>44 Mag advice

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Frank44

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I am looking for a Hunting .44 Mag revolver with scope mounts. The ones that fit the bill are: S&W 629 Stealth Hunter, Ruger Super Blackhawk Bisley Hunter,and the Ruger Super Redhawk. Any words of wisdom? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif
Frank
 
I like the Ruger Bisley the best. Love everything about the Bisley configuration. Ofd course, this also depends largely upon whether you want a single or double action revolver.

I have a Bisley in 45 Colt, and a SRH in 480 Ruger. My good bud has a 629 in 44 mag.

The 44 mag is a pipsqueak(to quote Ross Seyfried) compared to the other 2 IMO. I much prefer a hotly loaded 45 Colt to the 44 mag. Although if you do not handload, get the 44.

They did make the Bisley hunter in 45 Colt, but not many of them....
 
They are all nice guns. Try to find a place where you can get them in your hands to see how they feel to you and fit your hands. Though I tend to be a S&W guy, I really do like the Bisley for really heavy recoiling cartridges. The .44 Magnum may or may not be that to you, but I do think the Bisley grip shape is very comfortable and they are heck for stout built guns. Downside... might need some trigger work.
 
I've had the Ruger Super Blackhawk and a S&W 629 Classic Hunter. Both were 6"/6.5". Between the two, I preferred the S&W. It just felt better in the hand. I never got anything with the Ruger, but I used the S&W to shoot a caribou in Alaska /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinning-smiley-003.gif

I think the Super Red Hawk with have the strongest scope mounting system.

M
 
I have a SRH 44mag with a 7.5" barrel. I just use iron sights & make use of reduced loads & even 44spcl loads. I took it on my bear hunt last year but the 300WSM was all I needed.
 
I went throught the same choice a few years back. I chose the Super Blackhawk and I am happy but if I would do it over, I would probably go with the super Redhawk. I've never shot one but to think that all else might be equal, Double action might be nice. Not necessary but handy to play with. At the time I thought the single action might be more accurate but I would never know because it shoots much more accurately than I can hold it even with a solid rest. I get about four inch groups at 50 yards and attribute most of that to myself. I'm thinking that the Super Redhawk could do just as well. I don't like the look of the S&W hunter model but if you like it, I'm sure it would be fine too. Just tossing my experience out there.

Good luck in your pursuits
 
I have the Bisley Hunter and love it. It is wonderfully accurate. Also it was fun to trick out (belt mtn base pin, spring kit, sights, grips. ect) It is pretty heavy but that just helps with the heavy loads. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
The real joy of the 44mags is reloading for them.IMO I have loaded every configuration of bullet, powder, hot, mild whatever that I could come up with. My Bisley has had about 1900rnds through it in the past six months. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif Yes it is super fun.lol
I also have a 44 Taurus Tracker with a 3" bbl thats ported and that weighs almost half of the Bisley. It sure lets you know when you squeeze one off but works as a nice carry gun or back up. But the Bisley is my go to for hunting..

Good luck....
 
I went through six or seven S&W 29's and 629's before Ruger came out with the Redhawk and then the Super Redhawk. I have found that for handgun hunting the D/A pistol is really not needed. I also do not think a scope is really a needed item on a handgun. I have tried two SRH's one 7.5 and one 9.5 also a SBH hunter 10"
with scopes, got rid of the two DA's cut the barrel back on the SBH to 6" loseing the scope mounts in the process. Added that SA Ruger to my two Bisley Vaquero 44 Mags and now am a happy camper I have two blued 5.5 " SA revolvers and a 6" SS SA revolver that is all I will ever need. I use the two Vaquero Bisleys for SASS the SS SBH for a back up when hunting. Any way I would go for the Rugers myself and a SA scoped or not.
 
Hard to beat the old Ruger Super Bee. I am still shooting the same 3 screw that I bought new in 1973. Had to have Ruger put a new barrel on it about 15 years ago because I wore the old one out. A trip to Mag-Na-Port for an accuracy job and barrel porting really made this fine shooting gun even a bit better yet.

One gun that you did not mention is the Taurus 44 Mag. With the ported 6" barrel and ample heft it quite a bit more comfy to shoot than my M29 Smith is. And seems to be every bit as accurate to boot. Lifetime warrantee as well.
 
I have owned the super blackhawk hunter model and the super redhawk...both 7.5". They were both very accurate at 100 yards but also very heavy and bulky for carrying in the mountains. Basically, it only left me the option to carry the revolver or the 7mag. I chose the rifle every time and have sold both revolvers. I do wish to get a 5.5" superblackhawk in the near future as a nice packing/back up revolver. The 4 5/8" just does not fit me as well and the recoil would be slightly higher.
 
Got a super blackhawk and the barrel split. Ok, sent it back and Ruger rebuilt it. The rebuilt pistol shot like crap. Finally got it to shoot good with lead cast bullets goin about 900 fps. Figured what's the point in that. Why have a .44mag that shoots like a 44 special? Sold it. Bought a new stainless super blackhawk .44mag. My friend liked it so much he ran out and got one in .45 long colt. We worked on those pistols for about 2 or 3 years and never got them to shoot beter than 2.5 inches at 25. Meanwhile I traded a 1911 on a SW 629 with a 4 inch barrel and had a Super Redhawk with a 4x Leupold in the safe. The SW 629 shoots 1 inch at 25 yards and the SRH 1 inch at 50 yards. So the blackhawk got traded for a neat old .223. Both the SW 629 and the SRH took very little time to work up a load for. For some strange reason I still miss the blackhawk.
 
I have a Super Blackhawk Bisley. A 29 or 629, with a little TLC, will have a buttery smooth trigger. I owned a Model 29 years ago, and regret to this day that I got rid of it.

With a Super Redhawk, you've got a monster of a pistol. You can shoot .44 mag loads in it that you can't put in any other .44 mag revolver due to length and power.

I'd like to have one of each, but if you're looking for a really versatile .44 mag revolver, get the Super Redhawk.
 
I bought a 5 1/2" stainless Redhawk to use for bear repellant while sleeping in my tent at night. It is my first 44 magnum pistol. I have no complaints. I went with the Redhawk because with both rear and front lockup, it is stronger than other D/A revolvers, and I went with a D/A revolver because I deemed it best for defense applications during high-stress situations. The shorter barrel also aids portability in confined spaces. So far it's getting fed Federal 300 gr. lead Cast-Cor rounds.
 
I shoot a super redhawk. It likes 180 hornady's over 29 grains of H110. 3 1/2
at a 100 yards averages. But it sucks with everything else I have run through
it until I get into 44 special lead loads. 2 1/8 at a 100 with 240 lead swc.
I had a redhawk in the seventies that was awesome. I carry a 5 inch smith
classic 629 as a backup gun and it is accurate but can't handle any where near
the hot loads of the super redhawk. If I had it to do over I would look at a
freedom arms revolver. It took a lot of work time and money to make the
ruger shoot.
 
The Bisley handles recoil VERY well. Get a round file and cut the grip radius for middle finger. Flatten the backstrap so it contacts more of the palm and you have a go. You have a pistol that fits in a working holster to work in and a pistol you can SHOOT with one hand. Buffalo bore makes some nice loads for the 45Colt. 475 and 500 both shoot well from a Bisley, and you should not be happy with more than 1 1/2 inch at 25 yards. 1 is more like it.
Just my rant.
 
When reloading or buying ammo for the Rugers, keep the bullet weight in the 220 to 240 range.

To help the "feel" of the SBH, put a set of Pacmyr grips on and call it a day.
 
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