First S&W, a Model 629-4, and First Post

[Hammerdown77]

Yeah, I don't think I'll do anything to it until I shoot it for a while. I agree about the laser etched markings looking faint. I've seen a couple in the gun shop that were almost new, and in the right light even they seemed to disappear. I'll just write "S&W" and "44 Magnum" and "629 Classic" on the bare metal with a black Sharpie

Man, I can't wait to get this gun.

 

[Larry from Bend]

Yeah, I don't think I'll do anything to it until I shoot it for a while. I agree about the laser etched markings looking faint. I've seen a couple in the gun shop that were almost new, and in the right light even they seemed to disappear. I'll just write "S&W" and "44 Magnum" and "629 Classic" on the bare metal with a black Sharpie

Man, I can't wait to get this gun.

If the Sharpie doesn't work, there's always the Dremel!

 

[Hammerdown77]

Range report!

The gun was delivered middle of last week and I was able to pick it up Friday. When I looked it over at the shop, it was clear this was actually a working gun that had been shot and carried (which is what the owner represented it as), with the general wear and tear that goes along with that role. The action felt smooth and tight, maybe a little heavy, with a little movement of the cylinder present at lock up. Single action trigger pull was glass rod crisp just under 4 pounds (on my RCBS spring scale). Feels lighter than that, though. The sights are worn and a bit faded, but I'm going to replace the front sight anyway. Grip is in excellent condition, and fits my hand perfectly. The laser etched emblems are not as bad as I thought, although they are definitely hard to see and almost disappear if you hold the gun a certain way. They are definitely hard to photograph!

The holster the owner threw in at no charge is a Bianchi 111 Cyclone, shortened down to 5". It is an excellent holster and carries the gun well.

The guys at the shop really liked the gun and were trying to trade me for one of the guy's blued Model 19. I passed.

But on to the important stuff: How does it shoot? VERY well. I had 50 rounds of handloads using a 250 gr. Keith lswc over 10 grains of Universal, a nice mid-range load that shoots well out of my Ruger Super Blackhawk Hunter. The first cylinder full was printing 6-8 inches low at 25 yards off the bags, so I started raising the rear sight (it was all the way down) until it hit POA. After that, it was gravy. The gun is extremely accurate. Recoil is different than what I'm used to with single actions; it comes straight back into the web of the hand, sharply, compared to the rolling up of the plow handle grip on my sixguns. I also had some full bore magnum loads using 23-24 grains of H-110, and those were still quite manageable, although a bit sharper slap to the hand. Double action was also very controllable, and I was able to bounce around soda cans on the 25 yard dirt berm shooting offhand. Not bad, considering I don't have any other double actions.

I'm very pleased with the gun overall. With a little TLC, I can get the finish looking nice again, and maybe after shooting it some more I'll think about a trigger job, although I don't know that it's worth it.

One thing I did discover is that slapping the ejector rod with your palm is a hazardous technique, because on this gun the tip of the rod is a sharp edged, hollow cone that will take nice biopsy chunks out of your flesh. Is it supposed to be like that??? Seems like the end should have a plug in it, or be rounded or something.

Also, it looks like the hammer has some corrosiion in the knurled surface of the spur, although it's hard to tell if that's leftover case hardening. Probably a little of both. Can you wire brush this out without damaging the case hardening? Not that big a deal to me, just wondering.

Gun with Bianchi holster:

Emblems:

Hammer spur corrosion:

 

[Mule88]

Joni Lynn +1

 

[MMA10mm]

One thing I did discover is that slapping the ejector rod with your palm is a hazardous technique, because on this gun the tip of the rod is a sharp edged, hollow cone that will take nice biopsy chunks out of your flesh. Is it supposed to be like that??? Seems like the end should have a plug in it, or be rounded or something.

I'll leave to the others some of your other points, but the "Biopsy tool" on the end of the ejector rod is exactly as it should be...

If you look in your third photo (which I've included above), you'll see that inside the forward end of the ejector rod shroud, is a spring-loaded plunger that projects/snaps into the hollow part of the tip of the ejector rod. That is one (forward one) of the two places that locks the cylinder in place on a S&W double-action.

If you have the cylinder open, look at the back of it, in the middle of the ratchet "star" and you'll see a small nub sticking out the back. That is the second (rear) place that locks the swing-out cylinder in place when the cylinder is closed. While the cylinder is still open, push in on that nub (it's spring-loaded) and look at the front of your ejector rod (where the biopsy hole is), and you'll see that a pin pushes forward as you push on the nub at the rear.

Now, you know how the cylinder is opened and closed. The spring inside the middle of the cylinder keeps the pin and nub to the rear, but as you close the cylinder, the angle (cam) on the left recoil shield cams the nub in, until the cylinder is closed, when it snaps into place in the middle of the recoil shield. (While the cylinder is open, if you look at the middle of the recoild shield where that nub would project if the cylinder was closed, you'll see another pin. That is the projection of the cylinder latch. When the cylinder is closed, and you want to open it, you push forward on the cylinder latch. That part's projection pushes forward on the nub at the rear of the cylinder, unlocking it, and through the ejector rod, it pushes forward on the front latch inside the ejector rod shroud, unlocking that one. And, voila, you're cylinder can open.

