4” or 5.5” and what carry strategy?

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Why hide it if you can see a holster ? I would just open carry .

Is it indeed a holster? Maybe a cell telephone? Or a pager? Leather does not automatically imply a gun holster. It is less noticeable, even unnoticed, if only a little leather is exposed. And, I just feel better with the gun butt covered. Its worked for me for some twenty years or so, and I'm not about to change now.

Bob Wright
 
Sometimes I just repeat myself going from thread to thread. But the Smith 329PD is a lightweight N-frame in .44 magnum. 4inch barrel and 27 oz. Carries like it’s not even there. Its super comfortable shooting .44 specials. Buffalo Bore makes a reduced recoil magnum round with hard cast Keith-style pills that make good bear medicine. I carry mine in a Milt Sparks pancake holster on my belt at 3 or 4 o’clock. Comfortable driving in the car with seatbelt.
 
Since you're used to carrying a Glock, have you considered a G20 10mm? Loaded with Buffalo Bore or Underwood 220 grain bullets at 1200 fps, they could put the hurt on a bear rather well, and having 15+1 rounds on board means a lot of holes.
 
Ya know, with the new design solid copper extreme penetration bullets by Lehigh, deep penetration is impressive. These, in a 10mm should work well.

https://www.underwoodammo.com/colle...grain-xtreme-penetrator?variant=7865928056889

Lehigh's load shows they produce 26" of penetration in gelatin.

https://www.lehighdefense.com/colle...reme-penetrator-ammunition?variant=1070676144

That's not too far from their reported 32" penetration with their 44 magnum load.

https://www.lehighdefense.com/colle...reme-penetrator-ammunition?variant=1066304824
 
I think the Danish Dog Sled patrol, who operates in polar bear country, carries Glock 20s. With heavy hardcast loads, it a pretty powerful sidearm.
 
Since you're used to carrying a Glock, have you considered a G20 10mm? Loaded with Buffalo Bore or Underwood 220 grain bullets at 1200 fps, they could put the hurt on a bear rather well, and having 15+1 rounds on board means a lot of holes.
16 rounds of 10mm sounds heavy.
 
Here is the background, I’m on a farm in grizzly country, so i’m looking to pick up a .44 revolver and eventually a lever action combo.
I’m a little undecided on the 629 4” and the redhawk 5.5”. (Why doesn’t someone make a 5” with a short lug?)
The ejector is better shrouded, I think, and it should have the length to remove these longer cases. On some guns the ejector defines the minimum barrel length. Neither gun mentioned has a full underlug that I know of, so I am not sure about your reference here.
 
That's pretty light compared to the lever-action 40' away on the quad or tractor.

He ain't heavy, he's my brother!
Good point, but does one need all 16 rounds? I do have a Glock 22 bedroom gun, so I may be overthinking what the longer 10mm would weigh.
 
Anyways, I think it will come down to my carry strategy. I can open carry in my state, and plan to on the farm, but I’d prefer to conceal, or mostly conceal when I’m in town or at someone else’s house.

Are you a working Farmer or just live in country?

At first I was thinking western style holster and belt that would go on top of what I’m wearing and be in addition to my regular belt.

A western style holster and separate gun belt look good in the movies but are not practical for when doing farm chores. It gets in way when operating a tractor and driving and bangs into things when feeding livestock, etc.

Also, is there an easy way to switch from open, easy access, to concealed? I really don’t have time to go change every time I need to run to town for something. Or am i stuck with a high riding OWB holster and just tuck my vest behind or pull it over as my best way to switch back and forth.

You live in a Open Carry State so take advantage of it.

Personally I would chose a 4" Model 29, carry it in a high ride OWB holster and not worry about conceal carry. A high ride holster is much more practical when doing farm chores and for outdoor activities.

(I am actually a single-action revolver guy like BobWright but you mention carrying a 629 or Redhawk. I would happy with one of my 45 Colt Vaqueros with heavy loads).

I am THE GUY on THR that carries a full size handgun (Beretta 92) year round and believes in exercising my Right to Open Carry. I always carry it in a Sparks EX Companion IWB holster on my right side regardless of the season. (So more accurately semi-open carry since the barrel of my gun is inside my waistband). When the weather is hot/warm I open carry. When it turns cold my coat turns it into a conceal carry but I don't worry about it showing when in public such as when I am shopping, in a restaurant , etc.

