I have a super nice blued S&W model 29. It's too nice to ever put into a holster. Someday, when I need a .44 for a bike ride in bear country, I'll buy a stainless Ruger or a beater and have Robar redo it. I don't think I'd buy a blued gun for anything but range duty.

I too have an S&W model 629 (stainless) w/ an 8 3/8"...no way in hell would it be my selection for home defense. My .45 ACP (Colt CC) wins hands down for that function. I did spot one of the .50s in the display case last friday when I was out picking up a Marlin and it didn't even tempt me, maybe I'm not nuts afterall :)

Here's a pic I posted on a thread some time back...all are fine pistols, but Tabs would shun the 629 since it's not "pinned & recessed, but it "is" the baby of the bunch :)http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1237810759.jpg

and there ya go...................blue sucks unless of course you have it in one of those nice countryside wood gun cabinets with glass in front to stare at while the fire is burning in the fireplace, your tying trout flies, labradors lounging at your feet, while wearing your elk skinned slippers!

my 629 6" dual magnaported has seen some seriass use over the years and hasnt whimpered or sniviled ONCE! and its been hammered over the years hunting in some pretty nasty conditions. the 629's natural companion is marlins stainless .44mag lever gun. kinda like 2 peas in a pod.

now that scandium frames have been out awhile we are starting to see some holster wear on them also.

parkerizing sucks also. maybe a step above blueing and thats not saying much.

robar guarantees its surface treatments for the life of the gun(read small print) including being covered in the likely event of a teradactyl pooing on you!

Charles (or anyone), when did "stainless" come on the scene? I don't even recall them being around back when I made my first few purchases.

befo buying a any caliber above .44 mag...........go to you tube and watch what they do to your wrist!

after mucho researcho and talking with some real fanatics about these i will purchase the .460. mucho more controllable than stepping up to the monsters. and if there was EVER A TIME YOU NEEDED CONTROL is when da papa bear or da momma bear is making a warp speed charge on your ass and ya need some followup shots to anchor the mutha!

real world thought, real world actualities, dictates your not gonna have time to grab a long gun, nor get very many shots off. my last bear encounter in new messiko could be counted in seconds. and how much toilet paper i needed to clean myself!

from what i can recall stainless guns made their surge in the 1970's and 1980's. machine tools developed and cnc could keep tolerances tight and make more per hour, thereby being profitable.

smith and wesson was one of the last mfgs to get into cnc guns. handwerk by a good gunsmith is very time consuming fitting parts correctly. thats what you pay for when you deal with springfields or smith and wessons, remingtons,mcmillians or anybodys custom shop is the handfitting and mic ever part to the nats ass dead nuts tolerance. thereby having a tight gun.

and as everyjuan knows.............having a tight gun is as important in life as finding a tight ass!

The traditional companion piece to the lever gun is the single action revolver. The Ruger Blackhawk (adjustable sights) or Vaquero (fixed sights) represent the biggest bang for the buck. The Blackhawk is available in blued or stainless; the Vaquero in blued/case hardened or polished stainless. I have several versions of both, and rely upon them as my "every day" guns. They get shot the most; they get carried the most. Accurate and absolutely indestructable.

Other single actions available today are the original Colt Peacemaker and its various replicas. Stay away from the Italian replicas - Uberti, Pedersoli, and the like. They are of far lower quality than the American made replicas and, of course, the real Colts. United States Firearms is generally acknowledged as producing some the best single actions today, possibly ever. They are up to a standard of fit and finish not seen since the pre-war Colts. As for Colt, they seem to finally be digging themselves out of a pretty deep hole. The single actions they have produced in the last couple of years are every bit as good as the U.S. Firearms guns, and possibly even their own pre-war guns. A little more spendy than the latter, as there seems to still be a premium on the prancing pony, but there is nothing like a real Colt.

Single actions are great "fun" guns for gravel pit or desert plinking. There is an air of nostalgia about them that makes them a bit more appealing to some. Most folks fire revolvers single action anyway, regardless if it is actually a double action. Granted, the single action is slower to load and reload, but in an afternoon plinking session, who really cares?

What caliber would you recommend? I have never owned a "wheel gun".

Current pistols are a Ruger MK III, Belgium Browning 9M and a Kimber .45.

heres a lil insight on what "caliber" of wheel gun to buy....................

after watching literally THE MOST ACCURATE AND FASTEST SHOOTER on the planet yesterday........ROB LEATHEAM(aka MR SPRINGFIELD) go thru his stages on "amoeba" targets(politically correct)...................guess what the hell he was shooting??????????????????????


any takers?????????????????


a FREEKING 1911 SPRINGFIELD IN FREEKING 9mm!!!!!

holy bat balls batman............an enemic puny whimpy round!


why? POOR-KAY??????

because its easy on the wrist and wayyyyyyyyyyyyy more contollable!

so to answer your question..............anything you CAN CONTROL!

and i can tell you from doing it a long damn time NOJUAN can shoot a .44 mag all day everyday to get to "shootist level" without either magna porting the barrel or shooting .44 specials! and thats a FACT JACK!

so if yer gonna be a shootist load down a .357 to .38. load down a .41 mag to .41 special, load down a .44 mag to .44 special.

shooting straight on at targets regardless the range is fine and dandy. shoot at angles up and down, side to side, thru giant plastic barrels where you only see maybe one of three targets, or targets lined side to side with "amoebas" behind them you have to hit and you will figure it out real quick it AINT WHAT YOU EXPECTED!

