Why own a Model 24?

[HamHands]

I got "em" both......And like "em" both.

Sure enough! A 250grain Hard Cast "Keith" loaded to 1200fps in an M24 is a sweet spot Load that is entry level .44Mag sauce while still being quite controllable.. yet will still go snout to button-hole on most any pelted predator! Short excerpt from a well known Texas Sheriff & Case in point below...

"The .357 Magnum, with much justification, has enjoyed a heyday since 1935. Smith & Wesson's advertising for this revolver used to proclaim, "The S & W '.357' Magnum Has Far Greater Shock Power Than Any .38, .44, or .45 Ever Tested." With factory loads, this was true. Handloaded, the .44 Special made the .357 - also handloaded to peak performance - eat dust. It was the case of a good big man beating hell out of a good little man.

Basic mathematics made it obvious to experimenters that if the .44 Special were loaded up to its maximum velocity - generally accepted as 1,200 fps at the muzzle with 250-grain bullets - it could skunk the 158-grain .357 slug at 1,500 fps.

Topped with cast bullets in Hollow-point form, both the .357 and .44 Special handloads ran several times higher than their closest competitors on General Julian Hatcher's scale of relative stopping power. Significantly, the .44 had almost double the stopping effect of the .357 when this scale was applied, in spite of its moving at 300 less velocity."

-Charles A. "Skeeter" Skelton

 

[Nemo288]

Any 44 Specialist who hasn't read everything they can find written by Skeeter is missing out on a lot of knowledge and fun.
He is pretty much single handedly responsible for getting me to acquire all the 624's when they originally came out.
My enjoyment of the 44 special has not ceased since then although I have gone to mainly shooting the L frame versions.
Of all the 44's it's the cartridge I shoot the most by far.

Skeeter Skelton
A RevolverGuy Tribute to Skeeter Skelton - RevolverGuy.Com
Sixgun Heros | Barranti Leather Co., LLC
I am not going to link to Amazon's version of "Good Friends, Good Guns, Good Whiskey" because of the outrageous prices.
Possibly eBay might be a better source for his books.

 

[delcrossv]

That is Exactly what I'm finding Delcrossy!

I will only buy/use/carry Round Butts for CCW... I can always go with the Round to Square conversion grips if I wished but never the other way around without paying for a mill-butt/frame job and a refinish... so I just go with the rounds. I like what they did with the semi-short hammer jobs on these. Do you by chance have one? These are very cool guns and with the Magna stocks, and a Tyler-T grip could just very well be the perfect 9mm, +P, and even a HEavy-Hard-Cast, "Woods-Loaded" 9mm Revolver! I love the fact it mimics the Model 13 profile as well!

Sorry for the late reply, but Yes, I have the 4". It a lot of fun, sort of the "range buddy" to my 940.

 

[Nemo288]

How is this for a reason?

View attachment 371535
Exactly!
While the magnum is also capable of accuracy, for me the special is easier to shoot to this level.
It's also easier to find good loads.
The 4" 624 and the 696-1 seem to digest just about everything and put it on target.

Fairly early on it became apparent to me that my budget required me to specialize and limit the scope of my collecting.
I went with stainless as I am a function over form kinda guy and they were more available at the time (mid '80s).
I agree there is nothing like the classic look of cold blue steel. I just never acquired any revolvers that are blued.

 

[ladder13]

Someone say 24?

 

[ladder13]

Pair of shoeless 624’s.

 

[ladder13]

Wolf and Klar.

 

[HamHands]

View attachment 371535
Exactly!
While the magnum is also capable of accuracy, for me the special is easier to shoot to this level.
It's also easier to find good loads.
The 4" 624 and the 696-1 seem to digest just about everything and put it on target.

Fairly early on it became apparent to me that my budget required me to specialize and limit the scope of my collecting.
I went with stainless as I am a function over form kinda guy and they were more available at the time (mid '80s).
I agree there is nothing like the classic look of cold blue steel. I just never acquired any revolvers that are blued.

An old friend of the family... named "Ron Brown" (he passed recently) and both he and my step father worked with him. He got me into reading Skeeter Skelton... Skeeter said the .44Special was the most accurate handgun and load he'd ever shot and I believe he shot them all big and small. So before I could source a true M24 I got an M29 LHS and shot .44Specials out of it and its an extremely inherent round/load by it's nature even out of .44Magnum Revolvers. Shooting a true M24 Lew Horton Special and I have to agree with Skeeter Skelton and our friend Ron Brown. The .44Special IS the most accurate round/gun I've ever owned and shot! I thought .45ACP was the best thing since gunpowder was invented but even it is only 80% what the .44Special is in a true M24 with 240 to 255grain pills and loads in my experience!

My M24 shoots every one of these factory loads pretty much the same and lights out but with an extra modicum of accuracy going to the 240 and 255 grain loads! .44Special on Left, .44Mags on Right. I've found .44Magnum M29/M629 to be the 2nd most accurate gun/load right behind the .44Special.

All these Factory .44Mag loads my M29 and M629 have shot really well too! My brother and I have finally got our progressive loading set up, up and running so I'm thinking the true potential of both .44Special and .44Magnum is yet to be untapped for us!

 

[keith44spl]

Two of the last custom 44 Specials to come off the bench.

