M-329 Price check and shooting Question

[Skeet 028]

Have a fellow that wants me to buy his 329 4 inch gun..no box or papers. He wants 625 Wondering if that is a decent price. I am somewhat interested in it cause it IS light..but with the light comes MUCH recoil?? Or so I believe. Want it to carry up in grizz country mainly cause it is so light. Oh...any known problems with these handguns..other than the recoil issue? If I buy it I am gonna sell one of the 3 inch 29-3s I have. Nice guns but heavy..not too hard to shoot well. And I am concerned about that with the 329

 

[Dan Christopher]

Hey, Skeet. Depending on the condition of the gun, $625 could be an excellent deal.

Recoil is going to be a lot worse than it is with your 3" Model 29. There's just no way of getting around that.

 

[Skeet 028]

Thanks Dan..The fellow wants a bit more than 625(675) but he has 3 full boxes of factory ammo with it..Like I need 44 mag ammo. But if I buy it the ammo will be sold.. I think 3 boxes of Rem ammo should be worth 50 bucks. But what I am most concerned with is any issues with the gun itself. Recoil is NOT my favorite thing but I can live with it for a carry piece in the aforementioned grizz country. I had heard or read(don't know which) that they had some issues with the Scandium framed guns. Anyone know about such issues??

 

[muzzleblast]

I'd say that's a pretty good price. I haven't seen one that cheap locally. In griz country, I'd be using some heavy loads with hard cast bullets. Quick follow up shots would not be likely (but would likely be needed). Will he let you shoot it before buying it?

To assist with recoil management you may want to consider some enhancements:

Mag-na-port International--Porting Pricelist & Miscellaneous Services

and:

Product: Model 500 Impact Absorbing Hogue Square Butt Conversion Grips

MB

 

[Pizza Bob]

Depending on condition, that's a great price. You should be able to unload the ammo for at least $25/box if they are factory (50 rds).

I have to disagree with muzzleblast on the magnaporting - just not that beneficial on a 4" barreled revolver. But I heartily endorse his recommendation of the X-frame "Tamer" grips. Even though Smith does not list the N-frame round-butt, they will fit it perfectly and are probably the most effective change to mitigate recoil.

One problem with the heavy-recoiling, lightweight guns is that they are more likely to engage the IL accidently. If I were buying this to carry in grizzley country, the first thing I'd do is disable that lock.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

 

[NEURON]

True about the lock and bullets can jump crimp from recoil so make sure you test the rounds you are going to use before getting into a dicey situation.

 

[Skeet 028]

One problem with the heavy-recoiling, lightweight guns is that they are more likely to engage the IL accidently. If I were buying this to carry in grizzley country, the first thing I'd do is disable that lock.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

I only have one Smith with the lock hole a 625-9 45 Colt. How do you disable a lock? Just take it out or what? Can it be taken out? I think I am going to buy the gun..can't be that hard to dispose of if it is too much to bear(pun intended). I already have a buyer for the ammo at 70 bucks. So I'll have 605 in it I do have a lot of 44 ammo from specials to hotter mags with heavy bullets.

 

[Pizza Bob]

How do you disable a lock?

You can disable it without changing the exterior appearance of the gun. Simply file off the D-shaped lug on the interior side of the "flag". The lug is what engages the hammer and locks it in place - no lug / no lock.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

 

[Bobbysixkiller]

625 is a great deal. If it's nice. They are a bear to shoot magnums. Good for specials. Great to carry. Look at the shield under the top strap to make sure it is in place and not broken. I traded mine for a 629. Probly wouldn't buy another unless the price was right. I would not sell a 29 or 629 of any variant for one.

 

[Bobbysixkiller]

I will advise you to look up 329pd blow ups on Google.

 

[Rangerpat]

The 329 is a "carry a lot, shoot a little" revolver. If you do need to use it in a very stressful defensive situation, I doubt you will notice the recoil.

I practice with .44SPL ammo at the range, and carry .44MAG ammo when I'm out in the woods in black bear and wild hog country.

