Picked up (real impulse buy) a 629-4 with 3' barrel and fluted cylinder. Gun has a "NLT10xx" serial number and a product code 148038. The box is marked "Alaskan" and the rt side of the barrel is "Alaskan Backpacker". There is a laser(?) engraving of a bear on the right side plate.

I have gone through SCS&W and the blue book and can find no mention of the NLT serial prefix, this product code or the name. I found references to the 629 "Backpacker" which appears similar but has a different product code.

Anyone know anything about this model? Haven't decided whether or not to keep this one. Thanks in advance for any info.

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Randy
Provenance nerd

All I can say, is that I have seen pics before. Never researched it before.
Don't worry, somebody will give you the scoop! It must have been a good price to buy it without knowing more about it. BUT sometimes if you snooze, you loose! I will be watching to learn about it myself! Bob

I've seen them on the shelves at Fred Meyer (Kroger) up here for several years. Just figured it was a run that would cause attraction towards sportsman looking for their bear gun. A .44mag of some type is usually one of the first 3 purchases, after food and beer, for every GI that transfers up.

I seem to remember a picture of a similar .44 mag with a laser etched bear, but what sticks in my mind was an unfluted cylinder with laser-etched bear tracks around it. Ring a bell with anyone?

Adios,

Pizza Bob

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NRA Benefactor Member

Two questions:
1). What's the Spec. Ord. number?
2.) Is the product code 148038 or 148083?

I've seen one other Alaska Backpacker. It's s/n was NLT01XX with a ship date of March 24, 1995. It was a M629-4 3" round butt with Hogue grips. Product code 148083, and shipped in the stackable blue plastic case. It was laser etched with the bear.

I could have the product code wrong, that's why I'd like you to confirm.

There was another 3" M629, this time a dash 5, called the Alaskan Backpacker II. It had a product code of 103689. The one I saw was s/n NLT12XX and it shipped March 30, 2000. My notes say 300 were made.

NLT is a unique s/n prefix that I've only seen used with these Alaska Backpacker revolvers, even though they shipped five years apart.

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~ S&W aficionado in training ~

Product code is 148083 (sorry about the typo). Spec Ord is 8083. It is also in the stackable blue box and has S&W logo boot grips. Thanks for the info Kernel.

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Randy
Provenance nerd

Yes, it rings a bell -- and anything else you shoot with it:



2.5" fully lugged barrel.

Comes with Hogue grips -- the retro Ahrends bananas were added by me.

Dave

I'll bet that's a handful when it goes "BOOM"!

quinn,

I went back an looked at my NLT01XX entry and I had the year wrong. It's Spec. Ord. number was 8083 -- same as your NLT10XX. That equates to a ship date of March 24, 1998.

The first number is the last digit of the year. The next three are what's called a Julian date. I know it's 1998 and not 1989 or 2008 because of the type of box and the dash number.

Using the right product code you can Google search it and find some more entries on Alaska Backpackers.

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~ S&W aficionado in training ~

3" stainless 44 Mag with forged internals and a non-ported barrel.

What is it?

Awesome!

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Mark

Okay, here's another version with several differences. Mine is a 629-4 with full lug and unfluted cylinder but no bear tracks. The bear etching is present on the right side plate but the scene is different. And curiously, they have added an 'n' to make it 'Alaskan Backpacker'. Finally, this limited run (probably 100 or 200) was for specialty distributor Gart Sports (see the RMA serial number) who ordered them quad-mag-na-ported. The product code is 103611 and the spec. ord. code is 8026, indicating a shipping date of Jan 26, 1998. Its one of the cooler 629s in my collection.

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"We deal in lead, friend."

I saw one of those at a gunshow two months ago, and wasn't interested in S&W's then. I know, I just recently got some taste when it comes to handguns.

Anyway, it was LNIB and they had a price tag on it for $600 "cash today only". God, if I only had a time machine, lol.

I once owned an Astra "Terminator", a .44 Magnum round-butted and shortened to 2.5" and sold by, I believe, Jovino. Surprisingly, it was one of the tamer .44s I owned at the time, even more pleasant to shoot than my 6" M29. The only explanation I could come up with was that the shorter barrel gave less leverage in recoil than the longer. Granted, the perception was completely subjective, but I wasn't the only person to shoot it who remarked on the difference.

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Pisgah

My 3" 629-6 is one of my all time favorite guns.



You have one with a little bling and no hole in the side. How much better could it ever be? I think its perfect.

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Shoot fast & live long
Warren

There is reference to the Alaskan Backpacker in the S&W Catalog 4th Edition. In fact, that's what started me on this search. Can't find one anywhere. If I could I would buy it in a minute and consider selling my Redhawk.

Has anyone out there seen on lately?

I saw one about 4 years ago sell in minutes at a gun show for $900. Haven’t seen a 3 inch prelock 629 since

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-Matt

I have one and also have the Backpacker II and the original dash 4 Backpacker. I'm a fanatic over the three inch 44 mag S&W revolvers. To me the pinnacle of S&W was the dash 4. It had all the improvements and none of the cost saving MIM parts that came along with the dash 5.

From Quinns initial Post... "Picked up (real impulse buy) a 629-4 with 3' barrel and fluted cylinder. Gun has a "NLT10xx" serial number and a product code 148038. The box is marked "Alaskan" and the rt side of the barrel is "Alaskan Backpacker". There is a laser(?) engraving of a bear on the right side plate.
I have gone through SCS&W and the blue book and can find no mention of the NLT serial prefix, this product code or the name. I found references to the 629 "Backpacker" which appears similar but has a different product code."

Quinn... That Gun is listed in 4th Ed of SCSW page 310 (Nahas & Supica)
Alaska Backpacker, Product code 148083, barrel length 3" and year 1998. Check that the Product Code last 2 digits are not backwards. 38 not 83. It is listed under the "Cumulative Listings Compiled Variations of the Model 629" There is also a picture of that exact gun in the picture on page 309. The picture caption calls it an Alaskan Backpacker 629-4 but the gun shown is a fluted cylinder 629-4 3" with Alaska Backpacker on the barrel. The pic also has a 629-5 Backpacker in it. I needed a magnifying glass to read the barrel but it is definitely an Alaska not Alaskan. Maybe you were looking at the 3rd edition?
BTW the 629-4 snubby are the best IMO too. All the good engineering changes and none of the cost cutting (Except the pinned barrel is gone)

Here is my 629-4 Classic Carry. 1997 Prod Code 103658 Unfluted Cylinder 3”
I added the Combats. It would have shipped with Hogue Rubber with a S&W Logo.

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John 1:17
NRA Life Benefactor

One of my best shooting and best carrying 44's. I Love the bear on the side plate of yours. You are going to love it.

Had one of these in October of this year and was setting up at a local gun show on Friday afternoon... A local guy comes by and says he is moving to Alaska in a few weeks and offered $1400 cash. Took a while to find a dealer for our “new” VA private sale background check but got the deal done.

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S&W factory revolver armorer

Quinn just informed me that his original post was 2014...
I hate it when I forget to look at that.

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John 1:17
NRA Life Benefactor

Yes, it is 6 years old, and I do look at the original date, but its still fun to read this stuff!!

Especially as I bought a used 3 inch 629-4 earlier this year. Appears to be shot very little. The serial is BSB627x, Product Code 130450, Spec. Ord 4230. The box says Backpacker, but there is nothing on the gun to indicate that, just normal markings.

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Richard Gillespie
FBINA 102

Better late than never!