629-3

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Seikosthlm

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Hi!

Just got this non fluted 3" 629-3 with serial BEH27xx
Can not find any info on the model or prefix in the books or online. Can anyone tell me year model "name" and what grips it came with as I would like to source original accesories. Thanks!
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Skickat från min SM-G950F via Tapatalk
 
I can't tell you much ecpxcept if it shoots as nice as it looks you are going to love it . I have an old -1 that I bought very lightly used back in the 80s with targets and 83/8 barel .Been hunting with it all these years but I don't hot rod it that is still one tight accurate gun ,enjoy.Also 1911-10 you have a nicen there also ,love this grips
 
Very nice find. I dug into the SCS&W 3 & 4 and as close as I could find was a special run with the square butt for Lew Horton but your serial number prefix doesn't match. You may want to ask for a letter from Mr Jinks.
 
I have a 629-3 I bought new....it came from the store with those grips {Hogue} it is also a square butt , mine is a 6 inch
 
I'm thinking this is a one-off. Possibly a barrel swap?
Having a square butt frame with a 3" barrel strikes me as two features with incompatible, almost contradictory, purposes.
 
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grip frame said:
Its a 623-3 3" Classic Hunter model. Square butt, plain black front ramp,non fluted. Came with the Hogue grips as OEM.

Part of the second release of 629 Classic Hunters, 629-3 models, limited to 2000 of each barrel length.
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Thank you very much!! You made my night :)
 
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Very nice! I have the 629-2E and replaced the grips with the S&W 500 grip which is MUCH more forgiving to your hand when shooting the .44 Magnums! Mine has the satin finish and of course 3 inch barrel.
 
The 3" 629s and 2.5/3" 686s of all dash variations usually came with round butt frames for easier concealment. Yours having a full underlug barrel and unfluted cylinder means it wasn't a typical configuration to begin with. Most 3" 629s do not have a full underlug. Your gun appears to lack barrel markings which means it may be a cut down classic hunter.

1911-10mm your -2 appears to have longer cylinder stop notches that were supposed to be introduced in the -3 and later variations. Very interesting.
 
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Dieseltech56 said:
The 3" 629s and 2.5/3" 686s of all dash variations usually came with round butt frames for easier concealment. Yours having a full underlug barrel and unfluted cylinder means it wasn't a typical configuration to begin with. Most 3" 629s do not have a full underlug. Your gun appears to lack barrel markings which means it may be a cut down classic hunter.

1911-10mm your -2 appears to have longer cylinder stop notches that were supposed to be introduced in the -3 and later variations. Very interesting.
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Ok. Thanks. Did not think about the markings on the barrell. Rookie mistake. Seems like I need to get that factory letter after all. :)
Does anyone know how to pay for it from another country. Have 4 revolvers that needs letters.
 
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Dieseltech56 said:
The 3" 629s and 2.5/3" 686s of all dash variations usually came with round butt frames for easier concealment. Yours having a full underlug barrel and unfluted cylinder means it wasn't a typical configuration to begin with. Most 3" 629s do not have a full underlug. Your gun appears to lack barrel markings which means it may be a cut down classic hunter.

1911-10mm your -2 appears to have longer cylinder stop notches that were supposed to be introduced in the -3 and later variations. Very interesting.
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First, 629-x Classic is not the same model name as 629-x Classic Hunter. 629-3 production started with standard, meaning not full lug, revolvers having square butts with wood Target stocks and full lug Classic revolvers having round butts with wood Combat stocks. Also standard early 629-3s still had older style square front rear sights but 629-3 Classics were introduced with the modern round front rear sights with optics mounting holes underneath them. Easier optics mounting was a selling point of the more expensive Classic. Unlike 629-3 Classics Seikosthlm's 629-3 (this is his thread) has the old square front rear sight.