When I occasionally carry a full size revolver it is a OWB holster but it is for rare occasions / tasks and I don't plan on going to town although I have known to do it when needing a parts to fix something.

Just a thought but how about leaving the bears alone?
 
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I do have a Glock 22 bedroom gun, so I may be overthinking what the longer 10mm would weigh.
A fully loaded G20 is not going to be burdensome in weight. It would probably be on par with a full size all steel single stack 1911.
 
Sometimes I just repeat myself going from thread to thread. But the Smith 329PD is a lightweight N-frame in .44 magnum. 4inch barrel and 27 oz. Carries like it’s not even there. Its super comfortable shooting .44 specials. Buffalo Bore makes a reduced recoil magnum round with hard cast Keith-style pills that make good bear medicine. I carry mine in a Milt Sparks pancake holster on my belt at 3 or 4 o’clock. Comfortable driving in the car with seatbelt.

Thanks, but I may have damaged my thumb shooting normal .44 mag out of a 629 6”. I would have to shoot your combo to even consider it. I’m a little gun shy ;) I’m planning to only shoot specials out of a 629/redhawk and just keep it loaded with magnums for the chance bear encounter. I suppose I can sacrifice my thumb to save my face in that situation.

Since you're used to carrying a Glock, have you considered a G20 10mm? Loaded with Buffalo Bore or Underwood 220 grain bullets at 1200 fps, they could put the hurt on a bear rather well, and having 15+1 rounds on board means a lot of holes.
Yes, I see a lot of people are moving to the 10mm for a bear gun. But, I’ve been wanting a revolver for a long time so I’m using this as my excuse.

The ejector is better shrouded, I think, and it should have the length to remove these longer cases. On some guns the ejector defines the minimum barrel length. Neither gun mentioned has a full underlug that I know of, so I am not sure about your reference here.
There is a 5” 629, but it is a full lug. That’s what I was referencing even though I didn’t talk about it. Not sure why they have a 4” and 6.5” partial lug but decided the 5” needed a full lug?
 
Thanks, but I may have damaged my thumb shooting normal .44 mag out of a 629 6”. I would have to shoot your combo to even consider it. I’m a little gun shy ;) I’m planning to only shoot specials out of a 629/redhawk and just keep it loaded with magnums for the chance bear encounter. I suppose I can sacrifice my thumb to save my face in that situation.

Have you tried shooting a single action to see how that is on your thumb? You can always cock with the support hand thumb btw, some people prefer it.

If practicing with Specials and keep Magnums loaded for carry, do check your point of impact with the Magnums. Depending on bullet weight and velocities, they could hit in very different places.
 
Sorry, my replies are inside the quote.
Are you a working Farmer or just live in country?

Working raw milk dairy. Well, it will be next year. Working on the business end of things over the winter.

A western style holster and separate gun belt look good in the movies but are not practical for when doing farm chores. It gets in way when operating a tractor and driving and bangs into things when feeding livestock, etc.

Yeah, that’s what I was thinking would be a problem. I like the idea of being able to strap it on and off without using belt loops, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it might get in the way. Hence this thread.

You live in a Open Carry State so take advantage of it.

I do, and i am now while I wait to get my CWP, but still, I’m not all that excited about going into the library for story time obviously open carrying. Like I said before, I wouldnt mind a little leather poking out the bottom, but sometimes, I feel it’s more polite to not be advertising in some situations.

Personally I would chose a 4" Model 29, carry it in a high ride OWB holster and not worry about conceal carry. A high ride holster is much more practical when doing farm chores and for outdoor activities.

That’s what it’s looking like I’ll probably end up with.

(I am actually a single-action revolver guy like BobWright but you mention carrying a 629 or Redhawk. I would happy with one of my 45 Colt Vaqueros with heavy loads).

I am THE GUY on THR that carries a full size handgun (Beretta 92) year round and believes in exercising my Right to Open Carry. I always carry it in a Sparks EX Companion IWB holster on my right side regardless of the season. (So more accurately semi-open carry since the barrel of my gun is inside my waistband). When the weather is hot/warm I open carry. When it turns cold my coat turns it into a conceal carry but I don't working about it showing when in public such as when I am shopping, in a restaurant , etc.

