.44 Magnum guys, help me decide

brbdwyr said:

I'm drawn to the single action Blackhawk Hunters,

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I MUCH prefer the more refined, easier for me to shoot and smoother action of my M-29's, but YOU already answered your own question with YOUR above quote.

DM

Do you have any revolvers that are DA/SA or just SA? If you already have one that is DA/SA but no SA only then I would get the SA or vice versa. I like a little variety. Having said that I love my Ruger SBH bisley 3.75"brl. It is very accurate and I love banging steel with it. It takes a bit longer to reload but I look at it as it slows me down so I am not just blowing off 100rds in 10min, gives me more time to enjoy it. I am in the market for a DA/SA 44mag and am looking at the new S&W model 69 and taurus 446 or tracker, something I can also carry with 44 special rds.

If you got a thing about the model 29's you'll pass up on one of the nicest shooting 44 Mag's around.
I like the SAA, but never shot one in 44 Mag that was as comfortable as the 29.
Personal preferences.

I like both SA & DA . The single action will cost a few hundred less than a double action .
For what you want , I would get a single action . I really don't like the Blackhawk because of that big front sight though . I like the Redhawk better so that's what I got and I bought used . Also for what you are going to use it for , I would get a 7.5" barrel . The extra weight will tame recoil better and you will have a longer sight radius and you might be more accurate with it . Longer than that just feels muzzle heavy to me . I would not argue 6" over 7 1/2" barrel .

Once you get use to it I like the cylinder on a SA over a DA for cleaning . I also really like a loading gate and the clicks of a SA revolver .

Either has its pros and cons. On average, most shooters will find the Ruger Super Blackhawk or Bisley to be more comfortable than any DA. SA's tend to transmit more recoil into muzzle rise, whereas DA's send it straight back to your palm. There is a reason why the vast majority of .475 and .500 conversions are built on Ruger Bisleys and not Redhawks.

This one needed a taller front sight so I took the opportunity to get a little work done.



This one started as a 4 5/8" Super, later converted to a Bisley and then finished off by David Clements. A little dirty right after shooting:



But then, every revolver fancier needs a nice 29 or 629:

Good point about how recoil is delivered.
I've wanted a Ruger Bisley to try for a long time, but never have found one for the right price.

For most of us rapid firing of .44mag isn't something we'd normally do. And the big advantage of a DA/SA revolver over a pure SA is the firing rate when used in DA mode.

But your stated target/plinking/hunting goals don't really require the rate of fire of a DA gun. And since you're already keen on a SA gun it seems to make sense to go that way.

Having shot and loaded SA revolvers for a while now I can say that they do not NEED to be slow. I can clear the cylinder and reload in maybe 50% more time than I can reload a tip out cylinder if loading from a tray of loose ammo. It's all about method and practice. The method is easy and it doesn't take a lot of practice.

I prefer the looks of a stainless Redhawk myself. Not a Super, just a Redhawk. Own a model 629 also, but never shoot it. Love the simplicity and durability, plus I am a Ruger guy at heart.

No one here can tell you which YOU will prefer. I shot a SBH once and did NOT like it. I shot a Redhawk once and promptly bought myself one. Plenty of people have the opposite preference. It's subjective, so none of us are wrong.

These are not rare guns. If you don't see one at your range that you can ask to try, posting here for someone who lives near you and will help you out should work unless you are in an unusually remote area.

I used to have a Ruger Redhawk in .44 Mag. Shot the snot out of it, killed deer and hogs with it and it was a lot of fun and a great gun. It was accurate but not exceptionally so.

I finally sold it and bought a Ruger Blackhawk hunter (Bisley model) and absolutely love it. I've killed deer and hogs with it too and it is truly a magnificient shooter. Well above the Redhawk in the accuracy category.

The Bisley grip (for me) is way more comfortable than either the Redhawk or the regular Blackhawk when shooting heavily recoiling loads (and I shoot some barn burners). I do not find the SA only to be a negative in any way. I'm not in a big hurry to trigger off multiple rounds quickly nor am I in a big rush to reload so a swing out cylinder is not a necessity.

If at all possible, shoot a Blackhawk Hunter Bisley with some heavy loads and compare it to anything else before you buy.

Ultimately, you have to find what works best for YOU and how you will be using it.

Good luck.

I have had a Ruger SBH, a Ruger Redhawk and a S&W M29-2. The last one to go was the S&W and it was replaced with a M29-3. I find the Rugers to be heavy and clumsy. The S&W is probably the lightest 44 Magnum available and it will recoil a bit. Proper grips help tame that, on SA revolvers also.

For the last 30 (wow, that many?) years, I have shot DA only with my revolvers and find them to give me better accuracy and recovery then when firing SA.

While I haven't shot the 29 in a long time, my S&W M25-2 and 25-5 get frequent work outs.

The Smith and Wesson Model 29 Dirt Harry would be my first choice.

