I recently got a 629, and I plan on keeping it loaded at home with defense ammo, but then emptying the cylinder and replacing them with target rounds for the range.

Just how careful would you think I need to be when doing this, and how would you recommend doing it? I am new to guns, and just want to be sure I don't dump out live rounds in a way that could set them off and cause a serious hazard.

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Drop me off at Lane Bryant.

Good question!

You really don't have much to worry about. Simply open the cylinder and use the ejector rod to push the cartridges out.

Unless you're hitting the back of the cartridge with a hammer, there is almost no chance of the rounds "going off" even if you drop them or mishandle in some way. Remember, loose/bulk packed ammo is shipped in metal ammo cans across country every day without incident.

In the incredibly unlikely event of dropping a cartidge onto a nail with enough force to ignite the primer...without the barrel to contain and focus the energy the round will have much less force behind it than if fired from the gun. It's not hollywood, the world of physics and chemistry are in charge.

Thanks.

So just dump them out onto a towel or something?

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Drop me off at Lane Bryant.

Towel, bench, ground, hand....you have no worries other than trying to keep them from rolling away.

I eject them into my hand - and usually end up dropping about half of them.

There was an article in a magazine this spring written by someone with a very good reputation, and he said that he knew of very few instances over the years where a live round detonated. Again, no real problem as the case simply ruptures and, unless you get it in an eye, really can't achieve enough velocity to cause injury.

Yes , the towel will protect . Then place them back into the original factory box they came out of. Next time you will know where they are and what they are.

Hahaha.

Still a scary thought though.

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Drop me off at Lane Bryant.

So how worried are you when you get gas especially if you get it in a motor cycle or gas can? Like everyone has said no problem. Here is some reading from SAAMI about storage and handling from their web site http://www.saami.org/specifications_...ammunition.pdf

Have fun and be safe obey the 10 commandment's of firearm safety....

I would be much more concerned about using a .44 Magnum as a home defense gun for several reasons than worrying about emptying the cylinder.

Extreme muzzle blast, very loud, harsh recoil and most probably penetration of several walls comes to mind.

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Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

If you are new to shooting I'd consider finding some 44 Special ammo for your 629. 44 mag is not an easy ctg to learn on for most people. I'd also strongly suggest finding a local NRA basic pistol class.

Taking a basic pistol class is excellent advice. You'll be taught how to load/unload safely.

In the meantime see this:

Unloading A Revolver - YouTube

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USAF, 69-92
Vietnam, 72-73

By the way, the 44 special 180gr Jhp has about 360 ft/lbs of energy which should be plenty for SD work.........

772 to 1036 ft/lbs or more is ok for big game animals, outside the house, I would think.

the 125gr 357 has 584 ft/lbs of energy and we all know about its reputation.
Stay safe.

You didn't ask about this but I'll volunteer it anyway. Sometimes a cartridge can get "trapped" by the stocks and go back into the chamber, particularly on guns with target stocks. If you always hold your revolver with the barrel vertical when ejecting that is very unlikely to happen. Nevertheless, before you close your revolver, always check to make sure ALL charge-holes are empty.

I eject unfired cartridges into my hand. I don't want them dropping onto anything.

With loaded rounds simply tipping it up with the cylinder swung open should make the rounds "fall" out. I don't think I have ever had to use the extractor on my 29-2 when removing live rounds.

1 - that YouTube video and the SAAMI instructions are EXCELLENT! If you're new to guns and ammo they are a must read/watch.

2 - .44 Magnum, as noted above, is NOT for the new shooter. If your gun is a 629 it will function wonderfully well with .44 Special, recoil will be quite minimal and easy to handle, and you can safely learn what you need to learn without tiring or hurting your hands. You can shoot a box or two of .44 Special at a range session, maybe even more than that, and have no issues. You will NEVER shoot a full box of 50 rounds of .44 Magnum at one range session.

Let me digress - I am a certified Texas CHL instructor. At our range session for certification we were required to shoot revolvers and pistols, 50 rounds each. The young man next to me, a police officer from Central Texas, brought a .44 Magnum with him for the test and .44 Magnum ammunition. He was a very experienced shooter, a military veteran, and when I suggested that he was out of his mind he laughed. Fortunately for him, even though the requirement is a 90% on the shooting test, he was a good enough shooter to pass DESPITE the bleeding hands and blisters he had by the time we were done. He looked at me and allowed that he would never do that again. This time I laughed....

3 - .44 Special is extremely useful as a self defense load. In a Model 629, in a home defense situation, you are well served with .44 Specials in your gun. Believe me, it will be loud enough and crazy enough, if you're defending your home and family, without having to deal with the muzzle blast and recoil of .44 Magnum loads, never mind the over penetration that you risk. Fun note - in one movie or another, even the famed "Dirty Harry" admits he loads .44 Specials in his "most powerful handgun in the world". It's good advice.

