Help with Smith & Wesson Model 29-2
Neil
29-2 pistol with a pinned 4" bbl and recessed cylinders that is in
excellent shape. After doing some research, it looks as though I got
a pretty good bargain. I am truly addicted to old S&W revolvers now.
As I said, I traded for the gun, so I have about $430 in it. I
searched gunbroker for a similar gun, and to my surprise, there were
some 29-2's going for a much higher price than what I paid. Anyway, I
am just curious as to what my gun is actually worth. The serial
number is S 318XXX and it is in 95% or better condition. Looks to
only have been shot a very few times. What would be the date of
manufacture? It has a 4" pinned barrel and recessed cylinders. The
seller gave me a box that he said was the box it came in, but I won't
swear to it. The reason I'm posting this is because the blue book
that I have says nothing about a 29-2 being anything special. It does
add 10-15% for pinned and recessed, but says nothing about a 29-2
being special. Is it? Also, the stamping that says "mdl 29-2" is
very faint. The first leg of the M is almost missing, and the dash
between 29 and 2 is not there. Is this normal? I've seen other
stampings on other S&W guns that looks about the same way, so maybe it
is. I've always just wondered about that. Thanks in advance for your
replies and please remember to support the NRA.
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ANDREWS
I recently sold one exactly like the one you are talking about on Gunbroker.
You can see it by referencing item #23106890. It went for $500. But, it
was cherry. Not a scratch on it except for the faint cylinder ring. I also
have a 6.5" Model 29-2 and a 6" 29-3. The 29-2 is the only one pinned and
recessed. I wouldn't say there is anything terribly special about the Model
29 except that it is recognized as a very good quality revolver. It is
reliable, smooth, and accurate. It is also very strong and can digest just
about anything you can put in it. You can load it so light you can see the
bullet going down range or you can load it up and go sting your gun hand.
All in all, a fine example of quality gun manufacturing. As far as the box
goes, the 29-2 came in a wooden box with a plastic inletted liner, as you
can see in the Gunbroker listing.
Happy shooting.
Bill
"Neil" <neilb...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:clpafk$ctl$1...@grapevine.wam.umd.edu...
> ...
Hawke
things that indicate it is a fairly old one. First off, the second number of
the model number, in your case the #2 indicates it's been modified from the
original design. The first model 29s came out in 1956 or thereabouts and it
was simply the model 29. Each time they made changes to the gun they changed
the second number. If I remember correctly, over the years the model 29 has
had numerous changes and the second number went up to the 6s or 8s or
something like that.
The other thing is that it has the pinned barrel and recessed cylinder.
Those features were stopped quite a while ago. The other thing is the firing
pin. I expect that you have the firing pin attatched to the hammer. All
three of those features were phased out by the 1980s or earlier. That means
your gun is probably from the 60s or 70s. You can check with S&W and for a
price they will tell you exactly what the date of manufacture was.
Hawke
Christopher Morton
(Neil) wrote:
#I attended a local gun show last saturday and traded for a S&W model
#29-2 pistol with a pinned 4" bbl and recessed cylinders that is in
You can often get a good deal on a 4" Model 29.
Usually some guy sees "Dirty Harry" and can't get a 6 1/2", or sees
"48 Hours" and buys a 4" instead. He buys the hottest handloads he
can find at a gun show, fires MAYBE a cylinder full and trades or
sells the gun.
I got an excellent deal on a 4" Model 29 when I was in the Army. I
fired Specials in it almost exclusively. It was very pleasant to
shoot one I put Pachmayrs on it.
--
More blood for oil... in my name!
Clark Magnuson
Puyallup gun show every month, I look at the prices for S&W 29s.
The most typical price I see is $450, but the numbers have dwindled in
the last year or two.
Washington state is an unusual gun market, in that the hunting and
gravel pit shooting is so terrible, and there is so much Microsoft
money, that guns are being bought for collections and not for use.
And you don't think you can have a gun collection without a model 29,
well do ya, punk?
--
A society that teaches evolution as fact will breed a generation of atheists that will destroy the society. It is Darwinian.
max
(Neil) wrote:
#I attended a local gun show last saturday and traded for a S&W model
#29-2 pistol with a pinned 4" bbl and recessed cylinders that is in
#excellent shape.
The folks at www.smith-wessonforum.com can tell you just about
anything you need to know about your gun, including the date and
whether the box and grips are originals for the vintage. It helps to
show them pictures.
Here's a typical thread on a 29-2 that shows just how well they know
their stuff!
http://www.smith-wessonforum.com/ubb/Forum13/HTML/015693.html
max
joe
endurance package and shouldn't be fired with bullets over 240 grs. The
newer guns have modifications to allow them to fire heavy bullets. What
will likely happen with a heavy bullet in your gun is after firing the
cylinder will rotate backwards. Not a problem with mine, I just limit the
gun to 250 gr bullets.
Joe
Charles Winters
300 grain bullets, accuracy-wise. I have an NEI mold, SWC with gas check,
that drops Lyman no 2 alloy at about 310 grains and delivers top accuracy.
It seems the relatively fast twist rate of the S&W pistols, about 1 in 16,
is way too fast for best accuracy with the shorter 240 grainers.
Over the years, I've fired several thousand of these heavier bullets in this
pistol and now it has developed a problem with the bolt reliably locking the
cylinder. I've always kept the velocity down around 1000 fps or a bit less,
but perhaps the heavier bullets contributed to the wear and tear. The
cylinder doesn't rotate backwards upon firing as you described, instead, the
cylinder fails to reliably lock up when working the trigger quickly in
double action. It appears the notches slide right on by the bolt without
stopping. Other problems normally associated with excessive stress on an
older M-29, such as end shake and bent yoke or crane, don't seem to be
present.
