Hey all,

I have a chance to purchase a 4" 624 or a 4" 629 Mountain Gun. I am torn on which one to get as far as a versatility and collectability standpoint. Your opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Hey all,

I have a chance to purchase a 4" 624 or a 4" 629 Mountain Gun. I am torn on which one to get as far as a versatility and collectability standpoint. Your opinions would be greatly appreciated.

What is your intended use? If it is primarily carrying and self defnese go for the 624. If its woods proection and self defense go for the 629.

If it were me, I'd get both and then stress out about the money I just spent until the next similar deal came along.

The 4" 624 has a bit of a cult following. You don't mention which dash version for the 629. The 629-4's and later have tighter chamber throats than the 624's. My 629-4 MG would be the one I'd keep, if I was limited to one revolver. If you load your own, I could make an easy argument for the versatility of the 44 Mag.............bottom line........most 4" 629's will shoot tighter groups than those mid 80's vintage 624's............my 2 cents!

The 629 is alot more versatile, but I find that shooting 44 mags out of the light barreled mountain gun to not be fun. Also, they made FAR FEWER 624s than 629s. I would get the 624.

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ken
SWCA #1959

I would also prefer the 624. I believe that will probably be sufficient. If you need it for woods protection, I would look around for a nice, N Frame 44 mag, instead of the mountain gun version.

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NRA Lifetime Member

Depends on what you're going to do with it.

The 624 is much more collectable. Either will handle deer, pigs and tin cans with ease, but the 44 Special is not legal for hunting in some places. The 624 tops out with a 250-grain bullet near 1,200 fps. The 629 will safely fire hotter loads, but will be so unpleasant to shoot that you'll want a heavier gun.

The difference in ammo cost will be hard to notice if you're handloading, which is the best bet for either cartridge. The difference in ammo price will be hard to miss if you're shooting factory ammo, as 44 Special ammo is usually much more expensive.


Okie John

If you go for the 624, make sure it isn't one of the ones that have not been checked for bad steel. If it's been checked, it should have a red C on the end of the box or be stamped on the grip frame.

They do have the "cool" factor in their favor!

Sir, for versatility, get the 629 MG. For collectability, get the 624. Both have high "cool factor" and weigh about the same, so that's a wash. It really boils down to whether you want to shoot magnums and whether you prefer a square or round-butt grip frame.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

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Wishin' don't make it so.

I have both 624 (4" and 6½") and a 629 4" (and a 29 8 3/8").

The carry gun for me is the 624 with the Skeeter load (250 gr Keith ahead of 7.5 grs of Unique) UNLESS I am going to be in Big Bear Country then it will be a .44 Magnum or bigger.

However, the 4" Model 629 is not much fun for me to shoot with full house .44 Magnum loads. It DOES work well with the Skeeter load but is a half pound heavier to carry and that weight, while welcome with heavy loads, is not needed for the Skeeter load.

The Mountain Gun, for only one gun that will mostly be used with Skeeter loads plus the option of using full charge .44 Mag loads (very unpleasant to shoot) is hard to argue with.

However, I am not always "practical" and just prefer the 624 for general use. Frankly, since I cast my own bullets and reload, I can load Special cases as hot as I can stand for "heavy" use.

Bottom line, YOU have to get what pleases YOU.

Dale53

Originally posted by Gun 4 Fun:

"If you go for the 624, make sure it isn't one of the ones that have not been checked for bad steel. If it's been checked, it should have a red C on the end of the box or be stamped on the grip frame."

Uh, no, I don't think so. The box will have the red "C" but S&W did not mark the guns themselves.

If you have the serial number handy, call Kate Fredette at S&W and she can tell you if yours is in need of checking or not.

I had both. I determined that the 624, 4 inch and the 629 MG weighted the same.

For me the 629 MG could/would do everything the 624 could do, PLUS.

The 624, 4 inch was NIB and the 629 MG had been fired. As I shoot all my guns, I sold the 624 to a collector and I shoot the snot out of the 629 MG.

Being a handloader I have the choice of using .44 special brass or .44 Mag brass and can tailor the load to suit my purpose.

When I go into bear areas I load full house .44 Mags in the 629. The full house .44 Mags don't get shot alot. Recoil is stiffer in the 629 MG with full house loads but the gun was designed to handle them.

When I choose the 629 MG for home defense I just fill it up with the 200 GR Speer Gold Dot Hollow Points, in .44 Special, the ones with the BIG hole in the end.

FWIW I also have a standard 629 in the 4 inch and 6 inch lengths, but the 629 MG seems to be the one I choose to take off road with me.

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Semper FI

The 44 Magnum is much more widely distributed than the Special. For that reason alone I'd buy the Mag. You, of course, can still shoot either cartridge and once you handload your own Specials you'll probably be hooked. But(and these days it's a big BUT)the Magnum is more versatile from the standpoint of cartridge selection.

For those of you who dislike the Mt. Gun's recoil--a set of S&W 500 grips adds little to the bulk of the gun and makes the lightweight magnum a pleasure to shoot. I have them on my 629-2 Mountain Revolver.

Tim

Ditto on the X frame grips, they make my MG fun to shoot with anything but the heaviest loads.

There won't be any more 624's like the old ones.
That being said I'd buy the 629 if it were an older one 629-2. -3 or -4.

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Lynnie, Professional Pest

I place practicality over collectability almost every time. Thus my choice is the 629/629 Mountain Gun.

629-4 in my case:

I have TWO 629 Mountain Guns, and passed on a chance to buy a 4" 624.

My 629-2 would be the one, if I were allowed only one gun.

With a 629 you'll be able to shoot either ammo for a very vercitle handgun?
Steve

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NRA Life Member

I like the MG series, even had a 629MG. I replaced it with a new production 4" 629 (SKU #163603). It weighs 2 oz more, has that heavier barrel - helps keep the muzzle down a bit, better sights: orange ramp front/wo rear vs blk/blk on the MG, and has both a larger hammer and trigger. The final benefit - a round butt frame so the excellent recoil-absorbing (padded backstrap) Hogue .500 Magnum monogrip will fit. Great woods-protection.

Now, for bragging rights - the 4" 624 is a better deal - like a 3" 696 - great to own, but that 629 will see a lot more action. It's all in what you want it for, use or bragging rights.

Stainz

The 29/629 Mountain Gun is virtually the same firearm as the 24/624 in the same barrel length. The only non-obvious difference might be cylinder length, which is so small as to be inconsequential.

However, the 29/629 does not limit you to one caliber.