329PD Anyone shot one?

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Jhaislet

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I'm interested in getting a S&W 329PD in .44Mag for hiking & backpacking, and will probably pair it up with a Marlin 1894 .44 Mag 20" lever-action. This seems like the perfect pair.

Has anyone shot a 329PD (26oz) with full-power .44Mag loads? If so, how manageable was it? I've shot a 340 (12oz .357Mag) and it was quite a handfull, but doable.

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I'm also thinking about the S&W 629 Mountain Gun (SS 4" .44Mag 39.5oz) as another option. The stainless would probably hold up better to the elements and I wouldn't have to worry about what I shoot thru it. However, I'd probably shoot the 329PD with .44spl most of the time & load it with .44mag when in the backcountry.
 
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I currently shoot a 629 Moutain Revolver. It is a handfull but not a real issue with full powered loads. The 329 I purchased new is an entirely different story. After two cylinders full of magnum loads, it was boxed back up and resold on the used market.

Mind you, I have been shooting revolvers for 35 years and am no newcomer to big bores or handgun recoil. I am of the opinion that this revolver will induce very bad shooting habits into the normal shooter. It causes recoil anticipation flinching and a multitude of other bad shooting habits.

I think the 329 would be a great choice for those that need a .44 Magnum to carry a lot but shoot very little. It's recoil is well advanced of any revolver I have fired before and I consider it more of a novelty than a serious shooting revolver. I think it may have some niche uses but their are dozens of better choices for general revolver use.

I hope this was of use,
Jeff
 
LC '92 said:
I currently shoot a 629 Moutain Revolver. It is a handfull but not a real issue with full powered loads. The 329 I purchased new is an entirely different story. After two cylinders full of magnum loads, it was boxed back up and resold on the used market.

Mind you, I have been shooting revolvers for 35 years and am no newcomer to big bores or handgun recoil. I am of the opinion that this revolver will induce very bad shooting habits into the normal shooter. It causes recoil anticipation flinching and a multitude of other bad shooting habits.

I think the 329 would be a great choice for those that need a .44 Magnum to carry a lot but shoot very little. It's recoil is well advanced of any revolver I have fired before and I consider it more of a novelty than a serious shooting revolver. I think it may have some niche uses but their are dozens of better choices for general revolver use.

I hope this was of use,
Jeff
Click to expand...


This is why I've been considering the 520PD which is the same story, but in .357mag.
 
I have one. 329PD

I bought a 329PD about a month ago. I say buy one, they are totally cool. The first shots I tried were with some Win 240gr magnums. The guy at the gun shop asked me twice if that was really what I wanted to start with. It is a handfull with these, but it is manageable in single action mode. Double action multiple shots on target may be a bit challenging. Practice!! I still cant get over the weightlessness of this thing. I still have the wood grips on mine because I like the look. I hear it is even better with the S&W rubber ones that come with it. I dont plan to shoot it a whole bunch, I'll use my 629 Mtn for that. I plan to carry it with me this deer season for close shots off the stand. I say get one, you cant beat it for packing, you wont know its even there weight wise. The Hi-viz site is also good, I like it.:)
 
Jhaislet,

I own and frequently fire a Smith scandium 329PD, and I frankly like the gun very much. It kicks. Hard. But not so hard as to make it intolerable, at least from my perspective. I also own three other 44 Magnum revolvers, so shooting big-bores is something that I am accustomed to doing. That probably makes a difference.

It is not near as bad as the 340 357 Magnum (believe it or not), but it will sure get your attention.

Using Hogue rubber grips rather than the fancy wooden grips helps.

For general shooting purposes, I use 44 special ammo and limit my use of Magnum ammunition to verifying sights and periodically reminding myself just how "enthusiastically" it kicks.

Last spring, I used the 329 to take a Russian hog (approximately 250 pounds) up in Tennessee; the gun carried easily and performed well.

For me, the gun is a keeper. But I do suggest you try one out before investing the purchase price. Not everyone is as impressed as I have been.

Boarhunter
 
Thanx for asking this question. I've been thinking about a 329 for back country protection without a lot of extra weight. I've shot the 340 with full magnum loads and if this seems milder I don't think it's recoil will be a problem. Now to scrape some $ together...

Sounds like a good excuse for a roadtrip to S&W too, now that I think about it.

:D
 
Thanks for the excellent information. If it's not worse than the 340 with full power .357 loads then I'm leaning heavily towards it.

My only concern with getting the 39.5oz Mountain Gun is I might not carry it due to the weight. While I've got a lightweight 3" 1911 Springfield Micro Compact .45 (24oz) that I might be tempted to carry instead, I don't think this is a good choice for a woods gun.

Same goes for the 340, while lightweight, it's still a .357 with a 1-7/8" barrel and the load performs poorly.
 