I notice S&W has an oversize replacement bolt, so I'm planning on sending
the pistol back to their Performance Center for rework. I'm hoping a
refitted bolt, with a stronger spring, will put the gun back in perfect
working order. Its a fine pistola, very accurate, made with a degree of
workmanship not seen on modern wondernines. Its my favorite belt gun for
hiking though the woods. - CW
PS: Full power loads are reserved for a heavier pistol, my Dan Wesson M-44.
These are the same 300 gr SWCs over 18.5 gr of 296 and Fed 155s, at 1150
fps. Accuracy is about as good as it gets. Even with this heavier pistol
and its Pachmayr grip, I consider this amount of power to be about max for a
..44 mag service load. Any more power at the M-44's weight and the painful
hand syndrome rears its ugly head. Any more weight and its no longer a
practical belt gun.
x"joe" <> wrote in message news:cm2k55$g88$1...@grapevine.wam.umd.edu...
# The 29-2 is a nice gun, even I own one. However, it does not have the
# endurance package and shouldn't be fired with bullets over 240 grs. The
# newer guns have modifications to allow them to fire heavy bullets. What
# will likely happen with a heavy bullet in your gun is after firing the
# cylinder will rotate backwards. Not a problem with mine, I just limit
the
# gun to 250 gr bullets.
#
# Joe
x
joe
"Charles Winters" <cha...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:cm47uf$87k$1...@grapevine.wam.umd.edu...
# An interesting observation, Joe. My M-29-2 has always preferred the
# longer
# 300 grain bullets, accuracy-wise. I have an NEI mold, SWC with gas check,
# that drops Lyman no 2 alloy at about 310 grains and delivers top accuracy.
# It seems the relatively fast twist rate of the S&W pistols, about 1 in 16,
# is way too fast for best accuracy with the shorter 240 grainers.
#
Yep, I guess I was told right about the heavy bullets. In addition to the
29-2 I also own a 629-1 which doesn't have the endurance package. To be
honest I have yet to fire a magnum load in either of these. My favorite
handload is 15.0 gr of 2400 and a 250 gr Keith bullet for somewhere around
1100 fps. For range work I like the same bullet with 7.5 gr Unique for
about 950 fps.
I can shoot these all day with no ill effects on me or the guns.
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joe
"Charles Winters" <cha...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:cm47uf$87k$1...@grapevine.wam.umd.edu...
# this
# pistol and now it has developed a problem with the bolt reliably locking
# the
# cylinder. I've always kept the velocity down around 1000 fps or a bit
# less,
# but perhaps the heavier bullets contributed to the wear and tear. The
# cylinder doesn't rotate backwards upon firing as you described, instead,
# the
# cylinder fails to reliably lock up when working the trigger quickly in
# double action.
Charles, what you described was probably caused by the 300 gr bullets. The
gun was just not designed to shoot them. When that gun came on the scene it
was designed for the 240 gr bullet. S&W addressed the problem with the
29-5. On this model cylinder notches were make longer and the bolt was
changed to keep everything together with the heavy bullets.
If you stay with the 240 gr bullets that 29-2 will last for a long time. I
don't know if any modifications can be done to the 29-2 to retro fit the
later parts.
This in no way means the gun is no good, it just has some limitations.
Joe
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Charles Winters
300 grainers to wear our my M-29-2, I don't plan on changing my pet loads
anytime soon. I do have to send the pistol to S&W for replacement of what
appears to be a worn bolt, but once that's done, it will be back to its pet
load again: 300 gr SWCs at 950 fps.
BTW, I find 300 grain bullets deliver superior accuracy in my other .44 mag
revolvers, 2 Bisley-Vaqueros and 1 Dan Wesson M44. All 4 pistols seem to do
best when velocity is increased to 1050 fps or more, but recoil
considerations cause me to tone it down to 950 fps in all but the Dan
Wesson. The latter has more weight and with its Pachmayr grips, has the
ideal configuration for "handling" heavy recoil, in my case up to about 1150
fps with 300 grainer.
How some people can shoot .475 Linebaugh and similiar hand cannons is beyond
me. .44 mag pistols are primarily service pistols, in my mind. I'm into
accuracy first, adequate power second. Just my opinion, of course. - CW
x"joe" <jdzu...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:cmd3mi$k7o$1...@grapevine.wam.umd.edu...
#
# "Charles Winters" <cha...@comcast.net> wrote in message
# news:cm47uf$87k$1...@grapevine.wam.umd.edu...
# # Over the years, I've fired several thousand of these heavier bullets in
# # this
# # pistol and now it has developed a problem with the bolt reliably locking
# # the
# # cylinder. I've always kept the velocity down around 1000 fps or a bit
# # less,
# # but perhaps the heavier bullets contributed to the wear and tear. The
# # cylinder doesn't rotate backwards upon firing as you described, instead,
# # the
# # cylinder fails to reliably lock up when working the trigger quickly in
# # double action.
#
# Charles, what you described was probably caused by the 300 gr bullets.
The
# gun was just not designed to shoot them. When that gun came on the scene
it
# was designed for the 240 gr bullet. S&W addressed the problem with the
# 29-5. On this model cylinder notches were make longer and the bolt was
# changed to keep everything together with the heavy bullets.
#
# If you stay with the 240 gr bullets that 29-2 will last for a long time.
I
# don't know if any modifications can be done to the 29-2 to retro fit the
# later parts.
#
# This in no way means the gun is no good, it just has some limitations.
#
x