4 - because that YouTube video is so good let me just note that there is little to no risk, if you pour those rounds out of your gun's cylinder, of them even hitting the floor but, if they do, you'll have to drop one dead straight onto a nail to have a possibility of the primer being ignited. We've all dropped rounds; it's not nearly as scary as you might think. Just learn to be careful and DO count the rounds and the cylinder holes/empty chambers - that's great advice, too.

5 - Assuming you have boxes and boxes of ammunition to store, don't worry about them. They won't go off by accident, they don't blow up if there is a fire, although some primers might cook off it's not like a fireworks factory explosion, and they last a really long time. keep them away from kiddies or anyone you don't trust - that's more important that how you store them. I live alone - I have ammunition kinda-sorta everywhere. Totally safe. It's neatly stored, not just scattered around, but that's because I don't want to step on rounds, fall, and break my neck! But that goes for anything you keep around the house.

***GRJ***

As several noted, the .44. magnum loads of anywhere near full power will be unpleasant to shoot and hard to shoot well for a new shooter. (I qualified with hot hunting loads, the Gold Dot, in my .41 Magnum, but I'm reasonably experienced and relatively big and strong.) A decent .44 special load (I happen to have CCI Gold Dot 200 grain JHP in my 296) will be quite adequate in performance if you do your part and put the round in the vitals. (Go to "tacticalanatomy.com, I think it is, and learn your target areas. Essentially, a horizontal line through the nipples, a vertical line through each nipple, and the upper horizontal line through the shoulder joints will define the chest target area. On the face, the outer corner of each eye and bottom of the nostrils is the triangular target area.) A .22 for practice and training is your friend, because it is easier and cheaper to shoot.

Cartridges/safety: the odds of hitting the primer hard enough to cause a discharge are close to zero, plus, if the cartridge is not contained in a chamber, the case will fail and the bullet will go nowhere. I admit, my serious guns are loaded at all times except for maintenance, which ends the issues of unloading/reloading and other administrative silliness, which are a sure route to an ND.

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NHI, 10-8.

I have ejected live moonclipped .45 ACP ammo onto the ground plenty of times at USPSA matches. The cartridges are clipped together adding even more mass to the impact, should they hit base first. The odds of a primer going off are so slim that nobody ever loses sleep over such a thing.

You are in far greater danger if you have the habit of ejecting your live rounds from a semiauto with your hand covering the ejection port. The cartridge can bounce off your hand and then hit the ejector primer first. I know of one local shooter who was injured in this manner. Again, this is rare, but it does happen.

Dave Sinko

I by this statement, sounds like you have little to no experience with firearms. I would suggest you go to your local range and have someone teach you proper firearm ethics and also practice shooting the firearm before you make a 44 mag a home defense weapon.

Eric

Another vote for taking the NRA Basic Pistol course, and one more suggestion: When you do unload the revolver, double check that you have removed all six cartridges. Silver cases in a silver cylinder can be hard to see, and I know of a tragedy too gruesome to describe here where that rule wasn't followed.
The 629 is a great gun. Treat it right and it will serve you well for a lifetime.

Knowledge will convert your fears into respect. Definitely start out with a soft target load until you get used to shooting and the recoil. You don't want to get more shy of it right off the bat than you are now. Get some beginning instructions, make sure you have good eye and ear protection when shooting.

BTW I have a .357 that doubles as a home defense gun and my SD loads are near the bottom of the chart for .357. I don't want to blow our ears out IF there was a need to discharge the gun inside.

exactly, the only thing that would happen if an unchambered round ever did manage to go off, would be the brass casing would fly away from the bullet but the bullet itself would stay relatively still and only move a few inches at best with little to no force behind it. the brass however would have "some" energy behind it enough to "maybe" break the skin if you were within inches of it going off otherwise it would just sting if you were hit by it.

they even used bullets as a car fuse on myth busters and set off a dozen 22lr rounds by plugging them into the fuse box under the car dashboard and the crash dummy sitting in the seat was never harmed by the brass flying out and hitting him in the leg

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M&P FS 9mm

Many years ago before I got my first 22 rifle my father made me take an NRA Safe Hunter course. I will be forever grateful. I learned safe firearm handling and a deep respect for firearms that has lasted to this day.
Owning a firearm is an awesome responsibility. I take great pride in safely handling a firearm. As above take an NRA sanctioned course, Sonora

I'm sure this has been mentioned, but understand live ammo will usually drop out of a cylinder with no need for the extractor. They are made to be loose only require effort after shooting when the case has expanded from the explosion. Just be ready. A class will be invaluable to anyone wanting to understand their new gun. They are usually fun, you get to shoot! And somebody always has some good "war" stories.