New guy wants your take on his HD revo choices

J

JasonB

Inactive
Hi! I'm new to the Firing Line.

A little background info: I'm not new to guns but I'm no expert. I have owned or currently do own several semi's, a couple revolvers, and a shotgun.

I'm currently looking for a HD revo. Conventional wisdom suggests I should buy a 4" .357 and in general I think this is sound advice. However, everyone I know who has done this loads the .357 with .38+ due to the recoil/blast/flash of the .357. .38+ is good, but I'd like a little more stopping power.

My solution is to go with either the S&W 625 .45 ACP, or the S&W 629 .44 magnum. First of all, I LOVE the way the N frames fit my hand. I have shot the 625 and love it...very accurate and soft shooting. As far as stopping power is concerned, I prefer .45 ACP to .38+. I am a little concerned about the moon clips. I've heard they bend easily and that a bent clip can keep the cylinder from turning. Is this something I should be concerned about? I am also wondering about the new 4" barrel...is this enough length to build up the necessary velocity for reliable HP expansion? Do they still make the 5" barrel?

As for the 629, I know some of you are thinking I'm crazy. Well, the .44 seems to me to be a very flexible caliber. For HD there are several manufactered loads (I don't reload) that will give me .45 ACP-like perfomance. If I want to take it into the woods or have some fun at the range I can go with the high-powered stuff. Also, there are no moon clips to wory about. The only drawback I can see is that the ammo for .44 magnum is very expensive.

What do you think?
 
With the 629, you have a huge range of ammo and loads at your disposal. 44 Specials to 300 grain magnums, and lots in between.

4 inch 29's and 629's are quite the fire breathers with hot loads. For defense I would use 44 specials, maybe Sivertips.

The 625's are great. Shoots any 45 acp round you stuff in it. Full moon clips make it the hands down winner in the quick reload category.

Buy high quality moons and take care of them by not running over them with your truck, or by improper de-mooning. You won't have any problems.

If the cylinder charge holes are chamfered, I can "drop" a full moon over them and it goes all the way home.

4 inch 625's feel a lot different, to me anyway, than 5 inchers.
I much prefer 4. Plus it's a lot easier to find quality holsters for a four inch N frame.

Not as powerful as a 44 mag but there are some decent factory rounds out there for the 45 ACP. I wouldn't think twice about taking a fairly close range shot at a Deer. But for Elk or bear, I'd take the Magnum.
 
For defensive purposes with .357 Mag the recoil and blast to a degree are a function of barrel length and size of handgun. I have not found either to be objectionable in a medium size gun such as an L frame 686 say or Ruger GP series.

Another alternative in the big N frames for a caliber is a Colt .45. There are a range of loads and for soft shooting one could always use Cowboy loads which are light. As for the .44 magnum one could use .44 Specials in it for light loads and they may be a bit cheaper. The .44 mag should have a lot of muzzle blast, too.

The 625 in .45 ACP is available both in 4 and 5" versions. I would think the 4" would give plenty of length for expanding velocity. If worried one could always shoot .45 ACP +P's. If you desire a lighter gun the .44 mag, .45 Colt and .45 ACP are all available in the Mountain Gun version.
 
All of my .357s are K frame or larger. No problem with accurate rapid fire using defensive .357 loads.

As for the 44s. I like the 29s. With any barrel length again they are quite controllable with defensive loads.

.44 Special is about equal to .45ACP in performance. And you have the option of using tank buster magnums if desired.

Suggest buying used if you are going to get a Smith. Use this check list to go over any purchase, used or new. http://www.thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=57816

Whatever you get.....enjoy.

Sam
 
.357

The answer to your quesiton is easy... N frame .357... a M28 makes a great shooter, and the .357 is not at all unpleasant to shoot in it....if looks are important, get the fancy version the M27.

You can'g go wrong with either.

FWIW

Chuck
 
Two choices-

Smith & Wesson 686-5 .357 magnum w/ 4" or 6" barrel

Smith & Wesson 629-5 "Classic" .44 magnum w/ 5" barrel


All will work work well, to help accomplish the mission.:cool: :D

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member
 
One thing to remember about .357s is that there are choices between the .38+P and full-house .357s. Pro-Load has a REAL good rep as a "specialty ammo house" and among other things, they have a 125grain .357 "tactical lite" load that fills the gap if you don't want full crash'n'boom .357. The TacLite was really designed for the various J-class .357s now popular. They use a Gold Dot projectile with a cavity size apparantly "tuned" for the reduced speed.

These would be pussycats in a steel 4" .357 of any description from K-frame size or especially an L-Frame or a GP100.
 
Pro Loads "Tactical Lite" also comes in a .44 Mag version which uses the Gold Dot projectile designed for the .44 Special. Nice mild load for an N-Frame, 200 gr at 1050FPS.
 
Forget politics and get an older Smith. There simply is no other handgun that can compare to the joy of shooting a nice Smith. I personally prefer the N frames but a K frame or if you must, an L frame would do me just fine too.

I find the 45acp the most pleasant of the ones mentioned. Forget about bending moon clips. If you can bend a good quality moonclip like the ones sold by TK Custom you don't need no stinkin' gun.
 
Colt Anaconda

Colt Anaconda four inch barrel .44 mag. Don't forget about the classic. IMO this is one of the sweetest. Take a look.


Tony
 

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I just answered a post about a 629 regarding a woods gun. Mine is both my woods gun and my HD gun. I love it. It is the 4" version. It is a fire breather to quote a previous post, but with 44spcls like the 200g Speer Gold Dot, it is very pleasent shooting. I taught my wife to shoot using 44spcls and shee has no problem with it. She is not a "shooter" and prefers shooting it to my 38 snubby ultralight. When shooting full power with a slow powder it has quite a muzzle flash. I stick to fast powders most of the time. I did replace the grips with wooden Hogues to cut down on blistering of my palm. Since I got in 1911's I find the idea of the 45acp pistol interesting, but the 44spcl will do every thing the 45acp will do and you don't have to mess around with moon clips.

tjg
 
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