629 bullet recomendation

[smith 629]

I'm wondering if any one could give me advice on a bullet that would work best for protection for Grizzly bears. Both in a reloadable bullet and manufactured ammunition for the guns below.

My wife's is a 629 model 629-3 44 mag. with 4" barrel.

And mine is a new 629 44 mag. with 4" barrel that I will be picking up tomorrow.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[VAdoublegunner]

The Federal Castcore 300gr 44 Mag is a pretty good cartridge but I don't know if they sell the bullets as a component.

The Barnes Buster 300gr bullet looks pretty good for a heavy penetrator if you are OK with driving them fast enough that you can still shoot them without a terminal flinch.

 

[Plstu]

You looking to reload with Jacketed or lead bullets?

 

[smith 629]

You looking to reload with Jacketed or lead bullets?

I would reload with which ever one would be the best for Grizzly.
Which would you use for Griz?

Thanks for the help everyone.

 

[Culina]

LBT 300 or 320 grain Gas Checked Lead Flat Points, that should do the trick, with a gizzly I think you would want penetration and not expansion.

If you don't reload, then Buffalo Bore sells them already loaded.

 

[BruceM]

Just a word of advice here. Do NOT feed your 629 a steady diet of magnum ammo using bullets heavier than 250 grains.

Bruce

 

[cochise]

Garrett Cartridges Inc. 44 mag .45-70 .44 ammo ammunition bullets african hunting cartridges


UDAP Bear Deterrent Pepper Spray

If you reload, a good hard cast 250 to 300 grn bullet should work if you have time to aim.

 

[venomballistics]

shooting cast seems to give about 100 FPS extra. the over all effect of that little extra is hotly debated in these parts.
we already have a vote for the Fed Cast core 300G factory load. yup I second this. another good one might be a similar buffalo bore offering.
its not of stringent importance to find exactly this bullet for reloading, and thus duplicating the load. they are not really designed to expand as much as they cut deep holes with energy deposit being left to the wide flat nose of these nastygrams. when searching for a replacement just look at the metplat size as this is the primary controlling factor in the terminal performance of non expanding bullet types.

 

[smith 629]

Just a word of advice here. Do NOT feed your 629 a steady diet of magnum ammo using bullets heavier than 250 grains.

Bruce

I agree with you. I plan on only shooting a few to sight in and then just to carry for protection.
Other than that I'll practice with lighter loads.
Thanks

 

[amazingflapjack]

suggest you do some research on dangerous bear encounters, and consider "bear spray" as well.

 

[smith 629]

Thanks everyone for the help. There seems to be a variety of choices. I'll check into all of them.

 

[Bugs Bunny]

22gr +/- of 2400 & a 250gr Keith SWC hard cast will kill anything alive on the planet, same bullet i been casting / using since the 80's & I currently use with 6.5gr 231 for IDPA ESR class. Cast hard it will be near FMJ type penetration..
Don't beat those 629's to death with constant magnum loads as stated above, get a Ruger for that in 454 Cas if you must have a beast to beat.

 

[Arthury]

Any of the popular commercially available hard-cast bullets should work.

You did not say which type of Grizzly: inland or coastal?
If it is coastal, you might wanna increase your caliber size. Those bears are significantly larger.

 

[Neumann]

Practice with reloads, but Carry Buffalo Bore or the equivalent. You can't load to those ballistics safely, without the standards and test facilities of a commercial producer.

300 gr hard cast bullets seem to be the standard.

By all reports, nothing less than .50 BMG with incendiary AP bullets will actually stop a charging grizzly. Has anyone considered explosive vests? They won't save you, except from a painful mauling, but the bear won't attack anyone else either

 

[Plstu]

Penn .431" diameter over 2400 powder! My 629 loves them!

 

[4barrel]

Hello--You may not get more than one shot. In a bear charging I hope I would have a 500 S&W with a 375+ jhp. If you hit it on the first shot your ears will ring for a year but you can tell the story. Bears are fast for a short distance. A 500 will go through a 3/4 steel plate at 25 yards with a 375 gr. lead bullet.

 

[smith 629]

Any of the popular commercially available hard-cast bullets should work.

You did not say which type of Grizzly: inland or coastal?
If it is coastal, you might wanna increase your caliber size. Those bears are significantly larger.

It's not the grizzly in Alaska. I live in north Idaho and we have grizzly in our area. There not as big as Alaska's but they are still pretty good sized bears.

 

[smith 629]

suggest you do some research on dangerous bear encounters, and consider "bear spray" as well.

We have bear spray and a shot gun. But, we can't always carry the shot gun with us.
Thanks

 

[tappedandtagged]

I would think any 300+ grain cast pill would do fine.

I've always ordered from Missouri Bullet Co, but Penn Bullets are just as highly regarded from what I've read on the forums.

https://www.pennbullets.com/44/44-caliber.html

 

[Forrest r]

+1 on what bugs said

You'll be giving up a lot of ground (speed) using a 300g bullet in a 4" bbl.

I'd go with a 245/250g cast bullet, you can get these to run in the 1200fps range out of your 4" bbl's along with being able to load them mild for play/practice.

A 250g bullet going 1200fps will penetrate a lot deeper & create a larger wound channel than a 1000fps 300g bullet. Both bullets have enough mass to get the job done. I'd rather have 20% more penetration on a bear myself.

If I was using a longer bbl (7 1/2, 8 3/8, 10, 14, ect), the 300g bullets would be an option.

Some thing else to think about: JD Jones came out with the heavy 300g bullet for the 44mag years ago to aid in his line of contender/hunting bbl's & setups. They were ment to be used in 14" contender bbl's on medium sized game.