I've had a 329PD since they came out. It's just about the perfect backup/carry gun when hunting or backpacking, and not using. It's almost always loaded with .44 Special handloads (Buffalo Bore Keith-style), unless I'm in big bear country. But it sure is nice to have something that light, just in case, where you're carrying not using.

I shoot it occasionally with full power magnums, to check zero, and it hurts. Not a lot, but it hurts. I even shot it once with Garrett loads, but that hurt way too much to repeat.

If I think I might actually use it, as with close shots at deer, bear or boar, or for finishing shots, or if I'm in big bear country, I tend to carry my 629. If I'm more concerned with two-legged varmints and goblins, I carry one of the 10mm's.

Now a 310PD, that would be a keeper! Are you listening, S&W?
 
Well, Nothing terribly different with my input . They are light and that is a good thing for carry.
They have strong recoil with magnum loads and I find them managable but not pleasant to shoot without dropping down to the 44 Spl loads. (nothing the matter with shooting 44 Spl's )

For bear protection one could carry the thing with magnums and if needed you probably won't whine about the recoil. If you want to shoot magnum loads for plinking and fun - I would recommend a heavier gun , or at least a way better rubber grip than what Smith sends along. Some backstrap cushioning would be nice.
 
I shot a friend's 329 with both mild .44 Spl. loads and some Cor-Bon or Buffalo Bore magnums. The .44 Spls. were fine, but the Magnums sure get your attention! It became one of my "I'll have to get one someday" guns. Well, that day arrived yesterday. I picked it up today.

The 329 is truely a gun you will carry a lot but shoot little. It is so light, you will not leave it behind. For it's intended purpose (a ltwt. hiking/carry revolver capable of taking most North American predators on four or two legs), it is without peer. I can pack both my 329 and my 3" 317 for the weight of a 4" M-629. I can't wait to shoot mine tomorrow.
 
I liken the recoil of the 329 with full power loads to holding out your hand out and having someone hit you with a baseball bat in the palm. I love mine so much I bought a second one in case the first one every plays out!
 
with full power loads to holding out your hand out and having someone hit you with a baseball bat in the palm
Click to expand...

Thats exactly what I was thinking but I was thinking crowbar,,,
Still a nice gun though. Just limit the ammount of full power loads you shoot in it.
The first time I fired it, I decided I would go all out and double tap a full cylinder of magnums:what: thats a real Eye opener:D
 
I have one too. I wear it pretty much all the time when I'm doing outdoors stuff. For carry in the woods it is hard to beat.

Do you want to shoot it lots for recreation? Nah, it does sting after a while.

But, it's intention is to be light enough to "always be there" while still packing the punch needed in bear country. For it's design intent, it serves it's purpose extremely well.

I've shot a whole box of mag through it in a single range session so it is certainly survivable.

It is my absolute favorite thing to shoot Specials in however. That is a fantastic combination.

I did leave the wood grips as well because the rubber ones cling to your clothes too much. If I was going to shoot the thing like crazy I would replace the grips, but that's not what the 329 is designed to be.
 
To those of you who truly appreciate the Smith 329, listen to my sad story.

Some time back, my child-bride bought me a very special anniversary gift... a limited edition Lew Horton 329 (serial number 50) with a 3 inch snubby barrel. (Is my wife a keeper or what?) In any event, that became my absolute favorite gun of all time (among many other guns that I own). I carried it everywhere, shot it often (though most often with 44 specials), and had great plans for using it hog hunting in the mountains of Tennessee. All of my buds were envious. The gun was an absolute showstopper.

Then I get a letter from Smith, telling me that the gun is defective (the solid snubby barrel was apparently cinched down too tightly) and could potentially self-destruct (i.e., like a bomb) when used with Magnum ammunition. Which is kind of ironic as I had put a lot... a lot... of Magnum ammo through the gun by that point without failure. That was bad enough, but it gets worse.

The gun was being recalled, not to be fixed or repaired, but to be destroyed.

I was given the option of keeping the gun (but signing a statement assuming responsibility for all injuries when it eventually blew up) or returning the gun to Smith for destruction in return for another gun.

I did not want another gun. This was the gun that my child-bride picked for me and it was my favorite gun. But I also did not want to risk injury to someone down the road (even after my passing, because I would never have sold it), so I traded it back to Smith for a 500 Magnum.

I kept the 500 Magnum for two or three months; hated the gun and hated the fact that I did not still have my Lew Horton gun, so I virtually gave the 500 Magnum away in frustration.

I eventually picked up a standard production 329, which I truly enjoy, but it is not the same....

Life can be cruel at times.

Boarhunter
 
I own the 340PD, 329PD, & the 500 PC 10 1/2 " :D I love them all, recoil is not a problem infact I really injoy it especially when you can control it. I shoot them all DA only;)
 
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