M629-2 $975 (ouch)

Depending on the condition that is a very good price.

That doesnt sound all that bad for a used gun, unless its beat up.

I bought a new 4" 629 5 or 6 years ago for $750 on sale. I know around here, they are around $1K plus for a new one now.

If it's does not have the "E" after the -2 it does not have the endurance package.

Because it's probably a lost leader to get you buy something really expensive.

At my LGS that would be somewhere between "average price" and "grab it and giggle all the way to the door."

Yep, good number for a -2. I came within a hair's breadth of buying a 5" -6 Classic yesterday for $800 just because its a decent deal. But I really want a 4" -3 or -4: no lock, partial ER lug. Need to save my pennies a while longer and get what I really want.

Mark_Mark said:

629-2E = No Endurance package
629-2 (no E) = has the Endurance package

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You have that backwards. The "E" after the -2 means it has the endurance package. Some of the early -2s did not.....as I understand it. There was some improvement with the -2s over the -1s also. The early 629s had an issue with getting loose if shot with high amounts of heavy loads, so the 629-2E got a hardened yoke and frame. I think there was changes with the stop notches and the hands also. Most of the issue came from silhouette shooters using 300 grainers over a lot of powder.

For a lot of folks, the "E" or not, is not an issue. SAAMI watered down the specs for .44 mag ammo about the same time, and most folks don't shoot high volumes of max loaded 300 grainers for their 629s. Still, the false perception continues that one should not shoot a lot of "legitimate" magnum loads from any S&W revolver, even tho this is not the case.

buck460XVR said:

You have that backwards. The "E" after the -2 means it has the endurance package. Some of the early -2s did not.....as I understand it. There was some improvement with the -2s over the -1s also. The early 629s had an issue with getting loose if shot with high amounts of heavy loads, so the 629-2E got a hardened yoke and frame. I think there was changes with the stop notches and the hands also. Most of the issue came from silhouette shooters using 300 grainers over a lot of powder.

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Yup.

I have a -2 and a -3.

S&W made the "-2E" changes legit with the -3.

*edit* Oh, and $975 isn't out of line at all for a no lock, no MIM, Smith.

That is a beautiful gun, who ever gets it for under a grand did very well.

Looks to be in very good condition.

I'd have no problem with $975.

Mine (both -2 & -3) are both 6"

5" is the minimum legal bbl length in Ohio for deer hunting.

I'm always on the lookout for a 4" -3, -2 or -4 (in that order) at a decent price.

Naw, it's a 6"



Mine

-2 on top, -3 on bottom.

Quick and easy way to tell is length of cylinder stop notches.

They are a solid revolver while, at the same time, slim and trim.

My -2 is relegated to "medium" level loads these days (10 gr Unique under a 240 gr of various "flavors")

It was my 1st firearm purchase in Jan of '90 and has seen 10's of thousands of my handloads (never fired a factory load)

Anything in true magnum territory is a job for my -3 these days.

Mark_Mark said:

your 1st gun purchase was a .44 Mag! Go Big or Go Home!! nice

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Haha, yeah, a .44mag.

I remember going to a lgs with my dad when I wasn't big enough to look through the top of the gun cases, I had to look through the front!

I remembered looking down the barrels of those big bore revolvers and thinking "I'll have one of those one day"

Shortly after my 18th birthday, I went to a local guys house that had his FFL and ordered my 629 for $400.

When it came in, the guy let me take it home, with the 4473 for my dad to fill out (trusting me to bring the form back)

When I brought everything home my dad said "what the h*** did you do?!" filled out the paperwork, got in his wallet and gave me $400 and told me to order him one when I took the 4473 back to the dealer; that's how I got the -3 (when my dad passed away in '05)

Mark_Mark said:

what a wonderful story man!

WTH did you do boy! here $400, get me one too!

you know he was proud of your purchase and enabling too

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Ha, yeah, thanks.

Dad wasn't a "gun guy" at the time but did have a couple of guns (a .45 1911, Savage 99 in .308 and a 12ga semiauto).

I know he thought of us going out deer hunting with them together was a great way to spend time.

I'll never forget those days.

I was a "gun guy" from an early age and he always asked my opinion before making his subsequent (many) purchases.