When I occasionally carry a full size revolver it is a OWB holster but it is for rare occasions / tasks and I don't plan on going to town although I have known to do it when needing a parts to fix something.

Just a thought but how about leaving the bears alone?

I like to poke the bears...
actually, besides working on the property we have 25 acres bordering national forest, so i also like to hike, hunt, fish and sometimes I’m with the kids. I’ll leave them alone if they leave me alone, but I can’t know how they will act so I rather be ready.
 
Have you tried shooting a single action to see how that is on your thumb? You can always cock with the support hand thumb btw, some people prefer it.

If practicing with Specials and keep Magnums loaded for carry, do check your point of impact with the Magnums. Depending on bullet weight and velocities, they could hit in very different places.

I intend to try to find a shootablw load and a defense load that are similar point of impact up to 10 yards or more.
I like the looks of single action better, but if I run into an angry bear unexpectedly, I worry about the extra time needed to cock a hammer .
 
I intend to try to find a shootablw load and a defense load that are similar point of impact up to 10 yards or more.
I like the looks of single action better, but if I run into an angry bear unexpectedly, I worry about the extra time needed to cock a hammer .

Smart plan.

As far as a single action taking longer to get into action, I think that depends heavily on how much you practice. Others can tell you more, but I've found cocking the hammer to be very quick. The design of SA revolvers does make it easy.
 
I intend to try to find a shootablw load and a defense load that are similar point of impact up to 10 yards or more.
I like the looks of single action better, but if I run into an angry bear unexpectedly, I worry about the extra time needed to cock a hammer .
A bear gun is going to need two hands, so cocking the hammer with the assist hand thumb can be unbelievably fast. Otherwise you point the barrel skyward, catch the hammer with your thumb, and bringing the gun back on target does most of the work of cocking. Second shot has the gun already pointing upward after firing.

Note that a Super Blackhawk, certainly the Bisley, has IMO a hammer spur better suited to one handed cocking than a Colt SAA style. I tried my Bisley and Vaquero just now, and there was no contest.
 
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I'm curious to know in practical terms which is more difficult to master, rapid accurate firing with a single action magnum revolver or learning how to clear a jam in a 10mm auto loader should you experience a jam? I ask this as an individual that shoots 10K+ rounds/year in my revolvers double action, committed to the DA revolver but with little experience with SA revolver shooting.

In my personal experience it has been a long hard multi-year road to learn the double action revolver and become reasonably accurate. So I struggle to see how anyone less than committed to a SA revolver would benefit from it under the stress that I would imagine the situation would demand. But I'm asking the question because I want to hear something other than "this is what I have or do and you should do the same".

So the question is: which is more difficult to master, rapid accurate fire with a single action magnum revolver or learning how to clear a jam in a 10mm or 357 sig auto loader? Either way the individual will need marksmanship skills so it seems to me that it comes down to the mechanics of the particular firearm.

I have observed accomplished revo shooters that are both good and have put in the time in both DA and SA shoot the same cof and while impressive, their DA performance is significantly better than their SA.

What I'm getting at is why are some making this far more difficult than it has to be? We are preparing for a chance encounter not certain combat. I love my revolvers but they are much more expensive to own and more time consuming to master compared to auto loaders which btw have the bonus of larger ammo capacity and are easier to carry concealed. I have a friend that really wants to buy a 44 magnum revolver, he owns a large piece of property in Maine. But, while he has handgun experience, nothing past 38 spl. He wants me to help him pick out the actual revolver knowing that individual firearms of the same make/model might closer to perfect. But my advice is get a 4 or 6" barrel .357, shoot a lot of 38 special and get good at it DA, then move over to a 44 Magnum because even if you handload 44 magnum for cost savings it is still a handful to shoot often.
 
I'm curious to know in practical terms which is more difficult to master, rapid accurate firing with a single action magnum revolver or learning how to clear a jam in a 10mm auto loader should you experience a jam? I ask this as an individual that shoots 10K+ rounds/year in my revolvers double action, committed to the DA revolver but with little experience with SA revolver shooting.

I think a better question is which of the two is more fun to practice regularly. Because of the two skills, that's the one that will most likely get more attention.
 
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