Bennett Richards

New member
I have been thinking of getting a 44Mag 629. I have seen the magnaported 3 inch barrel 629 but I was wondering if it is an accurate sweet shooting gun. The 29 I owned 30 years ago was a dream.. but that had a 4 inch barrel. What should I do?
 
.44 Mag 3 inch

I have Two S&W 3" SS M629 with K-Frame round butts and Pachmayr Rubber Grips. One was Magna-Ported and Black Finished (Robar).

Magna-Ported one is much more tolerable and comparable to 4" or 6" M29 without any Magna-Port (my brother has them).

Certain powders give alot of muzzle flash, so experiment to find best load/powder combo.

I typically carry mine with Cor-Bon .44 Spl and use .44 Mag Loads to experiment or when camping in Bear Country.
 
Depends greatly what you'll be doing with it. If you're wanting one specifically for self-defense, then go with the short barrel.

If you're wanting something to hunt with, I'd go with the longer barrel. I have a S&W 629 Classic with an 8 3/8ths barrel that's a pure joy to shoot!
 
IMHO, I don't ever see going less than 4" in a 44 mag, and 5.5 or 7.5 is even better. The barrel isnt the hard part to conceal but rather the girth and butt.

For defense you'd probably be carrying 44 special anyway so why not go for a smaller frame at the same time?
 
Hi,

I have a T/C 10" barrel, a Super RedHawk 7,5", a SW 29 4" and have just exchanged the 6" barrel of my 629 for a 3" one.

Like it's been said, it all depends on what you want from the gun.
My new 3" 629 shoots great, accurate enough to put down the chicken (IHMSA silhouete) at 50 yards.

The one thing I can tell you, is to make your own reloads, since all the comercial loads aren't for this size of barrel. For the other side, shoot hot ammo on this "snubbie" is one of the most beautiful and pleasured things in the world ! My friends called my snubbie "NAPALM".

About ballistics, it's about 10% less than the 4".

Hope it helps.

Andre Tiba - Brazil
 
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