Three 44s

[paul105]

Day before yesterday I took three 44s to the range along with a sack full of 240gr JSP over 24.0gr WW296. Had the range all to myself and had a great time shooting steel. Hadn't shot the S&W329 in a while, so it took me a couple of rounds to remember I had hold it a bit lower to keep the hammer from gouging the base of my thumb. Had so much fun, thought I'd share.

Left to right: S&W M69 2 3/4" 5 Shot L Frame, S&W M329 4" Ti/Sc, S&W M629 6". The grips on the M69 are a set of pretty much worn out Hogue X Frame grips that I modified by sanding off the finger groves and rounding the butt.


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Picture of our range. Plate banks are about 27 yds, the two poppers (one large, one small) against the first berm are 75 yds. There is a large (4') circular steel plate at 440 yards - what looks like a large prarie dog mound just under the top of the ridge, dad cent of pic.
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Paul

[HeavyDuty]

Very nice! Before I get all excited about a model I’ve never heard about before, do you mean a 629?

[paul105]

Yes, 629 -- I corrected above.

Paul

[Jay585]

Nice. I’ve got a 629 Lightweight, fired two boxes of Grizzly (I think) but the 6th round had the bullet creeping out of the case.

What factory rounds have you had good luck with?

[paul105]

I bought two cases (1,000 rnds total) of Fed 44 Mag ammo from an estate sale several years ago ($7 per box of 20). They are the only factory .44 mag I remember buying in the last 15 + years and they are about gone. They were catalog No. 44A and I don't think they've been made for quite some time. I would bet that anything from Buffalo Bore would have been thoroughly tested for crimp jump, however they are really expensive and I would only use for woods bumming. You should really consider reloading -- you can tailor loads to your requirements and tweek as necessary to prevent things like crimp jump. Your ammo will cost less, although you probably won't save any money because you will only shoot more.

Paul

[Trooper224]

I can't imagine getting into the .44 Magnum and not handloading.

[PD Sgt.]

Nice, that 2 3/4” Model 69 is on my short list. Kind of a 696 with a stronger forcing cone.

[Trooper224]

I can't imagine getting into the .44 Magnum and not handloading.

Strangely, after I typed this I went shooting with my newly acquired S&W M29. While at the range I perused the available .44 mag ammo. Everything from a twenty round box of Federal H-Shok to a fifty round box of Magtech was $45.00. Sweet fancy Moses!

[Jay585]

If I remember right the Grizzly 44 ammo was $22 for 20 at Sportsmans Warehouse. The cheapest I could find.

Is crimp crease a concern other than possibly jamming up the cylinder?

[Trooper224]

If I remember right the Grizzly 44 ammo was $22 for 20 at Sportsmans Warehouse. The cheapest I could find.

Is crimp crease a concern other than possibly jamming up the cylinder?

Are you referring to something like this?



I wouldn't try firing a round like that. You're introducing an additional stress point and therefore possible failure point in the case. Better to pull it and resize, or just toss it.