S&W Model 629 Mountain Gun

Can anyone suggest a web site for purchase of an 'El Paso Saddlery Tom Threepersons holster' or other good holster for the Mountain Gun? Thanks.
 
I've got two .44 Magnums with 3" bbls, a 29-4 and a 629-5. Beautiful guns with unfluted cylinders and pretty wood grips, but they are quite a handful, especially with the 180-grain ammo (the 240-gr. Fiocchi seems mild in comparison). There is probably no earthly sense to such guns, except I just love the look of them. Maybe therapy? A half hour on the range with these guns and the week's anxieties and frustrations sort of melt away. And, of course, if one were deeply into muzzle flash, they'd be just the ticket.

Shooting .44 SPL is always an option, which raises this question about the S&W 696: Why? The 696 is an L frame, not all that much smaller, lighter, or cheaper than a 3" .44 Magnum N frame. I'm trying to figure out what niche the 696 is designed to fill. Doesn't it seem that the runs of 2 5/8" and 3" 629's that S&W has been doing would pretty much kill sales of the new 696?
 
The advantage of the 696 is less bulk with the 5-shot cylinder for concealment purposes.

As far as 629's go, I don't think it's worth the weight difference for the lighter gun. That being said the reason I personally got one initially was because I could use the same holsters that I already had for my model 28. Also, the balance/handling of the gun pretty much mirrored my 28.

To each his own, if there was one perfect hunting/self-defense/carry/recreational/target/competition gun it would be a pretty boring world.
 
Hey Byron!

I just finished an LFI-I class with Massad Ayoob in October and I used my Smith & Wesson Model 657 in .41 Magnum with a three inch barrel for the 500 round shooting portion and qualification.

I shot a 267 out of a possible 300 on this tough course of fire. Not bad for me.

------------------
- Anthony (the crazy Italian with a .41 Magnum)

"Civilized people are taught by logic, barbarians by necessity, communities by tradition, and the lesson is inculcated even in wild beasts by nature itself. They learn that they have to defend their own bodies and persons and lives from violence of any and every kind by all the means within their power."

- Marcus Tullius Cicero
 
My mag. is a 29-4 (3" barrel) with an unfluted cylinder. Like some of the respondents above, I use handloads with .44 special +P levels for practice. While this is a very bad way to practice, (actual use will be with full loads and no ear protection)I find that I can rehearse actual full power use by getting a look of pain on my face BEFORE firing.

Politicians are bilgewater in the Ship of State.
Marcus Tullius Cicero

[This message has been edited by John Lawson (edited December 06, 1999).]
 
Grayfox and Jeff Thomas--re holsters for the S&W Mountain Gun. I notice that the latest (12/99) catalog from Dillon (1-800-762-3845) contains two holsters made specifically for this model: a Kramer Belt Scabbard (p.29) and a Kramer Vertical Scabbard (p. 53). The Vertical Scabbard has been available from Dillon before for the 5-inch full-lugged N-frame, but I believe that this is the first time it's also been offered for the 4-inch Mountain Gun. The holsters are $58 each.

As far as my own purchase of a 629 Mountain Gun is concerned, I went back to the dealer to look at the gun again. Perhaps not surprisingly, it was still there. The dealer freely admitted that the previous owner traded it in because he couldn't tolerate the recoil with full magnum loads. Also, he offered to lower the price to $469, which would help a little. The gun is in good shape--no mars or scars, well timed, good trigger. Barrel-cylinder gap is at the high end of the normal range (.008--I had a feeler gauge with me). The rear sight was adjusted all the way up--I can't figure out why, so this concerns me somewhat.

The posts in this thread have all been excellent and informative, and I'd like to thank each of you for responding. After reading these posts, I figure the Mountain Gun is a useful concept, but can be problematic in .44 Magnum. Apparently, the weight saved by the lighter barrel would be important mainly to a backpacker paring his burden to the last ounce. The 625, 657, and 686 Mountain Guns sound like good alternatives. Fubsy's comment about the grips is also appreciated.

Based on these posts, if I were to get the 629, I believe I'd see it primarily as a .44 Special, but with a .44 Magnum option. G. Kennedy's suggestion of shooting Remington medium velocity magnums looks like an effective compromise.

Anyway, thanks again. :)
 
Get one of the new taurus ti 41 mag trackers(4 " barrell) or even the 2.5 " barrel version. They are lightwieght and ported, so the recoil is not too bad.
 
I wouldnt worry to much if the pistol is regulated properly and if you need the gap lowered once the gun is purchased you can send it to s/w (I know its an inconvience), and as they have many times in the past for me they will fix the pistol and in my case they paid for shipping for four pistols, one that was regulated so bad it was a joke pistol we used for laughs (686 6") and old mdl 27 that Id had for 15 yrs., and both brand new lady smiths that needed correcting as they werent right........all work and parts replaced free including shipping. If you are still thinking about that pistol--consider the fact that they make those pistols in small runs so there are not alot of them, and you dont know when they will have another run. If you primarily intend to shoot mag ammo I would not buy the pistol for that, Id probably try and pick up a 4" or 6"mdl 629 of the latest design as they are built stronger than the ones I currently have. Ive a shooting partner who shot so much hot loaded 44mag out of his mdl 29 that he literaly shot the pistol out of time and an complete rebuild was in order---but depending on your hand size the Jordan troppers by herret have worked the best for me........luck to ya ...fubsy.
 
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