Back in 1998 I won $1000 from a local radio station and one of the guns I bought was a 629 6".

When I reload I find a single load I like and run with it. For my 44's it's a 300 gr. hardcast on top of 17 gr. of AA #9.

Briefly, I get about 1190 fps and when I swing the cylinder open and shake it, half of the empties just fall out. No signs of over-pressure that I can see and it feels very satisfying to shoot.

One of my pals tells me I will slowly take my gun apart with this load. People in other forums tell me everything from use it only in your Super Blackhawk to "I push 300 grainers faster than that through mine".

I would value the opinion of the folks here on this forum more than any other forum, for obvious reasons.

My opinion is I'd follow the opinions of the guys who write the reloading data books such as Speer, Hornady, Lyman etc. They are the ones who are the experts and understand their products better than anyone here can just by feel.

I do not own a .44 Magnum so I am not familiar with loads in that caliber, but again, I would stick within what the reloading catalogs and data website recommend.

When reloading .38 Specials, .357 Magnums, .45 acp, .45 Colt, etc. for the purposes of punching holes in paper or clanging steel plates I load to the lower side of the scale. I see no reason to beat myself up, beat up my guns, waste powder and make louder noise just to do so. I only load up stiffer loads for hunting, SD, or special purposes and for the most part keep to just below standard velocity factory loadings for fun stuff.

Is there a specific reason you are using a 300 grain bullet? If just for target shooting that is a bit heavy isn't it? I could understand for certain hunting applications, but for general use I'd probably stick to 240 grains if I did load for .44 Mag.

The life of a gun depends upon three things: how well it's taken care of, what ammo is used with it and how much it is shot.

I assume you take good care of it, and you've already discussed what ammo you use, but you fail to say how many rounds a year you shoot. A steady diet of heavy rounds will take their toll on a firearm, but if you are only shooting a couple hundred rounds a year, it will take a long time before you need to worry about a rebuild. Yes, the 29/629 series isn't as beefy as Ruger's offerings, but they aren't fragile either.

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So many S&W's, so few funds!!

Western lists the max loads for jacketed 300 gr. at 16.5 for XTP's and 17.7 for Sierra JSP. There is no listing for lead at that weight. There is a listing for 320 gr. lead gas check at 16.3 gr. You can figure it out from there.

Stu

I shoot 240 gr hard cast and use AA#9. The manual lists the range as 18.1-20.2 gr. At the same bullet weight, the HDY XTP range is 18.5-20.5 gr, slightly higher than lead. There is no 300 gr hard cast load listed, as others have noted, but the XTP range is 14.8-16.5 gr. So 17 gr seems like a stout load but I expect the quoted ranges are on the conservative side.

I can't comment on how this will impact the life of your 629. I don't shoot hot loads with mine, leaving that fun for my Ruger SBH.

S&W made "Enhancements" to the 29 / 629 series in large part do to shooters firing lots of heavier than standard bullets at max. velocities. Your 629 should post date the Endurance package.

Your load, about 1200fps with a 300 grain cast is at the upper end.

Your gun should last fine thru many thousands of rounds, though it will suffer more long term wear than steady use of a milder load.

If it were me, and I wanted to "feel the magnum" while practicing, I would load a 240 / 250 grain cast at the same velocity, or maybe the 300 grain a few hundred fps less. My favorite range load for my .44's is a 240 cast at about 900 - 950 fps. I mostly save the heavy and fast stuff for hunting, or when i'm in the mood for a little wrist twisting.

Larry

As noted above, which engineering change ("dash number") you have and how many rounds you fire are important factors. Many rounds will accelerate wear and loosen tolerances but these can be monitored and repaired if needed.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Some ammo makers make it clear that the older 629's are not up to dealing with heavy bullets at high pressure for extended periods. I wouldn't even shoot a 300 gr. bullet through my 629-2. But mine doesn't have the endurance package. I'd suggest reading what the people at Buffalo Bore have to say about their heavy rounds and Smith handguns. They suggest a limit of 255 gr.. I'm not that up on your model and how well it stands up but I do know what I've read about my particular Smith.

Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook #4 lists a Lyman 300gr L-SWC-GC (linotype) & AA#9 max. 18.0grs @ 36.3K CUP.
Gas checks usually have slightly higher pressure than non-gas checked.

I've never felt the need to load 300gr bullets in any of my 44 Mags. I reserve that weight for my 460 & 500s.

.

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Waiting for the break of day

Personally, I limit my 629-5 to the original .44 Magnum spec--a 240- or 250-grain bullet, at 1200 fps.

I have several 29's and one 629-5 . I have posted elsewhere that I personally think a 240-250 gr cast bullet @ 1200 fps is all we need to ask of these wonderful 44's . A 300 gr is mighty heavy and if you actually weighed them you would probably find them weighing closer to 320 grs or so .
In a ruger blackhawk or redhawk , no problem . They will take that load , fine . Occasional use of that load in your gun would probably be ok , consistent use will definitely shorten the life span . It gets to a point where the frame is stretched so much that it is not fixable . Then you just have a real pretty " paper weight " . Good Luck !

Want a nice ride??? Get a Corvette....

Want something Strong?? Take a Beating?? Try a MACK...

l prefer Guns/Rides with Style??

That'll be Corvette for a RIDE.

Smith Wesson for a GUN..

The model 29/629 was built around the standard 240 gr round. why push it to its limits.Get a Ruger for what you want to shoot.

For bullets that heavy I think you should be using the slowest powder possible, if you're concerned about the gun. The softest shooting powder that still perfoms strongly, I think, IMR4227. A 300gr slug would certainly give this powder the pressure it needs to burn well. 4227 is noticably softer in my palm that 296/110. It is supposed to be softer on the gun since it is a single base powder. I've never used it with 300gr, but it produces extremely accurate 240gr loads.

l don't need or want to shoot 300gr bullets from my 44s...
l remember back in the 70s/80s this guy took his 44 magnum
to AFRICA and killed everything there.. Up to and including
ELEPHANT...Did it all with bullets weighing 208grains of BRONZE..
Larry Kelly was his name..Founder of MagnaPort Arms ... Killed
everything in North America too...His bullets are called Punch Bullets now..
Most famous 44 bullet was/is the 44-40 or 44WCF.. First introduced
in the Colt PeaceMaker and Winchester 73 They were/are only 200gr..

The gun is strong enough if you stick to standard weight bullets loaded to SAAMI level pressures to last for a long, long time. If you, on the other hand, feel the need to use bullets in excess of 250 grains in weight loaded to above SAAMI pressures such as those by Buffalo Bore and other boutique ammo manufacturers; it's not the gun for you.

Bruce

Lots of great replies here. Thank you.

It's a 629-5. I do understand that weight is heavy for caliber and that load is at the upper end listed by Accurate.

The bullets are hard cast without gas checks and tumbled in some sort of moly lube that chemically bonds to the bullets. The guy at Bear Creek Suppy who makes them says this and after trying to tumble them and remove it for comparative reasons, I believe it. I can shoot a hundred of them and two passes with a dry brush and the bore is clean. Again, empty brass nearly falls out but obviously there are other factors to consider.

As I said I have a Super Blackhawk also and I use these only to ring steel plates. I will dial the load back some for the 629 and leave this load for the single action. Thanks again for the responses here.

The number 1 rule in reloading is to stick to reloading manuals recommendations.