Starting in the mid 1980s S&W has made a large number of small production runs of 3" 629s. The production runs varied by vintage and how distributors ordered them. I doubt there is a compilation of all those small production runs and how they varied. While some of them had full lugs and some had unfluted cylinders combining 3" full lug barrels with square butts is unusual. The absence of a roll mark or laser etch on the barrel is even more unusual.

Longer stop notches were introduced with the 629-2E as part of the Endurance Package so their presence in both 1911-10mm's and Seikosthlm's 629-3s does reveal much.
 
Dieseltech56 said:
Did the classic hunter have a round butt like the classic did? I saw a 629-2 classic hunter 6" once but I did not notice.
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I do not know. Classic is the model that has been cataloged continuously for about 25 years. As far as I know the name Classic Hunter was only used for one or maybe multiple small production runs.

The only 3" square butt N frame production that I am aware of were light barrel blued and nickeled revolvers made for a distributor during the later 2000s in a variety of calibers over.40 cal. However, 3" N frames are not my interest. I prefer at least a 4" on such a large frame.
 
Maybe I got Stansfields revolver from Nikita? [emoji23]
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I'm leaning towards grip frame's answer in post #9. Maybe the factory liked what they made for LH and cranked out a few more. The square butt on the 3" gun is growing on me...:cool:
Whatever the case, you got you a very nice gun. I wouldn't think being out of the country would pose a problem getting it lettered. Email Roy Jinks at the S&W Historical & you'll be on your way. Good luck & happy shooting from "over there".
 
75Vette said:
I'm leaning towards grip frame's answer in post #9. Maybe the factory liked what they made for LH and cranked out a few more. The square butt on the 3" gun is growing on me...:cool:
Whatever the case, you got you a very nice gun. I wouldn't think being out of the country would pose a problem getting it lettered. Email Roy Jinks at the S&W Historical & you'll be on your way. Good luck & happy shooting from "over there".
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Thanks!! I Will shoot him a mail :) The problem is to pay for it since they dont accept PayPal or credit card. When there is a problem there is a solution. Will keep you posted.
 
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It's most likely a cut down barrel of the 6" classic hunter version that was in the -3 range, IIRC, or something similar.

From all my study, there were no -3 guns in the 3" classic hunter run in '89. One is pictured above.
 
Seikosthlm said:
url to Gary Oldmans 629 Classic Hunter in "Nikita" / "professional" [...]
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The 629 the actor is holding is not full lug so it does not match yours. Also nothing in that still picture indicates that is has a square butt.
 
k22fan said:
The 629 the actor is holding is not full lug so it does not match yours. Also nothing in that still picture indicates that is has a square butt.
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Close but no cigarr I guess :) Hopefully I will manage go get that letter and then we will know. Thanks alot for chiming in.

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Seikosthlm said:
Please educate me. Why is Square butts and 3" incompatible?
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I used the word incompatible for lack of a better term.

Generally short barrels are meant for concealment and round butt grips are generally preferred for concealed carry guns. Though an N-frame is pretty hard to conceal, a square-butt frame would make it even harder to hide.

Basically short barrel and square butt are features that are working at cross purposes to each other. Maybe I should have used the word incongruous instead of incompatible.
 
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BC38 said:
I used the word incompatible for lack of a better term.

Generally short barrels are meant for concealment and round butt grips are generally preferred for concealed carry guns. Though an N-frame is pretty hard to conceal, a square-butt frame would make it even harder to hide.

Basically short barrel and square butt are features that are working at cross purposes to each other. Maybe I should have used the word incongruous instead of incompatible.
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Thats what I thought. The square butt definately prints more. However the square fits my hand better and was one of the reasons I got it.

I did not notice the lack of roll marks on the barrel. Will be more observant next time. I still like it and it feels like a keeper.



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Writing its collector status a little less gently:

You like square butts and 3" barrel 629s. Someone else paid out the big bucks to have 629 customized to your taste. Unlike throwing the $75 toward the end of a rainbow spending it on cartridges or reloading tools or components will make you happy.
 
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