S&W 29-2 Info Sought

[ColtShooter]

I finally gave in, and bought something that has been calling my name for a year.

29-2 4" square butt., sn:s2492xx

It looks like new (no drag line), and I paid $440 out the door.

I'd sure appreciate knowing the mfr date; anyone?

What level of ammo is safe to run in such an item to keep it healthy and out of the shop? I'm not looking to hotrod it.

 

[Standing Wolf]

What level of ammo is safe to run in such an item to keep it healthy and out of the shop?

Anything but the very hottest hand loads should be just fine—plus good cleaning, of course. I wouldn't mind having a four-inch model 29-2 myself, especially at that price.

 

[ColtShooter]

I'm not sure I got any special price; I could have bought several new Ruger's for the same dollar. My current favorite toy is a 19-3, and although I like the robust construction of the Ruger's, I am pretty spoiled by the action on a pinned-and-recessed S&W.

 

[PinnedAndRecessed]

I assume you handload. I always start at the lowest power and work up until I get an accurate combination. For the 44 mag out of my 6.5 inch M-29 it's about 44 special velocity.

If you don't handload, 44 specials might be the ticket since you've got a four incher. Full-charge magnum loads can be a bear.

For anything needing more power, I use a Super Redhawk.

 

[S&W44]

According to the SCSW book,your gun was made in 1964 or 1965.

 

[Majic]

If you want to use the heavy 300 grain loads you see from various custom ammo makers be sure to limit the amount of usage of them. The M29-2 won't stand a constant diet of the heavy loads.

 

[Hal]

What level of ammo is safe to run in such an item to keep it healthy and out of the shop? I'm not looking to hotrod it.

240 gr offerings from:
Remington (also UMC)
Federal (also American Eagle -red box)
Winchester (also USA)

All of them list a 240 gr @ 1180 fps out a a vented test barrel.

Are all loaded to what amounts to "very hot .44spl" levels. Of the major ammo makers, only Hornady loads something close to what the .44 Rem Magnum can do. (above 1300 fps)

Bottom line is your 29-2 should digest any 240 gr. load from Win/Fed/Rem you buy off the shelf. Persoanlly I'd suggest you avoid the 180 gr loads. While they are lighter, they are significantly higher velocity. Federal (which is somewhat known for it's "wimpy" offerings) 180 gr JHP's out of my 4" Model 29 are brutal. Federal lists them @ 1610 fps, and I don't doubt they are close to that even though I never chrono'ed them.

 

[ColtShooter]

Thanx to all who replied.

I do handload, and I have plenty of Unique I can burn and cast 240's are easy to come by.

For a '65 model, this is in excellent shape to my eyes (my eyes are pretty distracted at this point though). I have seen better fitting of a sideplate, but aside from a little holster wear at the muzzle, it's 98%.

I used to have a RedHawk in .44 many years ago and could never hit anything (with the most powerful, flinch-loads I could find of course). I shot a lot of .38 since then and think I can tame this thing. I'm surprised how heavy it is.

Given the weight, are there any special concerns for holster selection?

 

[surfinUSA]

Model 29s are not weak guns. After the 29-3 they are even stronger.
Prior to the 29-3 (that started the endurance package) They could and did handle everything until silloutte shooters started feeding them a steady diet of 300 gr heavy loads.

Back then all 44 mags like 357 mags were loaded hotter than today. The guns stood up just fine. Shoot all the full house 44 you want up to 300 gr and even they can be used occasionally.