Help Nightcrawler pick a .44!

[Nightcrawler]

I've been considering a double action .44 as well (for my Revolver purchase). A .44 Magnum offers plenty of power, as well as plenty of soft-shooting .44 Specials to ease me into the big stuff.

Cost is a factor, mind you, but I'm willing to save up.

I'd prefer a 4-6" barrel length (no less than 4, no more than 6), six shots. I want something strong, from a company with good customer service. Something with available speedloaders (or that somebody like Clark Custom can moonclip) would be a big plus.

Also, something that can be scoped (or has an available weaver rail for mounting things like dot sights) would be a plus too.

My options, as I see them, are in the poll. This is, of course, assuming I buy new, which given the used market around here, I probably will.

Some notes:

-I think the Ruger is strongest, but is ugly.
-I think the Taurus Raging Bull looks cool, and know for a fact it has the scope mount I'd like.
-I think the "new" Smiths are overpriced (but everything's overpriced in my area...$440 for a GP100 indeed!), and I'm not crazy about the internal lock (oddly enough, the internal lock on the Taurus doesn't bother me *shrug*)

 

[Blackhorse]

My vote goes for the Smith.

 

[old_yout]

I've been thinking about this myself (although for me, naturally) and I've narrowed it down to a Dan Wesson. I never intend to carry it, which negates the potentially problematic cylinder release placement, and I understand it's a heckuva work horse, not to mention accurate.

 

[Ala Dan]

Nightcrawler, old friend-

I voted for the Smith & Wesson 629-5 "Classic"; but with
a 5" barrel. Absolutely, the best .44 caliber handgun that
I have ever owned!

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[Nightcrawler]

I'd go for a Dan Wesson, if not for the fact that I don't think I can afford one. Where IS the cylinder release on a DW, anyway?

 

[MJRW]

Yeah, people talk about smith & wesson triggers and things like that. Triggers can be worked on made to smooth out if you don't like it. You will never make a S&W stronger than Ruger, though.

 

[C.R.Sam]

Dan Wesson
Ruger
Used Smith 29.

Sam

 

[Nightcrawler]

Used

Dunno about used. The only used revolvers I"ve seen around here have 8" barrels. There isn't much in the four gun stores I go to. I'm currently running on the assumption that I'll be buying new.

 

[CZ_]

.44 special is a wonderful cartridge and its a great training round for .44 magnum, but......

(You heard the but coming right?)..... .44 special ammo is so darn expensive compared to .38 special. You are not saving much money shooting .44 special out of a .44 magnum, and the only way to shoot a lot of that stuff if you are not making six figures is to reload it. Other than that, go for it. .44 special/.44 magnum is a great round, and the guns made for them are also good.

I prefer the Ruger Redhawk and Super Redhawks over the Smiths, but you might have other tastes. Choose the pistol you like best.

 

[Dr.Rob]

The DW release is in FRONT of the cylinder, and you push it down to open it up.

My dad has a bunch of Dan Wessons. Strange designs compared to a Colt or a Smith, but they work. Speed loaders can be hard to find, as are aftermarket grips.

That model 29 is a charmer, but you can get the new Ruger for a lot less. Colt's 44's are just too big and ugly.

And darn it where is your 44 Mag Vaquero? By far its the best made least expensive 44 mag on the market. Looks cool in a cowboy rig too. Load those 44 specials and shoot cowboy match. Speed loaders? Practice!

BTW Ultramax makes a nice 44 /240gr flat point downloaded to "cowboy velocity) ie its 44 mag brass downloaded to 44 special speeds and its inexpensive.

 

[Nightcrawler]

ammo cost....

Well, my OTHER gun is a .45, and .45ACP isn't cheap either, especially compared to 9mm. Georgia Arms and others have good deals on bulk .44 Special.

 

[skeeter]

my vote goes to an older SW with the forged parts . For defense the 4' is faster out of the holster ( and balances better) and any loss in penetration over the 6" can be made up with different ammo. If interested I have an older nickel 4" for sale. mrostock@cableone.net

 

[Joe the Redneck]

M44

Nightcrawler, I got a brand new Taurus M44 for $379 on Gunbroker. I think it has an 8 inch barrel. It is ported. Feels like it weighs 25 pounds and is the most fun of all the guns I own. It sounds like the end of the world when it goes off. I am very happy with it.

 

[TGS]

No Brainer

Early 4" Model 29 with a nice trigger job.

Redhawks if economy is an element.

I wouldnt give a nickle for anything from Taurus as they have pathetic customer service. Hot loads quickly throw them out of time and they dont like to hear about it. (and thats from experience not an urban legend).

