Reeder Custom Guns - 429 DE Vs 429 GNR`

Gary, I read an article on the 429 DE and how powerful it is. how does your 429 GNR compare to it?

designed pretty much the same cartridge thru the years. Not sure why it was dropped. If you like the Desert Eagle then the 429 DE is the way to go for big dangerous animals.
On the other hand if you want power in a 44 caliber handgun, our 429 GNR would be hard to beat. here are the comparisons from the ballistics I read in an article recently.
429 DE with a 200 grain bullet...1628
429 GNR with a 200 grain bullet...1973

429 DE with a 240 grain bullet...1533
429 GNR with a 240 grain bullet...1790
The 429 GNR data done by Sean Harper who is one of the most knowledgeable ballistic people I know.
That pretty much tells the story.

A Night Hunter in 429 GNR with an extra 44 mag cylinder.

It was a custom build on a Super Redhawk. Love it or hate it, teh Super Redhawk, this was a great rig. Not much can be done with the grip but it's a fine handle anyway. The "two-spring" lockwork of the Super is basically a big GP100 and tunes easier than the common "one-spring" standard RH. Which uses the hammer mainspring also for trigger return. The beefed up frame, where the barrel threads run super long, is bulky looking but serves it's purpose and doubles as a solid scope mounting. I use a quarter for a tool to torque the rings and remove them if the need arises. With practice in consistency they return to zero well enough for it's effective range.

Gary did a great job job on it slicking up the action and added a 6" new barrel (I think) which included a handsome barrel band front sight treatment. Of course it had a Maxi-throat and crown job. Doug and I sourced a second .44 Magnum cylinder and crane assy. which was fitted to the chassis making it a fantastic versatile piece. A 6" RH feels like no other, why Ruger trimmed it to 5.5 I have no idea, 6" is the sweet spot. With a fixed 2x OR 4x, depending on the situation, it is an ideal hunting rig. Pop the scope off and a fine big holster revolver. Super RH in .44 can be found on occasion at a deal and what a foundation for a super custom rig in .44. I guess you could do the same in .455 GNR if you had the moxie, but I prefer the .44 myself.

I forget who ended up with it. Doug let it slip prior to an African trip as the barrel was too short to comply with SA handgun hunting regulations. I begged him not to. Mine is a 9.5" stock gun rechambered and festooned with a bevy of beauties. I'm keeping it for good.

This is my view of a perfect .429 GNR rig.
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Took it but never used it in the field. Had too much fun with the contender. Had Gary put the original barrel back on it when I got home. Thats a 7" barrel on it. Shoots really well with either the 429 or 44 cylinder. I decided to just leave it as 429 and use as a longer distance revolver.

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Difficult is it to swap cylinders?

it is not too bad. The trigger guard has to come off and if you are not familiar with how it functions it can be a pain. If you can't get a crane with the extra cylinder, don't even consider it unless you like headaches.

The trigger assy can be a little stiff at first, but once you've done it a time or two, it goes pretty quick.

and tell them to install and fit a new cylinder and crane. It was about $150 ten yrs. ago. Then you had two to tinker with. I don't know what it costs now.

IF you could find one used as an assy. from these spare parts sellers. I bet Gary could fit it to your Redhawk gun for a reasonable amount. The SA conversion to a .429 GNR gets you a beefy 5-shot cylinder and he easily makes another 5-shot custom cyl. for .44 Mag. Lots to be said for a slim, trim, overbuilt SA wheelgun in .429 GNR.

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Gary, are those from an encore or revolver?

as the DE setup.NO cylinder gap same as the DE.

Sean

429 DE a while back?

to it. A 50 AE necked down to 44 that was among 4 or 5 cartridges I was working on for the Howdah pistols. Lee Jurras wanted me to come up with 5 or 6 new cartridges just like he did back in the 70s for the original Howdah, and this was one of them. But when I ran the numbers by Dave Manson, my reamer guru, he said it was too close to the 440 Corbon, so rather than make it a tiny bit different I figured it wasn't worth the hassle so I dropped the cartridge. We actually found a box of the cartridges recently buried under the crap on my desk. Anyway, I went on and developed the 500 S&W necked to 475, the 500 Linebaugh necked to 475, the 460 S&W necked to 375 and a couple of others for the Howdah. We ran some pressure tests on the 50 AE necked to 44 and the pressures were thru the roof so I am glad we didn't pursue it any further.

I was wondering if you could give me some insight on the conversion of a LAR Grizzly MK V(50AE slide) that has the 44 magnum conversion. Can the 44 magnum barrel be reamed to 429 DE considering the gun was designed to handle 50AE?
The 50AE magazine fits the frame.

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