The models up to the 620-2E were not up to the constant pounding of the heavy cartridges that came out when Ruger started making a stronger .44 magnum. They will stand up to lighter magnum loads quite well. The first really good model to handle stronger loads was the 620-3. That model and the -4 are considered to be the best for shooting a lot. But the -1 and -2 models both had incremental improvements making them stronger. Again if you stick to the cartridges they were designed for (up to 255 gr. "Keith" cartridges so named because they were the limit proposed by Elmer Keith when he first designed the .44 magnum) you shouldn't have any problems. Even the -3 and -4 may not shoot the hottest loads though (like the 300 gr. +P loads and similar rounds) as well as other .44 magnums. Most of us prefer S&W anyway because they shoot more accurate for the most part.