Roda

4" 629 is only 2oz heavier than 4" 686... it is a bit bulkier, though.

I'd rather have the N frame for the .44...

Don't feel undergunned with a .357, though. 180g bullets loaded heavy will do just fine.

usd2bfst

True. Bulkier, and a higher bore axis. My last 629 was a 6.5", it was awkward to carry. If you have a chance to handle a new Model 69 I recommend it though, they're getting great reviews.

I carry Buffalo Bore 180gr hard cast in my 686 when I'm in the high country. I agree it is enough, but legally it's not allowed for a finishing shot while hunting in CO where a 41 or larger (more or less) with a 4" or longer barrel is. Honestly, other than idiots, the thing that gives me the most concern up there is surprising a moose.

Roda

Odd that a .357 can't be used as a finishing shot, but then again there's lots of hunting regs that are nonsensical. I've been a K/L shooter as long as I've been shooting (most of my life), but I do love 4" M29s.

I had a moose step out on the road when I was on my motorcycle south of Estes Park a couple of years ago. Scared the crap out of me... them bastids is BIG!

usd2bfst

The rule here is 4" or longer barrel, 550 ft-lbs. at 50 yards "as rated by the manufacturer". Trying to get a ranger to believe my 357 hand load qualifies via chrony data isn't worth the trouble. Easier to just have a 44.

olderguy

iTrader: (19)

Just a hair over 16"

usd2bfst

I handled a new Smith model 69. I have a bad case of the wants now. Compared side by side to a 4 or 5" 629 it is a lot easier to carry, and has a lower bore axis which I really like. Reviews are saying that makes the recoil not as bad as you would expect.

rmcelwee

iTrader: (1)

The thread seems a little dead so I'll post something...

Since the last post in here I have purchased a VEPR 7.62x54r @ 23" (pretty damn hard to find):



I also purchased another Walther P22. I had one before but sold it to get a Ruger SR22. I didn't like the pistol so I sold it and it took me a couple of years to buy another P22:




I finally got some better bullets for .223 reloading (Hornady 55 grain pulls from RMR) but accuracy has not improved. I've loaded everything from 21.3 to 25.3 grains of H335 and I cannot get below 1.25" groups. I don't know if it is me, or the reloading, or the rifle, or what but I am not getting the groups I thought I would. It seems like I cannot get any consistency at all.

olderguy

iTrader: (19)

I can't get anywhere near 1.25" groups at 300 yards either.

samnavy

iTrader: (7)

I browse the CALGUNS "deals/coupons" thread several times a day... whenever there is a true "deal" anywhere on the internet, those guys find it. There have been some epic stuff get posted there in recent months.

Just the other day I got a BucketOBullets (1400rds) .22lr for $84 shipped from Gander Mtn. Some guys were showing OOS an hour before my order. I showed OOS as well, but then I tried the website with CHROME and it showed IN STOCK... WTF? Anyways, I ordered and it went through, bullets showed up a few days later.

Today I went to Dicks because I was in there the other day and saw a few sticks of CCI MiniMags (100ct) for $10 and didn't know how good a deal it was until I got home... so I went to pick up my limit. They were out, but had 50ct's of AE 36gr .22lr... I schmoozed the counter-girl for a minute and she produced a 500ct brick for me from under the counter... $27!!! SCORE!!! On the way out, I ran into a buddy of mine and his wife/kid... had him go to the same girl who sold him a brick too (for me).

So I got 2400rds in the past 3 weeks under .06ea... which is the best I've done in about 4 years.

The pic is of 3000ct of 5.56 mil brass. About 2000 LC, and 1000ea of WCC and PSD. They are cleaned, sized, swaged, trimmed, chamfered, and reamed. Hopefully it's YEARS before I have to think about 5.56 brass again. I've actually only got about 3000 bullets in the caliber, but bullets are getting cheaper by the day almost.

rmcelwee

iTrader: (1)

I've seen a lot of .22lr come through since I stopped selling it but the only thing I have purchased is about 1000 rounds for personal use. I would like to end up with around 100,000 rounds of CCI MiniMag @ $0.06 when all of this is done. I don't know if prices will get there but that would be enough for me to shoot or enough for me to sell and buy a new Miata when prices go back up.

usd2bfst

Over the weekend I traded 1000 rds. of CCI Mini Mags (which I had about $80 into) for a new take-off Savage 308 barrel with 5R rifling & threaded for a brake. It's got the shiniest bore of any Savage I've ever seen.

I've been slowly working on turning my not-Savages into Savages. Makes it nice to do all my own smithing.

samnavy

iTrader: (7)

FUCKITY ******* **** FUCKBALLZ ****!

So you see the picture of all that brass I did all that work on... RUINED! I didn't pay close enough attention when I set up my case trimmer, and I ended up pushing the shoulder back a mile. I've got it all up on VAGUNTRADER advertised as suitable only to convert to 300blk. If I don't get any bites, I'm gonna buy the Harbor Freight chop-saw and convert it all myself.

