What .44 Magnum is the most fun?

[franco4027]

I have a Redhawk that's 30 years old and it's flawless and can handle the heaviest loads. I also had a Lewis Horton 3 inch model 29 S&W. It was much nicer as a carry gun but would not handle heavy loads like the ruger. I would say if you plan to carry the gun in the woods as a backup with some occasional plinking get a 4 inch ruger Redhawk or S&W mountain revolver. If you want to hunt get the longer barrel.

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[Monster Zero]

Sergei Mosin

Well it's not a revolver but the most fun I had with handgun in .44 Magnum was with a Desert Eagle.

In a revolver it would have to be a Ruger Super Blackhawk with custom oversized grips on it.

+1 on the Super Blackhawk just for fun. Otherwise I, like the OP, haven't much use for the .44 Magnum.

 

[eldon519]

I shoot several thousand full-power .44 mag or .45 Colt Ruger loads a year. Usually 100-150 in a range session. I suppose that puts me somewhere as shooting more big magnums than many people but much less than some folks out there. I also don't have or shoot anything bigger than that.

A 5.5" or 7.5" Ruger Bisley is the darling that I can go the longest with. The subtleties in the grip panels make more difference than the extra length and weight as I just swapped them between guns. With the grips I favor, 150rds isn't even hard and no blisters or hot spots.

For DAs, I have a 6.5" 29-6 and a 4.25" 69. The 69 is an awesome gun. Great woods carry piece. The cyclinder is a tad shorter than the 29/629, but it certainly not weaker as far as I can tell. When I work up a load, my 29 starts getting sticky extraction before the 69. I suspect the 5-shot cylinder and offset bolt notches play a part.

For the DA Smiths, I rely on the Tamer grips by Hogue to make them comfortable. Hard grips or unpadded rubber on the Smiths are much less comfortable to me than wood grips on a Bisley frame. While it helps with stinging the palm, the Hogue rubber also grabs the skin and causes blisters faster.

For me, if I want double-action capability, I grab a Smith but otherwise, the Bisleys are more comfortable for a range day or dedicated target practice.

For what it is worth, I had a regular Redhawk and hated it. Trigger was garbage, it wasn't accurate, and I never could find comfortable grips for it. It eventually broke and had to go back to the factory several times and Ruger eventually traded me a SRH Alaskan for it for free. That is a fun gun, but not very practical.

 

[Armybrat]

Ruger 5.5" Super Blackhawk - dressed either in the fake ivory or black laminate:

 

[HankB]

The Redhawk and Super Redhawk can handle any .44 thrown at them.......if anything, they are BOTH overbuilt for the .44 Mag. Now, the SRH may even be overbuilt for the likes of the .454 and .480

Note that when Ruger began building SRHs in .454, they switched to a higher grade steel and special heat treatment. See Ruger Steel

The lightweight S&W 329 is very uncomfortable to shoot with full power .44 Mag ammo.

Because of the grip shape and high bore line, I find SA revolvers much less comfortable to shoot than DA revolvers.

Shorter barrel revolvers in general are less comfortable to shoot than longer barrel revolvers, despite lower velocity.

S&Ws have smoother actions than Rugers. Some time ago, S&W incorporated an "endurance package" which improved the durability of their .44 magnums - unless you're shooting a LOT of HEAVY loads (and overloads!) they'll hold up just fine.

Rugers may stand up better to a steady diet of heavy loads. Handloader magazine published unofficial "+P" handloading data for Rugers which takes advantage of their longer cylinders.

 

[C.R.]

I had both a Ruger Red Hawk ,and a Smith & Wesson mod.29 same lenth barrels I ran into hard times and had to part with something,so I (reluctantly) sold the Ruger,the S&W shot better for me ,although the Ruger was nicer looking . Too bad the friend I sold it to ended up threating to kill his old lady and I beleive all his guns were confiscated . So,I guess I wont get the chance to buy that one back

 

[eldon519]

HankB, I am curious if you have tried both the Bisley and plowhandle style grips? If so did you find both less comfortable than a DA grip?

 

[FloriDave]

They're all fun, depends a lot on what kind of shooting you do. I've settled in on 4-5 inch barrels as my favorites. Both of those pictured started with longer barrels, the Super RedHawk had the original barrel length and a scope for many years, the Super Blackhawk pictured was also 7.5 or whatever was stock. After this pic it has since been cut down to even with the ejector rod housing. (Actually, That's the latest pic of it with the bearcat) Sometimes I think about getting a shorter ejector rod, and cutting again, but doubt I will.








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[MarcS]

Ruger Super Blackhawk 7.5" barrel with Houge grips accurate and not punishing to shoot

 

[khegglie]

Super Blackhawk Bisley.

 

[Confederate]

Well, .44 Magnums are certainly fascinating guns regardless of their barrel lengths. The first time I went to the shooting range to shoot my S&W 629, I cocked it, carefully lined up the sights and squeezed off a shot.