I have owned 3 44 magnums, and I wish I still had all of them. Only one I still have is a M29 with 8 3/8" barrel that my dad gave me. The other two were ruger single actions. A sbh Hunter 7 1/2" barrel with 2x weaver, great gun wish I still had it. But my favorite was a 50th anniversary flat top with 6 1/2" barrel by far the smoothest ruger I ever handled. Action was smooth and trigger was great right out of the box. Still kicking myself for letting it go.

I have one of each of the major flavors of Rugers big bore revolvers.
If I had to choose just one in 44mag for what you describe, it would most certainly be the Super Blackhawk Bisley Hunter.

The Bisley seems to bridge the gap between a double action style grip and the old single action hog leg. The recoil pulse is not nearly as straight back as a double action grip (Redhawk or Super Redhawk) and the muzzle flip with hot 44mag loads is not nearly as bad as with the standard hog leg.

The flip out cylinder thing is really a non issue on a range or a hunting gun. It is slightly longer to load/unload time but not significantly so. Additionally, on the range, you are not going to blaze through a full cylinder of 44mags and not want a bit of a rest on the tail end.

My Bisley Hunter has shown well above average accuracy and continues to be my favorite hunting, and range big bore.

I have S&W and Ruger. I carry a 3" 629 on the farm but I carry a 6" Ruger SA when hunting. My next will be a Ruger Bisley 4.75" and it may replace the 629 [will always keep the S&W]. I shoot the Ruger better than the S&W but we are talking apples and oranges in barrel length, grips and action. From what you have said I would suggest the Ruger Bisley in either 4.75" or 6". You will have to find a used one as I don't think they are currently in production.

brbdwyr said:

Next on my "gotta have" list is a .44mag, probably a Ruger. My question to y'all is DA/SA or SA? This will be mainly used for target shooting. Not SD, not HD, not carry, just shooting gongs and paper. And maybe, just maybe, try my hand at bagging a whitetail with it. I'm drawn to the single action Blackhawk Hunters, but I sure like the convenience of a swing out cyl.

Pros, cons, opinions, bbl length thoughts, recommendations?

Now, if you're just going to say "get a Model 29" and not back that up with any insight, then just don't.

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The Super Blackhawk Bisley Hunter does have less felt recoil because it likes to roll in your grip when shot. The Super Redhawk in the 7 1/2 inch barrel is good too. There is a big reason I would choose a Ruger over the Smith, they will handle hotter loads than the Smith and Weston. In fact there is sections in some reloading manuals that have load data that can only be shot in a Ruger or a T/C pistol for example the 45 Colt. If you are not worried about quick follow up shots, I know you said revolver, but the Thompson Center Contender would give you another option. You can purchase different barrels in different calibers and just swap out the barrels and you have a different pistol as your need changes. They make barrels for them from 22 Hornet all the way up to the 500 S&W including some rifle calibers and they are gun hunting handguns if you don't need quick follow up shots.

One point to consider along the way is the grips.

With DA/SA guns like the S&W 29/629 and the Redhawk folks seem to accept that there is a good chance that they'll want or need to replace the grips with ones that fit them better to ensure a more stable hold and ones which spread out the recoil energy so they don't hurt their hands with the big bang loads.

But that feeling seems to go away when SA revolvers are concerned. Folks seem to just accept that the grips will look like they do and fit like they do. Hence the common reputation that the Super Blackhawk has for being a knuckle buster on the shooter's middle finger from the trigger guard coming back and bashing them. There are some after market grips that deal with this. Most of them are big ugly things that fill in the area behind the guard. But I found that just a thicker grip around the neck of the gun does wonders. My own SBH was hammering my finger something terrible. But simply fattening up the grips kept the look of the gun intact while letting me shoot full house H110 loads with no risk at all to the tender back of my finger. And as a result of the larger area to spread out the recoil the shock to my hand was less as well. I tend to feel it more in my arm now.

But that feeling seems to go away when SA revolvers are concerned.

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Not at all but it is a factor I did not address. In a nutshell, factory Ruger grips are atrocious. They're poorly shaped and for me, they're way too thin at the top. I need grips that are thicker at the top, nicely rounded, flat on the bottom and properly fitted to the frame.

Oversized rubber grips are worse. They place the hand lower on the gun, which accentuates muzzle rise and lengthens the reach to the hammer. They're sticky and tend to abrade the hands. Not to mention that awful double palm swell that Hogue puts on theirs. It's worthy of note that custom five-shot .475's and .500's never have oversized rubber grips. They have grips of micarta, ivory, stag or wood that is made to fit the shooter's hand and fit the grip frame seamlessly.

I am one of those that prefers the grip angle of DAs. I also like the choice of the quicker follow up shot a DA provides, even tho for hunting, I generally use the firearms in SA.

It's a personal thing, just as is grip size/shape/construction as CraigC has pointed out. Nice thing is, we all have multiple options of either and are free to sell/trade for another option if we find out we don't like what we got in the first place. Seeing how you already have experience with both, you have a head start on a lot of folks.