It's good I figured out what I'd done before I separated a case-head and either blew my face off or spent a week getting a stuck case (minus the head) out of a chamber.

In other news, the local Dicks has a good selection of various .22lr bricks right now, I'm up the previously mentioned 500ct of AW, and 3x325ct's of Federal Automatch. Gonna stop by again after work.

Guardiola

iTrader: (1)

So, I just bought my wife a Glock 19 for her birthday.

I went online to research a pistol safe she could keep in the night stand, and I am a little surprised by the terrible ratings from testing companies.
My main concern is I don't want our daughter getting a hold of it. But I still want it to be readily accessible for when she needs it. Most break-ins around me happen in the middle of the day, when she is home and I am not.

I don't want one that opens with a key. Even most of the bio-metric and electric ones have a key. I don't want a key hidden somewhere that my daughter could find. And the combination ones look like you can break them open with a screwdriver or simply by dropping them on the ground.

I feel like maybe I am being too cautious. I keep trigger locks on my long guns and then I have them locked in Zerust cases. I also keep the ammo separate. The whole point of having the pistol is so my wife can have it quickly when she needs it.

Sorry for the wall of text. Any advice/suggestions?

mgeoffriau

iTrader: (7)

I don't have an answer, but I'm interested as well. It hasn't been an issue for me so far -- but we've got a 5 week old baby now, so a decision will need to be made within the next year or so.

olderguy

iTrader: (19)

How old is your daughter?

Guardiola

iTrader: (1)

About to turn 2. She gets into everything.
She has recently learned how to defeat most of the "child-proof" latches we installed around the house. Only a matter of time before she takes off in the Miata.

samnavy

iTrader: (7)

If you are concerned that your daughter will intently pursue opening a safe to the point of getting tools to try and crack it, you have a pretty big problem.

My advice is to take the mystery out of the gun for her. Let her handle and touch it, show her how it works and have her help you clean it after a shoot. If she's old/responsible enough, take her shooting... buy her a gun of her own. Once the whole concept of guns isn't that they're something she's not allowed to know anything about, she'll leave them alone. EDIT: she's 2... too young to understand.

My kids know that anytime they want to see/handle/touch any of my guns, they just have to ask. My oldest (at 7) asks about twice a year to see the laser on my Glock. My 5yr old could care less.

However, I own one of these. Yes, there are YT videos on how to break into one. However, my daughter has no curiosity about guns, doesn't know where the safe is or what's inside, the gun is stored on an empty chamber, and she recently found out she's getting her own gun for her birthday as long as she can recite the 4 basic gun-safety rules and prove to me she's mature enough to get one.

EDIT: getting past child-proof locks is not the same as watching a YT video on safe-cracking. Put the safe in a top drawer of your bureau and store it on an empty chamber, and stop worrying about your 2yr old.

Also, I would add that having a firearm for self-defense in the home is only one tool in your your self-defense plan. Strengthening your interior and exterior security can be accomplished very cheaply. Just as critical to being a hardened target is to make your residence less desirable. Invest in a CCTV system... the cheap ones are still pretty good for general recording and are a great deterrent. Place security system signs in the yard even if you don't have one. Get a security system installed. Don't leave tools laying around in the yard that a guy can use to smash a window. Get a dog. Get upgraded lock on your doors and invest in some sort of physical window security.

MOST IMPORTANTLY... educate your wife on situational awareness. Most daytime break-ins are not targets of opportunity. Bad guys will case a neighborhood and choose specific targets. If your wife is oblivious to dangers, no amount of physical security will help because she'll blindly walk herself straight into a bad situation.

EO2K

iTrader: (37)

Good thing you said that because I was about to post the video. Having met and spoken with Marc Weber Tobias on several occasions (author of said youtube vid) I can tell you not to let a safe give you a false sense of security. Its proper respect for firearms in addition to education that will protect you and your family, not a safe. I mean yes, it will prevent purely accidental discovery and I'd recommend one before I'd tell you to leave it in your underwear drawer, but I think you get the idea.

Guardiola

iTrader: (1)

I am honestly worried about her sticking something in a lock and trying to force it open. I have seen her do it to the backdoor (I installed a double sided deadbolt to keep her from letting herself out). And I have seen her do it in our cars.

She understands keys go in locks. Its not so much that she wants what is in them, she just wants to open them.

From what I have seen online (and yes I understand the average child is not a safe cracker), you can open several of the smaller safes with a flat object. Be that a paperclip or a fork handle.

I am leaning toward a Simplex style safe at the moment.

rmcelwee

iTrader: (1)

Throw the key away or give it to a friend. Then there is no problem.


Also, as far as "my kid has no interest in guns so I am completely safe" - I cannot remember where I saw this (maybe an old 60 Minutes episode) but I watched a video where they took kids and showed them films on gun safety and then asked them questions to see if they understood that guns were bad. They later put them in a room full of toys and stuffed animals but hid a dummy gun in the room. Five minutes later the kids found the gun and ran around the room pointing it at people and pulling the trigger. Kids do not have the capacity to understand that guns can kill you. It is as simple as that.