Bullets for tight 629 throats...???

[benny]

Just got a minty 629-4 S&W 5” classic (real beauty, will post some pics) and I was doing some reading that these guns made in the mid to late 90’s have tight cylinder throats.  I did my best to measure mine with inside calipers and they came back .428 - .4285.  I cannot push a .429 jacketed speer bullet through the throats.

Can I shoot the gun as is with hard cast .429 keiths or 250gr wfngc bullets or do I have to open the throats?  I would ultimately like to use those 250gr bullets for most of my shooting / hunting along with the barnes 225 xpb where necessary for lead restrictions. 

Does pressure increase because of the smaller throats to the point where it would damage the gun?  If I have to get the throats opened, what would be the correct size that would still shoot the solid copper and or jacketed bullets well when necessary?

Thanks for any help.
benny

[tacklebury]

The throats can be reamed.  One place I have heard of doing it is cylindersmith.  If you search around, there are lots of posts on these issues in the single action area.  I've also heard of a lot of people with older Smiths contacting Smith & Wesson and getting help.  It is possible to buy (expensive) or rent reamers, but I haven't had the guts to do it myself.  There may even be a competent gunsmith in your area, but I'd try to see if you can get a positive review of what they have done before.  Finally, if money is a big deal, there are actually posts of guys doing this themselves using mild grit sand paper wrapped around a dowel rod.  Once again, I haven't done this.  Ruger corrected mine, but I wish you luck! 

[45-70.gov]

i spit a rod  with a hack saw
wrapped 600 grit sand paper til  i got a good fit
polished  the throats  till a ,430 honady round could be pushed through  with a pencil

[AtlLaw]

I'm far from an expert in this area but I have a Taurus Tracker 44 Mag (1 & ³/₄ or 2 inch barrel) that had way undersized throats and didn't shoot real good... 
The barrel on mine slugged .430 as I remember.  What does yours measure?   

A member here sent me a .431 throater and I hand turned all six chambers.  Nerve wracking, but really easy!   

Shoots fine now!   

You can shoot it as is as far as I know...    If yours shoots okay I wouldn't worry about the throats... 
You should have a reason to throat it... like leading... which mine did also... which is why I throated mine... increased accuracy was a nice plus!   

[mdi]

In my limited experience, for good accuracy and lack of leading the bullet should be the same dia. or slightly smaller (.001") than cylinder throats and larger than bore size (.002" or .003"). For example, my Ruger has throats that run about .431", the bore slugs at .429", so I shoot .431" bullets and get good (for me) accuracy and not much leading. I slugged all my revolvers' cylinder throats and barrels and recorded the measurements so I can size accordingly (My Dan Wesson and Contender uses .430", my 629 uses .431", and my Puma needs .432"+). One thousandth of an inch tollerances may seem anal, but it works for me...

[benny]

i guess there is some trick to measuring the barrel diameter on a smith because of the five groove rifling and i don't have the right tools.  i ordered some pin gages to get a more accurate cylinder throat reading than with the caliper.  i need to shoot it to see if there are any issues first i guess... if it shoots great with no overpressure signs, i'll leave it as is.  one thing i noticed is that this thing has a barrel / cylinder gap that would make freedom arms proud ...thanks

[tacklebury]

Just slug the barrel using a fishing weight and some grease and a dowel rod.  There are several descriptions of doing it around here.    I am pretty sure there's one in the NEF Centerfire Rifles FAQ. 

[Lloyd Smale]

for the 30 bucks the cylindersmith charges you to make it right its hardly worth wasting bullets and powder and primers experimenting with it out of spec.

[benny]

come on lloyd, i listen to your posts here and move from a 41 mag to a 44 and i don't even get an ataboy???