The grand old Smith & Wesson M29 revolver was the first and arguably the most important big-bore, hi-performance revolver ever made. Until it arrived, there weren’t really any revolvers and munitions out there for serious sportsmen. Over 50 years later, the gun and cartridge combination is still out there doing the Lord’s work. Oh sure, many and more powerful revolvers and cartridges have arrived since 1956, but none will ever supplant the classic M29 in the hearts of True Believers.
Smith & Wesson hasn’t been sitting on its hands all these years and has introduced numerous variations on the first M29 that have enlarged upon the basic theme. In 1978 the introduction of the stainless M629, nothing more than a stainless M29, teased the public. The M629-2 saw heat-treated yokes, the M629-3s added the longer stop notch, the anti-recoil bolt lock and then the M629-4 saw the addition of the “drill and tap” frames with their round-tang rear sights. The dash-suffixes in Smith & Wesson model parlance denote engineering changes to the basic models.
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Of course, if the M29 isn't quite your cup of tea, there's always the ultralight scandium Model 329 PD: click.
My first ever handgun was a spankin new M29. The year was 1982.
It was a beautiful chrome model with a 8 3/8" barrell. Came in a nice Presentation Case that had compartments for a cleaning brush and takedown tool. Trigger broke like glass. I wanna say that I paid around $425 for it.
Model 29 or 629 if you like the big bores, a definite yes.
The 329 - 25.5 ounces, which is just a couple of ounces more than a model 60...and shooting a .357 in a 60 is punishing....I've no desire to smash my had with a ball peen hammer....
Didn't get to see this one until now. Good thread.
There are a couple of handgun cartridges that just go best with their original firearms. Like the .45 ACP which really needs to be fired from a 1911, the .44 Magnum is uniquely awesome when coupled with the Model 29 Smith & Wesson.
The only Model 29 around here was purchased new in 1980.
I used to have a 329. I found the recoil to be significantly less that the 360PD, more of a push than a sharp slap. The only reason I sold it was because I could not shoot reloads in it, all the bullets pulled under recoil. I will stick with steel for magnums.
I look at that .44 Magnum fireball photo and consider all the similar handloads I fired through my .44 Magnum at hunter pistol competition, 40 rounds per match, not counting all the practice sessions at the gun club range after work during the week. No wonder I struggled to keep from becoming a quivering mass of flinching jelly. Not sure the cumulative effects of the hammering inures one from recoil.
Those were some relatively flat shooting Remington 180 Gr loads. I recall Glockman intimating he had some loads that could probably shake my fillings loose.
Me thinks if some of us actually shot a load that pressed up against the limits of the .44 Mag, many of us would be quite surprised.
Well, at least I can still count on the proof of my Scotch and Bourbon.
Folks that don't have N-Frame Smith & Wesson revolvers miss out on so much shooting fun and utility. No revolver has a better double-action pull than an N-Frame, once one gets the momentum of that big ol' cylinder working for him. Of course the single-action trigger pull on a Smith & Wesson revolver is the best trigger pull on earth.
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