There is plenty of information about the 329 on this website, just do a Search.

 

[CWH44300]

I think that's a pretty good price, not likely to find one for less than that. You shouldn't have any trouble until the round count gets up there. These guns are like high performance race cars. Drag cars only get so many passes before a rebuild, same for the 329's. I've had 3 different ones and still have 2. My most used one has just over 2000 rounds (probably a 60/40 mix of midrange and magnums) and its still serviceable but showing signs of wear. If you don't handload that's a lot of shooting considering that even cheap American made ammo is around a buck a pop. The lock has never engaged on any of mine but they will test your dies ability to crimp. I had to dig out an old set of steel lymans to get a good enough crimp on my favorite cast bulleted magnums. I feel that the 329 pd's are the ultimate mountain gun, if you can put up with the recoil. Plinkers they are not.
Good luck with yours.

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

Based on my experience with a 325PD, I would not buy a 329 for protection against bear. With a 3" 29, you can at least dream that you might get off a second shot. With a 329, I'm pretty sure that would rank as hallucinating. When I went looking for a stainless gun to carry in place of my 4" 29, I actually passed up a 629 Mountain Gun with Hogues because I felt it rose too high in the sky for me to believe I would ever have a second shot. I ended up with a PC 3" double-Magnaported 629.

Of course, your experience may tell you something else, but I would be cautious about buying a 329 without first trying to fire it twice.

 

[dla]

The 329pd is not that hard to shoot fast. It does recoil and you will feel it, but it is doable. I do it with mine and I'm no expert. I usually do a cylinder very fast DA into a target at 10'. I wish I had a target that moved towards me.

 

[BLUEDOT37]

There's a lot of good info on them here:

https://sites.google.com/site/hobbyhintstricksideas/Home/s-w-329pd-info

.

 

[CH4]

For $675 I'd buy it in a heartbeat! If you don't like it, flip it.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Good price. I used to own one but couldn't stand the vicious snap of the recoil. And before anyone calls me a baby at the same time I owned and shot my 4 inch S&W 500 often.
If your not set on a 329, take a look at a 69. The 69 is my favorite of all the smaller 44's I have owned.

 

[4330Inroute]

I'd like to offer my unsolicited two cents worth of advice. Keep what you have, the 29-3 is a little heavier but will do the same job with less recoil which might mean you might practice with it more. Why beat yourself up with a handgun that will subject you to heavier recoil, less practice and more pain for a few ounces of weight. Look at your holster and see if you can find a better choice that will allow you to handle the weight of the 29-3 easier.
Good luck with your choice.

 

[Skeet 028]

Sorry for not following the thread as I should. Been in this darn hospital too long. I bought the 329. Nochance to shoot it yet.Hopefully I will get out of this hole and on a plane to Wy. Then I may get to shoot it. A friend sold a 5screw HP for me at a gun show last weekend at Riverton and I have an offer of 1100 on the 29-3. So I will try to find another nice Smith. I want to post a pic of the 17_3 nickel I have found

 

[NYresQ]

Great gun in theory, but in practice it cant handle magnum loads and will break long before it should. Vicious recoil has a tendancy to engage the lock so anyone who intends to carry it for protection should disable the lock before it has a chance to kill you.

Bullet creep is a serious problem with cast loads, not so much with jacked ammo with a crimp on a canneluer. Did I mention vicious recoil?

Even with a set of the X-grips, its not a gun you take to the range for hundreds of rounds of practice.

I had one of the first 329PD's made by smith and it went back to the factory three times for problems with the lock engaging from recoil. The third time they kept it and Smith refunded my full purchase price including tax and shipping, so that right there has to tell you they know theres a problem.

I bought a 3" 629 with a full underlug and unfluted cylinder. With a set of X-grips, I can accurately shoot a cylinder full of 240gr JHP as fast as I can fire my 640 with 357 magnums.

The light weight is great, but not if you cant practice enough to become fast and accurate. Be careful with the 329, inspect it often and look for signs of wear and especially flame cutting...