.38 super is a real popular "race gun" cartridge also. once again "CONTROL".

once agin watch you tube. pick yer flavor of caliber and watch average guys/girls try to plant stainless or blue gun frames in their foreheads. be attentive to what happens to their wrists and think real hard about shooting one all day long.

since im "old and in the way" and have been reading shooting articles a long time, you will see old school writers who were on the cutting edge of magnum technology years ago when they were younger complain about damage......"carpal tunnel" done to their wrists from extensive magnum shooting over the years.

Thanks, Charles...I have a gun range on my farm so I shoot quite a bit in the manner you described:cool:

Depends on the intended use. For example, nostatic's desert plinking sessions and prior purchase of a .357 lever gun leave one obvious choice for him - the .357. This is a great caliber in any wheelgun, particularly for some one who does not need more power. All too often guys will recommend a .44 mag, .454 Casull, or some other such cannon. Unless you intend to hunt big game, there really is no reason for one of those.

There are other "fun" calibers, but all of them will be more expensive to shoot (for anyone who does not hand load) than the .357. The .45 Colt is a traditional caliber in single actions (and my favorite), as is the .44-40, .38-40, .32-20, and such. But these are for the more dedicated hobbyist. None of them would make a good first single action. So, my recommendation for some one looking to get into single actions (or any wheelgun) is the .357. Cheap ammo, low recoil, and widespread availability.

As always, thanks. A number of friends of mine have larger caliber wheelguns and I never liked the feel of the big cannons.

I'll start with the .357.

Learning to reload is next. The threads on reloading have all been printed.

I agree and love the Rugers for looks and performance. Even my daughter has fun with them (yes I have posted this pic before :D):

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1190600568.jpg

my idea of having fun is shooting a gun and round you can get good at. i can zap the hell out of targets obviously with a .22. some of my times thru yesterdays stages were 3.79 seconds.................and I WAS SLOW! my son was constantly under 3.25 seconds and the pros were blinding fast if not faster!

i can nail the hell out of targets with my 9mm.

my 45's and my .44 mag.....................well thats a different story. you will always PERCEIVE RECOIL! just like once you see a rattlesnake your brain perceives a threat. when you shoot for the first time a .44 mag or a .45 your brain says " HOLY BAT BALLS BATMAN THERES SOME FREEKING RECOIL HERE! and then each and every time until you master the weapon your brain will perceive a threat and you will flinch, or grab grips too tight or not too tight etc etc.

if your gonna shoot alot and yer a cheap ass like me, shoot .22's. then gradually progress to larger calibers. kind of like riding a 80 cc dirt bike then a 125cc than a 250cc than say a 350 and finally a 500 cc.

get the picture? its a progression that takes time.

we are now going to shoot every 4th sunday at rio salado the .22 matches. great practice/fast paced/great people/ and better than sex.

prior to my sons bull elk hunt i had him in the back yard shooting the rws pellet pistol and rws rifle damn near every day for an hour or more at our target 35 yards away. and we went thru SCADS OF PELLETS! I MEAN MEGA SCADS!

then as the hunt approached, we started shooting .22's and then 9mms and lots of 45/70s. yes it got spendy. but the kids a dead eye and can hit either a standing target no problem regardless of range or a moving target. his elk was moving away from him on a dead run when he nailed it with the stainless 45/70 marlin built by me and nelson ford(the gunsmith.com).


practice practice practice.

I shot a couple of matches w/ Robby. Brought his newborn son to The Masters in Barry Il about 84-ish. Shooting for Springfield Armory at the time. .38 Super minor P/F for steel plates...
That's back when Robby, Chip McCormick, and Brian Enos were the young kids.
Had Riley Gilmore butcher up an auto-version of his Speed Leader holster for me over beers at The Masters III one night.
Watch how fast Jerry Miculek is with S&W revolver with a 12 lb trigger.

Isn't she about 15 or so now?

:D

I decided to standardize on ammo types. It made for much simpler purchases and has saved me a bunch of $$.

That being said, I bought a 45ACP Revolver (S&W 625 I believe). I love it. The only thing that sucks is the moon clips. I love shooting it though. The 45 is my favorite pistol round. It's like a diesel truck, heavy and slow, but powerful.

Sorry to be a pest, but what barrel length do the smart guys here recommend, assuming I get a .357: 6 1/2" or 4 5/8"?

I will shoot both at a local range, but what have been your impressions?

The MKIII .22 I have owned since 1983 has a 5 1/2" bull barrel, which I really like. We probably put 500 rounds a month through it. So my first inclination is that the 6 1/2" would be the place to start.

Thanks in advance.

For target shooting, get the longer barrel. For concealed carry, the shorter barrel. There are other factors, but to me, those are the most important.