I just bought a 629 w/ 2 1/2" barrel. As a new shooter I think it makes sense to start with .44 Special ammo to avoid teaching myself to flinch.

Now for the hard part. I'm having a heck of a time finding a source to buy the ammo. About all I can find is "cowboy ammo'. I've never shot it but assume it's dirty with lots of smoke.

Any suggestions? I've also wondered about .44 mag w/ 180 grain bullets. I'm assuming that would also be a little easier to get used to?

I guess eventually I'll have to get into reloading but it looks expensive and complicated. Also my closeup vision isn't so hot.

HELP ! !

I have a new 29 and I am in the same boat. Going to gun show next weekend hopefully get lucky there.

I am afraid ".44 Special" and "Cheap Ammo" are phrases that don't often occur in conjunction with each other.

Look around online and order 500 once-fired .44 special or even magnum hulls. Should cost you around $75-$80. Buy a pound of Unique powder. Somewhere around $25. Buy 1000 large pistol primers. Maybe $30-$40. Order 1000 rounds of 240 grain lead bullets. Around $90. Order a Lee turret press kit (or equivalent) with dies, a scale, and varied equipment. $200 tops if you shop around. Lee even makes a set of powder dippers, one of which will throw a very mild, but very effective, powder charge. If you load those once fired cases with a .44 special load, say 7 grains of Unique, you can probably use them five or six times. A 7 grain load will probably give you close to 800fps in a 4" barrel. By the way, that pound of powder will load 1000 rounds at that rate.

It sounds expensive, but if you really get to enjoying shooting, and start burning through those fifty-to-sixty cent rounds, you will see just how cheap it is compared to factory. It isn't complicated, but you will probably need a good pair of bifocals.

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Georgia On My Mind

I agree, ".44 Special" and "Cheap Ammo" do not go together. That's like trying to find "Cheap .45 Colt ammo", it's not going to happen.

You are correct, you will need to start reloading if you want a fairly inexpensive supply of ammo for your new revolver. It's not as complicated as you might think and it's a very satisfying hobby to boot...

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

ReklessOne,
Feel free to contact me at: [email protected].
we have in stock what you are looking for and I can provide you with a reloading service that will save you $$$.

Thanks for the opportunity to be of service.
Sincerely,
Jeff Holt - President
Appalachian Ammunition, Inc.
Appalachian Ammo - Home

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"Better to have some..."

If you are thinking of picking up some cheap reloads, be very careful. Avoid any reloaded ammunition other than from a well-known commercial firm that has an established reputation for turning out quality reloads. Reloads from a friend of a friend are never a bargain.

44 Mag kicks, no matter the bullet weight.

44 mag and 44 special are not cheap.

Save yourself a lot of hassle, and instead of dropping $100+ on ammo from the get go, get yourself set to reload. It will probably pay for itself by the end of the year. If you can bake cookies properly, you can reload. It is the same thing. Just follow directions, and pay attention to detail. Get your self some flipdown dermatologist googles, or reading glasses, something that you can see what you are doing.

"About all I can find is "cowboy ammo'. I've never shot it but assume it's dirty with lots of smoke."

Yes, lead bullet ammo is 'dirtier' than jacketed bullet ammo. It isn't just the lead bullets but also the bullet lubricant used on them. How much smoke they generate depends on the bullets and lubes used. Some is better than others in this regard.

Just for self edification, buy a 20 round box of 180 grain j.h.p. .44 Mag ammo and shoot it in your snub. The muzzle blast and racket is impressive! Your plan to begin with the .44 Special is a sound one.

You can reload and shoot jacketed bullets in .44 Special, and it will be cleaner, but such bullets generally cost twice or more what good cast lead bullets do. And .44 Special velocities just don't really need jacketed bullets. in fact, most of my .44 Magnum full power ammo uses cast lead bullets.

One of the best features of stainless steel handguns is how nicely they clean up. You can scrub enthusiastically without worrying about wearing off the blue.

Ask around and see if a friend handloads. Ask if you can watch them. It can be as simple or complex as you wish to be. RCBS, for example, makes a very nice reloading combo kit that contains everything you need except the dies and shellholder for under $300, it is high quality gear that will never wear out and you can switch to another caliber just by buying another set of dies and shellholder for the other cartridge. It's hard to learn how to shoot centerfires very well without the expenditure of a lot of ammo and factory ammo is generally pretty spendy.

I wish I could afford to shoot just factory ammo, but most of us can't if we like to shoot in any quantity.

The .44 Special is my favorite handgun round. Good luck!

If you can find it, PMC used to make a 44 special load of 180gr., if I recall, that was an old style jacketed hollow point. I think 44SB was the part number.

When you think about getting your carry, or defensive ammo, Speer has .44 magnum Short Barrel out now. No need in wasting all that blast and noise out of a 2.5" barrel that a full power 44 magnum will give you.

We sell a 180 gn XTP-JHP in .44 Special.
I have a couple of boxes of .44 Special 200gr LRNFP that should do in excess of 1000 fps.

If you have to have a full powered .44 Mag load I would highly recommend our 240 gn XTP-JHP. I chrono'd 1226 fps out of my Taurus Tracker Talo Edition 2.5 in barrel.

Check them out at: Appalachian Ammo - Home

PS we also have some stuff in .45 LC for the Ruger and T/C Contender fans.

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"Better to have some..."

You could ask hill billy on Calguns
You need ammo? I have ammo. In stock. - Calguns.net

I don't know if he ships our of California

Georgia arms also has it. Most folks here like their stuff. I do not like their 45acp, but revolver ammo should be OK.