44 recoil
earlier today i purchased a smith & wesson 629 classic 5" .44 to serve as bear protection while mountain lion hunting (with .223).
as i always am, i was excited about getting a new toy, but 12 rounds later i was wondering if i had made a mistake in caliber or perhaps just brand. although the smith 629 line comes with really nice hogue rubber combat grips, the stainless steel backstrap is completely exposed and was driven into the palm of my hand with each shot until my hand literally went numb. after reloading a few more times my already numb hand refused to open for a bit to put the weapon down.
id like to find a rubber grip to cover the steel backstrap and am wondering if any are available. ive seen the pachmyer decelerator but cant tell from the pictures if it covers the backstrap or not.
id also like to look into getting it ported but nobody local does it and i dont know where to look or what to expect it to cost. any help, tips, or suggestions would be appreciated.
Nathan in
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as i always am, i was excited about getting a new toy, but 12 rounds later i was wondering if i had made a mistake in caliber or perhaps just brand. although the smith 629 line comes with really nice hogue rubber combat grips, the stainless steel backstrap is completely exposed and was driven into the palm of my hand with each shot until my hand literally went numb. after reloading a few more times my already numb hand refused to open for a bit to put the weapon down.
id like to find a rubber grip to cover the steel backstrap and am wondering if any are available. ive seen the pachmyer decelerator but cant tell from the pictures if it covers the backstrap or not.
id also like to look into getting it ported but nobody local does it and i dont know where to look or what to expect it to cost. any help, tips, or suggestions would be appreciated.
Nathan in
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You can practice with 44 special loads(real mild)
Then you can work up to shooting hotter heavier loads.I like the 300 grn. hard cast for bear repellent.I would just work up to it slowly, so you don't develope the dreaded flinch. My 2 cents.
Teach them young ! Teach them often !
God bless America!0 -
Me thinks you may be under-gunned for bear in both areas. Good Luck 0 -
Hi NathanInMontana,
Yeah, the .44 mag can recoil that is a fact. Depending on the grips of the pistol, the architecture of the human hand, and how each person perceives this impluse, shooting a .44 mag can make things unpleasant.
I would look at a grip like the Pachmayr Decelerator or Gripper Grips. Both will cover the backstrap. There are also some other brands on the market that are very good and probably some others will share their brand names. Also there are some good shooters gloves available to help tame recoil, like a Past. You can check Midway for these items.
www.midwayusa.com
As has previously be stated, some other things that can be done is to practice with .44 Special loads or you can easily reduce the powder charge or bullet weight of the .44 mag itself. For example, you could maintain a slightly less than full charge of powder but reduce the bullet weight from 240 grains to 180 grains. While this would still be quite a blast the amount of recoil generated would be less because of the lighter bullet weight. If that load was too much reduce the powder charge to where its comfortable to handle.
Finally, there is an physical adaptation that must occur when using heavy recoil guns. Practice with light loads to begin, then begin to practice with some heavier loads to get used to them. You will find that your tolerance of the heavier loads will increase.
Regards,
Heavyiron[8D]0 -
quote:Originally posted by juddroy
I would just work up to it slowly, so you don't develope the dreaded flinch.heh.....after that first shot yesterday i was anticipating the recoil so bad that i dont think i could have hit the ground. here are a few pictures of our local "range" (pictures taken 9-5-04). yesterday it was everything i could do just to hit the back stop. [:D]
thanks for the tip,
Nathan in
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quote:Originally posted by Cornflk1
Me thinks you may be under-gunned for bear in both areas. Good Luckwhat would you recommend?
thanks,
Nathan in
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quote:Originally posted by heavyiron
I would look at a grip like the Pachmayr Decelerator or Gripper Grips. Both will cover the backstrap.great information, thanks! none of the local dealers carry pachmyer, but there is a gun show in town right now and im headed there in just a few minutes to hopefully find a set.
quote:Finally, there is an physical adaptation that must occur when using heavy recoil guns.i had a 629 when i was about 22 years old. it had the large wooden grips and the backstrap was covered. i just dont remember it hurting and im not sure if it was because the backstrap was covered or if im just getting old and soft now. [:D]
what about porting? where could i send my weapon to have it ported and what can i expect it to cost?
thanks for the tips!
Nathan in
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quote:Originally posted by NathanInMontana
quote:Originally posted by Cornflk1
Me thinks you may be under-gunned for bear in both areas. Good Luckwhat would you recommend?
thanks,
Nathan in
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For mountain lion, at least a .30 caliber. I don't know the terrain where you're at, but I'd say 30-30 is probably a good bet. As far as a bear protection, you can't get one to fit in your hand. You need something along the lines of a .338, cause you'll need to break a shoulder if you want to get away. Else, you could go with a 12 gauge coach gun and 00 buck, but I'd hate to be that close to a bear when it comes time to pull the trigger.0 -
quote:Originally posted by eastwood44mag
For mountain lion, at least a .30 caliber. I don't know the terrain where you're at, but I'd say 30-30 is probably a good bet.the most common mountain lion round around here is 22 mag, but i use .223 in a bushmaster.
Nathan in
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If you have a rifle, why not pick one suitable for mountain and bear, like a 44 mag carbine? Though admittedly it would still be light for bear, it would be better than a 44 mag handgun.
I carry a 3" 44mag 629 for mountain lion protection in the Sierra Nevada's and never felt recoil to be a problem.
Another possiblilty is to go with a Ruger Vaquero. Due to the classic SA design, the gun tends to roll in your hand and felt recoil is less. I use 300 gr hard cast in this without a problem.0 -
I have one of each ,same barrel but different grips ,I have no ideal who the rocket scientist was who though those rubber grips are a good ideal on a .44 magnum ,that back strap does dig in ,{all the way to the elbow}
I also had a pair of them in 3 inch barrel ,man you talk about a bear ,that short barrel caused a heck of a recoil and flash ,first time I shot one of them was at an indoor range ,I had people coming down wondering what the heck it was ,about 12 rounds and you where done ,and then hoped no one ever broke in because you didn't want a sore ,hand ,arm and shoulder
i will now put ten round mags in all my pre ban guns ,just to show defiance0 -
Nathan, What you are using would be a great combo for lion, however, still think you may be under-gunned for bear protection.
Have always thought that it's better to have a bit more weapon than necessary than not enough.
Go with a 44 mag lever rifle as opposed to hand gun if a all possible. Make your loads HOT.0
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