You'll hear guys talking about the "Triple Lock." (Yes, capitolized, because real S&W nuts talk about the model with reverence...) Those pistols had a THIRD locking mechanism connected to this system built into the yoke. (Just in case you don't know, the yoke is the bar which pivots the cylinder outwards, and the cylinder is mounted on (via the ejector rod going through it).

 

[MMA10mm]

OH, and I forgot the most important thing!

You've already learned the hard way by biopsying yourself, but you should avoid slapping, hitting, pounding, or in any other way abusing that ejector rod. They can bend, and once they do, it's a repair job, as you not only will have ejection problems, but there will be rotation problems which will then cause double-action trigger problems (or cocking resistance if you shoot single action).

My mentor told me once that the proper way to use the ejector rod (for ejection) is to grasp the knurled end by it's sides, and pull the ejector rod to the rear. Not only does this prevent biopsying yourself, it makes it impossible to bend the rod.

If the loads are so hot that this doesn't work, first, the loads are too hot, and second, you need to pound out the cases by removing the cylinder, setting it upright, and using a brass round bar inserted through the chamber throat to gently pound out the case. (When doing this, be sure there are at least a couple cases in two of the other chambers, so that the pounding doesn't mis-align the ejector star, which then causes another repair...)

 

[Hammerdown77]

How do you remove the cylinder? You mean from the yoke?

 

[MMA10mm]

Yes.

Looking at the right side of the pistol, note the screw above and forward of the trigger? While the cylinder is closed, unscrew that (being careful not to loose it or any other parts that come with it) screw.

Once it's out, push forward on the cylinder latch and open the cylinder with the barrel slightly tipped upward (otherwise, gravity will send your cylinder, yoke, and ejector rod to the ground). With the cylinder fully swung-out, the yoke, cylinder, and ejector rod will come out of the frame towards the muzzle. Once clear of the pistol, the yoke will just slide off the front of the ejector rod.

There's no need to remove the ejector rod to tap out the stuck cases, as long as you're not clumsy with a hammer. (Use the smallest hammer you can - a carpenter's hammer is marginally too big.) Repeated taps on the range rod (the brass rod) will get the case out without resorting to too much force. Set the cylinder on a block of wood with a hole drilled out big enough for the cases to fall through, and set that atop something solid, like a vice with the jaws opened enough for the case to fall through. It will only take a few seconds. Then, never load your ammo that hot again...

There's several good articles in magazines and on the 'net about loading hot loads. Generally, the consensus of wise reloaders and shooters of S&W handguns is something like this:

Recognize S&Ws as thorobreds -- they can handle hot loads, but they shouldn't be hotter than the hinges of Hades. Mostly, shoot them with mid-range or mild loads, and reserve the heavy (but not super-max) loads for when they're really needed. If you want a revolver that can be shot with heavy loads continuously and for long periods, the "tank" of the revolver world is generally regarded as the Ruger. But Smiths are much more refined and finer than those, so we accept the trade-off. I think it might be John Taffin I'm plagerizing here... Check his website for some articles. They're mighty good reading.

I shoot my S&W 44s with 1200fps loads at the most, and frankly, those do everything I can imagine needing a revolver for, and then some. That level of loads satisfied Elmer for everything when he was heavy-loading 44 Specials too. It wasn't until Remington and S&W surprised him with a 1400+fps load that he started playing with hotter ammo. His initial request to those companies was a 250gr KSWC at 1200fps as the 44 Magnum anyway...

For most of my shooting, I load them around 850-925 fps (depending on barrel length) with 7.5grs of W231. That's a fun load to shoot. Can shoot all day, and I've gotten to an age where I'd rather shoot all day and have fun hitting targets than shoot a little bit with heavy loads until carpel tunnel starts my fingers going numb... When I was a youngin', I shot heavy loads between 100 to 300 a day. No more. Hard on the gun, and hard on me.

 

[Hammerdown77]

Okay, good info.

I don't hot rod the .44 mag. Don't really see the need to. I shoot "Ruger Only" 45 Colt loads out of a Blackhawk, and I've shot some hotter, "Keith level" loads for the .44 Special out of my flat top Blackhawk, but other than that, I stay within SAAMI specs.

 

[MMA10mm]

That's good to hear. I load my hot loads with AA#9, because that's my go-to slow-pistol/fast-rifle powder. (I use it in 10mm, 30 Carbine, 357 Mag, and a couple others.) But, I saw a thread about 4227, and it reminded me of what a good powder it is. It's impossible to get enough of it in the 44 Mag. case to go over-pressure, and it's single-base, so without nitro, it's easier on the guns and bullets.

 

[Hammerdown77]

Never tried 4227, but I've seen some threads about it in .44 mag and .45 Colt and am curious to give it a try. Same with AA #9. I've loaded all my top end loads in both .45 and .44 with H-110 and 2400, although I'm experimenting with Power Pistol for just-under-full-power loads. Power Pistol gives higher velocity at lower pressure than most other mid-range powders, and it's proven very accurate in my .44 Special flat top Blackhawk.