I even got him involved in reloading, a definite necessity when your 1st gun was a .44Mag!

buck460XVR said:

For a lot of folks, the "E" or not, is not an issue. SAAMI watered down the specs for .44 mag ammo about the same time, and most folks don't shoot high volumes of max loaded 300 grainers for their 629s. Still, the false perception continues that one should not shoot a lot of "legitimate" magnum loads from any S&W revolver, even tho this is not the case.

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A slightly related tangent:

Would you mind documenting that claim that SAAMI changed a pressure spec for 44 Mag or any cartridge. I have seen lots of claims that SAAMI changed 357 Magnum and now you are claiming they changed 44 Magnum. I have yet to see proof that they changed either.

I believe this misconception comes from the introduction of a second official method to measure pressure. They started using the "new" piezo electric transducer method in the 70's in addition to the Copper or Lead Crusher method they had been using for decades. That resulted in a different number representing the same peak pressure. The development of the higher fidelity transducer method also showed that the peak pressure they thought the older crusher method was indicating was actually not truly the actual pressure in PSI. The crusher method was and still is a reliable and repeatable measurement, just not an accurate measurement of peak pressure that was assumed before the transducer showed them the error. How far off the crusher method was from the actual pressure as measured with the more advanced transducer method varied from cartridge to cartridge. With some cartridges that number stayed the same or changes very little with other it changed a fair amount and it could be in either direction up or down. Since for years most shooters and reloaders outside of the industry insiders did not realized there were two official but very different methods to measure peak pressure many people mistakenly thought SAAMI changed the values when gun writers and publication started using the new measurement system. I am pretty sure some gun writer did not even know the difference early on.

Also publications dating from the mid 1970's and earlier will report pressures in PSI when it was measured using the crusher method. When the transducer method was official accepted by SAAMI the crusher method units were changed to CUP/LUP (Copper or Lead) and the new transducer method used psi since it was closer to the truth. This has led to additional confusion.

Examples:
Transducer is lower than CUP
44 Remington Magnum: 40,000 CUP (Crusher), 36,000 PSI (transducer).
357 Remington Magnum: 45,000 CUP (Crusher), 35,000 PSI (transducer).
But this is not always the case some went up
380 ACP: : 17,000 CUP (Crusher), 21,500 PSI (transducer).
45 ACP: : 18,000 CUP (Crusher), 21,000 PSI (transducer).
And some are the same
38 Special: : 17,000 CUP (Crusher), 17,000 PSI (transducer).
45 Colt: : 14,000 CUP (Crusher), 14,000 PSI (transducer).
In all these cases the two values for each cartridge represent the peak pressure.

There is no way to safely change the pressure on an established cartridge. If you raise the pressure you blow up the old guns with new ammo. If you reducer the pressure then old ammo blows up new guns.

-pet peeve rambling.

SAAMI specs may not have changed, that doesn't mean the factory load is at the SAAMI max. 10mm Auto is notoriously loaded down. Years ago I used to buy Sako 357's that were midrange loads. I shoot 30 Luger and there is no way Winchester loads will ever reach their advertised velocity. MagTech 44 mag loads are pretty wimpy. I can pass them up with a 44 Special.
P.S. The air over a chronograph is MUCH thicker than free air. Really increases drag.

mcb said:

Would you mind documenting that claim that SAAMI changed a pressure spec for 44 Mag or any cartridge. I have seen lots of claims that SAAMI changed 357 Magnum and now you are claiming they changed 44 Magnum. I have yet to see proof that they changed either.

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This was my understanding....and I may very well be wrong. That 44 Mag chamber pressures were lowered by SAAMI(somewhere around 1995)from 43,500 CUP to the current 36,000 psi, which was a realistic 10% reduction, not just a different type of measure. Similar to the change from 46,000 CUP to 35,000 psi in .357. Not only just a change in the way pressure was measured, but also a real reduction in chamber pressure(even more than with .44mag). This had to do with K-Frame S&Ws not holding up well. These changes not only helped the longevity of S&W revolvers, but every other revolver on the market too.....including Ruger. I believe this was something told to me by a retired gunsmith from another forum.