629 vs Mountain Gun - Thoughts

[Murdock]

A while back I shot a lot of field pistol silhouette with a M24-3 .44 SPL with the 6.5-inch barrel. So this is essentally a Mountain Gun with a slightly longer tube. This with 17.0 grains of #2400 behind a 240-grain cast SWC. Recoil was challenging, but tolerable, with this "Keith" load.

At the same time I had a M29-2 with a 4-inch barrel, which would not have been as competitive as the longer barrel 24-3 at field pistol competition. With 20.0 grains of #2400 behind the same 240-grain SWC bullet, the felt recoil of the M29-2 was substantially less than the M24-3. This in a side-by-side trial one day at the range.

Like you I have carried a M29-2 with the 6.5-inch tube during elk hunts, typically between 6,000 to 8,500 feet elevation. (I have a brother near Cody and get out there quite a bit). I have since gone to a 4-inch M629 ND and not looked back. The M29-2 is now relegated to the deer woods of Maine.

BTW, the hangun is only carried when I don't have a rifle in my hands. If I carry a handgun during big game hunts it's a .22LR Kit Gun to handle sassy grouse.

Find a no-lock M629 and forego the MG. They're purdy.

 

[sportbikeco]

Why not a M69 2.75"? Fit the load and grip to the recoil/power/carry need.

 

[Chukar60]

OP never said what reason for carrying in the woods.
Is it for protection from wildlife? Bears perhaps? Or is it just to have a sidearm, which is completely legitimate.
Between the two 44's, I would go with the MG. You can have a gun shop put a colored insert in the front sight or paint the back of the front sight with some bright nail polish.
The 5" full under lug will weigh as much as your original 29, maybe a little more.
If you hand load you can make up some 44 mag that is not so hot as factory loads and still capable of developing respectable energy.

 

[Neversink n Klapperthal]

Mountain Gun for the win. I have one. I like it

 

[Deadeye_Dan]

629 Mt Gun vs 5" 629

A primary question is how much are you going to carry it vs how much are you going to shoot it. If you are going to carry a lot, go with the Mt Gun. If you are going to shoot it a lot with full power loads, go with the Classic.

Beyond that, for me, at least the Mt Gun handles a bit faster than the Classic, which might be a consideration. It even seems to handle a wee bit faster than my 4" 29-2.

Another factor is that the Mt Gun is most likely going to continue going up in value. Not a whole bunch of chance for S&W to go back to "no lock" or non-MIM guns, and those seem to be the things collectors shy away from.

 

[petemacmahon]

is the mountain gun blued or a 629? If it's a 629, it should have a pinned front sight and so the red ramp can be swapped out.

 

[mikeruns]

I have a M29(blue) mtn gun and it is a super hiking/fishing/camping companion but, when hunting game with a rifle, I carry a lighter shorter 357 speed-six...I've carried a longer, heavier revolver when rifle hunting-no fun for me.
That being said, a brand new 4" 629 on your belt won't feel any heavier than a mtn gun...and cheaper than a mtn gun too and don't let the lock bug you, my mtn gun has one and I never engaged it...a person can remove it and plug it, or find an older 4" 629 which also may cost more $$....

 

[Kinman]

I had a first series Mountain Revolver for a period of time. I like to feel proficient with anything I carry that might be required to save my life. I did not like the round butt stocks and asked Jim Culina if he could make a pair of square butt stocks to fit the round butt frame of the Mountain Revolver, he said he could and worked them up for me. I still was not happy with the recoil while practicing with heavier bear stopping loads. I sent it off to Magnaport and they performed one of their quad ports on it. It did knock the recoil down but as most folks could attest made it very loud under the roof of the 25 yd pistol range. I traded it off and replaced it with a Model 24-3 L.H. Special that I am very confident with and since it was round butted it now wears the stocks Jim made for me, this one stays with me.

 

[The Gila Bender]

Kinman, what is your ammo preference for the 24-3? Looks like a heavy hardcast bullet from here. I'm intrigued by the .44 Special offerings from Buffalo Bore and Garrett Cartridges as alternatives to .44 Magnum in the Mountain Gun. BTW, those Culina stocks look sharp, very nice!

 

[629shooter]

If you're going to carry it all day, the Mountain Gun is my choice. If you're going to shoot at all day with full house loads the 5" gets the nod.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

 

[Hairtrigger]

If you want a new revolver and do not want a lock, get a Colt
Just tossing that out there
Personally, I have never had an issue with the small hole... I have 4 N frames, only one has the hole

 

[Kinman]

Kinman, what is your ammo preference for the 24-3? Looks like a heavy hardcast bullet from here. I'm intrigued by the .44 Special offerings from Buffalo Bore and Garrett Cartridges as alternatives to .44 Magnum in the Mountain Gun. BTW, those Culina stocks look sharp, very nice!

Thats a 45-70 round I shoot through my Trapdoor, the load that is usually in my 24-3 is a modified 429244 mold that I sent out to a guy to have made into a hollow-point bringing it down to 225gr. over 7.5gr. of Unique, it is hardcast. That particular bullet is not offensive to shoot and allows me to throw fifty or so downrange from time to time, it will do just fine. I think John lists a round to square butt conversion today, those were made at least ten years ago.

 

[Jimmy4570]

I really like my 625-6 MG in .45 Colt. My sole minor dislike is that I didn't have Ted Adamovich with Blu Magnum make my stocks in the round to square configuration to match the set he made for my 24-3. I've fallen in love with the .44 Spl and prefer the blue of the 24-3 to the stainless but the MG does have the nice feature of the bevel on the cylinder front, making it easier on leather.

Faced with your choice...I vote MG.

 

[Shuz]

If you are going to carry your newest non-blue .44 more than shoot it, I suggest you look at a 329PD. It has the fiber optic front sight you are looking for and with a set of X frame Hogue grips, is very manageble to shoot.( I 'spose you know that the 329PD weighs about 13 ounces less than the Mtn gun.) I know because I have one. I also have a 629-4 Mtn Gun nd a 629-3 Classic DX 5" bbl'd gun with an SDM fiber optic front sight. When I used to hunt, I carried the 329PD. You can carry one all day and not know it's there. Another advantage is that you can often pick one up pretty reasonable because it has only been fired a couple of times and kicked way too much for the shooter, so he sold it. Now the 329PD does have the "Hillary hole" but mine has never bothered me by malfunctioning, and I have fired mine enuf to have it sent back to the factory twice to have the top strap shield replaced at no cost to me.

Another .44 stainless you should look at is the model 69. I have both the 4-1/4" model and the 2-1/2" model. Both are lighter than my Mtn Gun. Again I put X frame grips on both and recoil is very managable.