S&w 629

They're plenty strong. Not as strong as Rugers, yeah, but they'll handle full power factory .44 magnum ammo all day long. If you want to frequently shoot super heavy bullets at 1400 fps, then you probably should look at the Ruger instead.

I love my 629-4 Classic with the 5" barrel. It's a near perfect balance in my hand.

257WM_CDL-SF said:

thats what I was wondering id only shoot factory ammo

Click to expand...

.......get the 629 and don't look back.

The 629 is a great revolver. Unless you're doing over-the-top powerhouse rounds, it will last longer than you will. (Although the Ruger's are great, too!)

Both the Ruger and the S&W will out live you by many decades. I just purchased the SW 625 because, like you, the feel and balance was just perfect for me. I have nothing bad to say about Rugers either but I shoot my S&W and Ruger sits in the safe.

My M629 is either a dash five or four, I forget. It is an exceptionally accurate revolver.

I installed the Hogue X grips because the recoil was too harsh (for me) with full power magnums.

I had a Redhawk, it was a tank. Heavy and the trigger pull was not as good as my Smith. If you are going to abuse a revolver, a Redhawk is a good choice.

You will probably get tendon injury before you shoot out a Smith. John Taffin is one of those. He used to shoot hand cannons and now he has nerve damage. Still, I have read posts by guys who did shoot loose their Smiths.

S&W 629s are more beautiful, in my opinion. Especially the very early ones. The pinned barrels and couterbored chambers are beautiful, and because of the severe recoil of the caliber, you can get some fine specimins. I love Rugers, but I prefer S&W 629s.

the only way i would get the ruger is if u plan on the gun being a firearm and a hammer i love rugers but heres the downlow on them they use a little weaker metal than smith does so they overbuild them to make them equal and in result made them strong than the smith but the smith has a lifetime warranty ruger does not and ruger is alot heavier

I own a number of Rugers & S&Ws.
The Rugers seem more like a tank to me.
More square - boxy in design
You can abuse them all day long & they'll laugh at you.

The Smith & Wessons are classical beauties.
Finely tuned like a Rolls Royce
As long as you don't beat the heck outta them, they'll last forever.

Just my opinions YMMV

Go for the S&W. I own both and swear by my S&W revolvers.

Thatguy686, punctuation is your friend.

For the record, I like both 629s AND Redhawks. My 629-1 is a 3-inch that I carry in a Simply Rugged holster. The Redhawk is a 5.5-inch set up for deer hunting. Both are absolutely great guns.

The modern 629 is as strong as you will ever need it to be for shooting the .44 Magnum. Now if you overload the ctg. and damage the revolver, that is on you.

I previously owned a 6" 629 with the half underlug on the barrel. Fantastic gun and the fit and finish was superb. I shot up to a 300 grain federal cast core when I went to Alaska but mostly shot .44 special and 240 grain magnums.

I think the real concern with the 629, is can it shoot 240 grain bullets at 1400fps as a steady diet and not have an issue from a 6" barrel. Can it shoot 240 grain bullets at 1250+fps as a steady diet and not have an issue from a 4" barrel. If it can then I would add one(the classic 5" I've seen and read reviews on) to my collection of Ruger Blackhawks and Redhawks.

If not, then I'll keep my Rugers. I do shoot .44 magnum, at least 50 rounds once every two months(I reload) through my Redhawk 7.5". Been doing it for over a year and half and haven't had a problem.

Admittedly if I got a 629 I'd try to duplicate Corbon's 165 grain at 1300fps .44 magnum.