This'n went to Austin, Tex

I've been sporting this'n for a spell,

I'm a luck man....There been a bunch of 44 Specials pass through my callused hands.

An Outdoorsman Becomes a Triple Lock....

The .44 Spl. and The Scapegoat Mtn. Bull

.

 

[HamHands]

Two of the last custom 44 Specials to come off the bench.

This'n went to Austin, Tex

I've been sporting this'n for a spell,

I'm a luck man....There been a bunch of 44 Specials pass through my callused hands.

.

Those are all lovely and "Special" for sure! Tell me more about the first one and the fourth one from the top down please! I usually don't jump up and down about a 4 screw... I like them, don't get me wrong. But these two are great!

 

[keith44spl]

The first one was built from a post-war Heavy Duty 38/44

I installed a 3 1/2" re-bored barrel, re-cut the chambers to 44 Spl.

And added my rough duty rear sight...Adjust for elevation only.

The 4th one was a re-chambered cylinder like 38/44 above,
but with a 3" 24-3 barrel installed with the rib and ramp milled
to the correct height for the front sight blade w/ivory bead.

.

 

[HamHands]

The first one was built from a post-war Heavy Duty 38/44

I installed a 3 1/2" re-bored barrel, re-cut the chambers to 44 Spl.

And added my rough duty rear sight...Adjust for elevation only.

The 4th one was a re-chambered cylinder like 38/44 above,
but with a 3" 24-3 barrel installed with the rib and ramp milled
to the correct height for the front sight blade w/ivory bead.

.

Wow, you are extremely talented! Nice work Mr. 44Special! I love that trench rear sight! That's certainly a fighting Revolver!
Do you have your own custom shop? (I'm assuming you do.) I love that you are modding Revolvers so the upcoming generation can get into what great guns they truly are. I got my first Revolver 4 years ago after being a semi-auto CZ's, M&P's, and 1911 pistols only guy; and realized Revolvers in a lot of ways are superior to the aforementioned Semi's... Not in every way, but certainly a lot of ways! Thanks for giving me the low down on those two gorgeous M24's!

 

[ladder13]

Two of the last custom 44 Specials to come off the bench.

This'n went to Austin, Tex

I've been sporting this'n for a spell,

I'm a luck man....There been a bunch of 44 Specials pass through my callused hands.

An Outdoorsman Becomes a Triple Lock....

The .44 Spl. and The Scapegoat Mtn. Bull

.

Nice work, real nice.

 

[PALADIN85020]

I've been reading Skeeter Skelton for a long time. He made a lot of sense, so I managed along the way to pick up a few .44 Specials that punched my hot button...

John

 

[Hondo44]

Those are all lovely and "Special" for sure! Tell me more about the first one and the fourth one from the top down please! I usually don't jump up and down about a 4 screw... I like them, don't get me wrong. But these two are great!

They're both 5 screws, in fact all the Smiths are except the Scapegoat Mtn Bull!

 

[Hondo44]

Two of the last custom 44 Specials to come off the bench.

Hi Keith,

Since I also like Colt SAAs I particularly like that New Frontier above with its very clever replacement rear sight! It true pays homage to the old flat top target Colts!

It appears not to be welded up but rather to have a custom filler/windage sight that can be swapped back to the original modern adj sight!

Does the sight adjust on a small dovetail in the filler piece only?

 

[keith44spl]

Jim,
That rear sight is just a fixed reminiscent of the flat top target.
It's pinned on like the original adjustable. I kinda torch case colored
it to match the frame.
Dave

 

[Hondo44]

Jim,
That rear sight is just a fixed reminiscent of the flat top target.
It's pinned on like the original adjustable. I kinda torch case colored
it to match the frame.
Dave

Dave,

Well, clever and an excellent result as usual like we've all become used to from you!

 

[HamHands]

Every safe needs two or three.

Those "Morado's" on that M24 are simply beautiful! The pronounced variation of grain-ing and deep reddish hue really make those the nicest set of 90's Combat OEM "Morado's" I've ever seen. Are they Morado wood Vette or some other species cut in the same profile as the 90's Morado's are? I think they are Morado wood but either way, beautiful grips, beautiful guns!

ETA:
Also, it appears those grips have a chamfer or beveling at the heel/bottom area of the grips... Very, very cool; Especially for CCW and for even less printing than the flat Morado style offers.

 

[Nemo288]

First time I have heard that wood called "Morado".
Thank you. It's good to learn something new every day.
I never really knew what the wood on my 3" 624 was until I looked up "Morado".
Now I know it's also more usually called Pau Ferro.
Libidibia ferrea - Wikipedia
The set on my 624 do not have the beveled bottom pictured above but look more like the ones on the 3" 24.
Was that a modification?
Kind of unusual for S&W combats of that era.

Those grips have never really fit my hand at all.
The finger grooves are in the wrong place.
I got a set of Spegels (ebony) that work much better.
The quality of that picture is not so good as it was taken off a mirror.

The holster is the one that came with the gun and is about as perfect as can be (BLW).
Notice the cylinder is completely above the belt.
Rumor has it they were made by Gould & Goodrich.
It also works for my beloved L frame 44's so I am really happy I bit for that holster way back when (mid 80's).