My favorite shooter is my Super Blackhawk. 1959 4 5/8" barrel but your not asking about single actions but early 3 screws sure are great. Tough to.

If you like stuffing the big bore guns think about the 454 Casull. (assuming you reload). It will chamber .45LC as well as the Casull rounds and is an entire new dimension in power. I had a Raging Bull and wore it out real fast. My Redhawk is as tight after an excess of 1K rounds as the day I bought it. Havent tried the .480 but Im reading good things about it.

But .44 mag is still my favorite round!

Lets bash Taurus

 

[Preacherman]

Hi, Nightcrawler. For strength, there's nothing to beat the Ruger. I traded in my S&W Model 29-2 on a 5½" Redhawk, and have been very satisfied. (I've seen several Model 29's and 629's blasted into backwards rotation of the cylinder after 80-100 rounds of heavy .44 Magnum ammunition, stuff like the Garrett Hammerheads, etc. This is definitely not a good thing!)

You can scope the 5½" Redhawks if you replace the rear sight with a scope mount from a third-party manufacturer. If you buy the 7½" barrel version, it comes with scalloped scope ring mounts on the barrel shroud, and two scope rings are included with the gun. IMHO, this is the best and cheapest buy for a scoped handgun. However, if you don't want to exceed 6" in barrel length, you will probably have to forego this option.

I have nothing against the Taurus .44 Magnums: it's just that they don't feel very good in my hands, whereas the Redhawk fits me very well. (I don't like the Super Redhawk, strong though it is - it's just too much like an ungainly block of tool steel!) For reasons mentioned above, I would be reluctant to buy a S&W .44 Magnum - although if I could get my hands on one of those sweet 3" barrel special-production guns made for Lew Horton, I might get one on principle!

A word for all those respondents who complained about the high cost of decent .44 Special ammunition. Armor of New Hampshire (Massad Ayoob's online retail operation - see www.ayoob.com) has several thousand rounds of Cor-Bon 180gr. JHP .44 Special ammunition, 1995 production, rated at 1,000 fps, on special at just over $9.00 per box of 20 rounds. This is unbeatable as far as I know, and they won't be re-ordering the stuff once they've sold out. If you want a case or two, I'm sure Dorothy Ayoob would negotiate an even better price. Give them a call at:

Telephone: (603)224-6814
Toll Free: (800)624-9049
Fax: (603)226-3554

 

[MikeJ]

I have several S&W revolvers in .357 and .38 but for .44 magnum I chose the Ruger Redhawk with 5.5 barrel in stainless. The double action trigger on mine is every bit as good as any of my Smith's and I've never had any work done on it. I really like this gun a lot, the only thing I had to do was buy Pachmayr Presentation grips for it when I shoot full house .44 magnums. The feel and balance actiually felt better than the model 629 S&W I was looking at but when I tried to shoot magnums the wood grips just didn't cut it.

 

[Scarborough]

Another vote for the Redhawk. If you really do find them to be hard on the eyes though there is the option of a S&W. Never heard of anyone being of the opinion that they are ugly. Well excepting of course the anti-gunners but they really don't count.

 

[jmlv]

I would (and did) get the Redhawk

actually mine is a Super Redhawk. I also have a 629 and a blackhawk in 44 magnum all have their uses but when I want a gun for balls to the wall heavy 300 grain loads I grab ol' red. No stronger DA 44 out these. I use Elmers std 44 special load in the 629 mostly (17 grains 2400 under a 240 gr. SWC hard cast)
Now as to ammo expence national biullet will reload YOUR brass with your choice of a 240 HP or a 240 coper clad semiwadcutter for about $130 @ 1000(i think its around that anyway their 45 ACP ball ammo is $105 @1000 same deal check out their web site under "using your own brass for accuratre prices and shipping)
everybody should have at leadt 1 44 Magnum revolver.

 

[Frohickey]

How about a used Ruger SuperRedHawk in 44Mag. The shortest these came from the factory is 7.5". But in buying used, you have money to get it chopped to your 'ideal' size.

The Ruger SRH has integral scope mounts.

(Besides, size DOES matter. )

 

[krept]

I voted for the practice more with your .45/save up for an M1A/shoot a .44 magnum/get-a-Dan-Wesson-if-you-are-still-interested.

I'd have to say that Dan Wessons are *just* as strong as the SRHs.

Look cool, have the vented rib like the Taurus.

I don't know about their customer service for their firearms, but they are very helpful if you have questions.

Plus, if you have a hard time deciding between the 4" and 6", well... I can't think of a better company.

You can also easily adjust the bbl/cylinder gap for getting the max oomph out of the cartridge or... ?