Recent content by Les K.

I almost always get the same reaction when I fire up the .44 mag. I only own two pistols: A Ruger Mark 3 .22 auto and a Performance Center Stealth Hunter 629. I usually pop away with the .22 until I get bored and want the big flash and bang. I run a pretty hot load of 21 grains of 2400 under a...

What I figured.....No response from S & W customer support whatsoever. I'll find a 6-48 oval head myself.

Hi Scooter, They do say that it is truly Melonite used on the Performance Center Stealth Hunter and in my experience it has been extremely durable with the exception of the marking. Indeed, there is only the slightest indication of a turn ring after thousands of rounds fired. I've even heard...

The finish on my cylinder is not blue, stainless, or titanium. It is stainless treated by a process they call "Melonite" which I hear is the same or very similar as the "Tennifer" that is used by Glock. It is a beautiful black and otherwise durable finish but it must be sensitive to this kind of...

Thanks for that, and therein lies the problem. 6-48 is not a screw that is standard as far as I can find. I can find a 6-32 oval head and a 4-40 oval but the 6-48 might be difficult. I'll check out Midway some more.

My Performance Center Stealth Hunter is doing the same thing. It's damaging the Melonite finish on the cylinder. I've emailed S & W customer support to request a longer screw and even told them that I don't care if it's longer than necessary as long as I can trim it shorter. I've also asked them...

I also live in California and another thing that you might think about is that many indoor ranges here (at least in the southern end) will not allow you to shoot that .500 magnum. The ranges that I go to consider it too much muzzle blast for other shooters that will be shooting next to you. I'm...

While I don't have the 629 V-Comp, I do have a PC 629 Stealth Hunter. While not exactly the same, they share some features so I'll reply. I can tell you that the Performance Center guns do have a superior trigger than the regular models, no question about it. The ball and detent lock up has held...

Thanks again for the replies everyone, and I enjoyed reading about the .454 Alaskan and I'd love to try it out, but the local range that I go to does not allow anything above the .44 mag. I could of course buy a .454 Alaskan but I'd only get to shoot it if I went and found another range that...

I checked out this gun and it seemed so light that I felt that it would be too painful to shoot in .44 Mag. It sure is light for carrying though. I guess that if you really needed to use it, you wouldn't mind the recoil!

Thanks for your opinions folks.

I currently shoot the .44 mag with handloads at just .5 grains below the max, and while I enjoy the big flash and bang, even reloading gets expensive. Yeah, I've tried the cheaper plated and lead bullets, but you really have to download those so what's the point in that? I like to use full power...

All, Ok, I was at my LGS the other day because I'm looking for a .44 with a shorter barrel than what I currently have. They had the Ruger Super Red Hawk Alaskan and there was a Smith with a 3" barrel. I noticed that the frame on the Alaskan had quite a bit more metal on it than the Smith and...

I'm new to .44 mag reloading too and have experimented with hard cast, copper plated, and the Hornady XTP jacketed. Here's what I liked and didn't like about each of them, YMMV: Hard cast: Good and cheap for plinking/target shooting, but if you're shooting at an indoor range, it's going to...

For the amount of $400 difference, I think the Performance Center weapon is worth it since you will be waiting on lay away anyway. If I eventually get one of these, I'll also have to special order since virtually no gun shop in SoCal that I've been to has one on the shelf. With the Performance...