The gun buckled as a huge fireball belched from the muzzle. At that moment a number of things happened. The fillings in my mouth blew out and hit the back of my hands. The rear sights ripped out of the top of my gun and were embedded in the ceiling above me and later had to be pulled out with pliers. The side plate blew out of the side and killed the guy I had brought shooting with me. The screw holding my grips on was stripped and gun jumped out of my hands and fell to the floor, spinning seven times before coming to a stop!

Bummer about my friend, but a little Loctite fixed the rear sights, grips and side plate. My dentist refilled my fillings and shooting my 629 6-incher no longer is an issue. But I love the S&W 629 and I particularly love the older no-dash models. Beautiful wood grips, plated hammer and trigger, stamped side plate.

Gorgeous gun!

​

Is this not one of the most beautiful revolvers you've ever seen?​

.

 

[Onty]

I've been thinking about getting a .44 Magnum just for the fun of it. I have no serious purpose for one, just want one to play around with. What .44 Magnum do you think is the most fun?

Here is the question; do you want a gun to shoot just box or two from time to time, or you wan to SHOOT it?

If you want to shoot it occasionally, go with any revolver you like. If S&W, look for -3 and later, they have so caled "Endurance Package". My preference is -3 and up Classic DX. These revolvers are factory tested and will make 1.5 inch at 50 yds.

If you want to SHOOT , let's say few hundred at one time, like shooting silhouettes (the most interesting shooting with magnum revolvers, IMHO), most likely that warmly loaded or full power 44 Magnum loads using 240-250 grains bullet will make your hands tingling. And that is a clear sign that you went too far, so you better slow down.

Solution; 41 magnum. I can shoot a hundreds of rounds (210-220 grains at 1200 fps) in a single day, and I have no tingling, nor blisters. Hit with this load any plate, it will fly from the stand.

Just my 0.2 cents, your millage may vary.

 

[Taurus 617 CCW]

A gun gun in .44 magnum? How about a Dan Wesson 445 Supermag? Technically it is chambered in .445 but you can shoot .44 special and magnum out of it. I shot the .357 maximum version one time and it was a blast to shoot!

 

[cfullgraf]

I like shooting my S&W Model 69 more than my S&W Model 629.

But neither have ever had full power loads fired in them.

If I want wrist breaking recoil, I drag out my X-frame 460 XVR with full power loads.

 

[Cocked & Locked]

Depends on one's definition of "fun" I suppose. My "most fun" one is this 2.5" fixed sights S&W 629-5. Pre-lock but does have some MIM parts.

 

[hemiram]

Most fun, IMO, would be an S&W 29/629, but I couldn't pass on a Dan Wesson 44 for hundreds less than a 29 in similar shape:



And it's more pleasant to shoot than an S&W.

 

[stu1ritter]

I love shooting mine with 44 Special +P++ style loads.

Stu

 

[CraigC]

I've been kinda pining for a Dan Wesson (maybe a .445) but just picked up this Super Redhawk. Unfortunately, the dealer ordered the Talo version with the fiber optic front sight and the only 30mm rings I could find have a blasted finish but the plan is to have the front sight replaced, the action tuned and the whole thing given a soft bead blast. I also found that Ruger reduced the size of the grip locator pin and that will have to be resolved as well if I am to use the old style insert grips.

 

[TimSr]

 

[Combat Engineer]

"...What .44 Magnum do you think is the most fun? " [Sergei Mosin]

Personal fave is a non-fluted 2.75" custom shop S&W 29. This is a heavy piece, heavier than my 4" or 6.5" S&Ws, but is very well balanced. Handload with H110... very accurate with all three barrel lengths. With the 2.75" a lot of sound and fury and flame and fun.

Many folks don't care for the snubby size 44 Mags because of the recoil, but if you don't fight the recoil, instead roll with the recoil, (in a vertical or horizontal plane) the recoil pretty much disappears and it is like a 9mm. Or you can cheat and wear a glove.

The most versatile is the 4", the most cumbersome the 6.5", and near perfect is a 2.5" or 2.75".

Have tried longer barrels, i.e. 8.5" and X-frames too, but you need to be very well off (rich) to afford a valet to carry them for you.

Best to you.

 

[Wild Bill Longley]

I have a SW 629 Stealth hunter .44 magnum, Blacked out stainless steel, 7.5" barrel, Performance Center Package: ported barrel, dovetail red ramp front sight, trigger with trigger Stop, tuned action

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[Rio Laxas]

Another question - why do the triggers and hammers on new Smiths look dirty? They can't possibly be that dirty right from the factory, and my 1989 Model 64 doesn't look like that, so what gives?

Because they are case hardened.

Older S&W stainless revolvers had flash chromed trigger and hammers to match the stainless look, but they later began using the same case hardened triggers and hammers that are found in the blued models.

 

[Tophernj]

I've been looking for a 44 to replace the one I sold a couple of years ago. I came across a Stainless Blackhawk 7.5". I'm gonna give her a go as soon as my permission slips come in. I'll let you know how it goes.