S&W Mountain GUN 44 Mag

Hello, Stephen
Welcome to the forum
Hopefully someone will come along and answer your question, if not you can use the guestbook to send a note to Mr Taffin. 
Thanks 
Al 

Pictures!

The Mtn Gun was an effort to bring out a powerful wheelgun in a lighter package. This was before scandium-a proprietary aluminum alloy, titanium, and other weight saving measures. In those days you could get your smiths in any material you wished, as long as it was stainless steel, and with any grip frame, as long as it was a round butt.
The primary means of making a lighter weight revolver was to adopt a thin profile barrel. S&W ran the Mtn Gun concept for a number of years, and since they were all limited runs they featured a variety of features and bells and whistles. Some later versions had the square butt grip frame, alloy frames, and unique Hogue stocks.
If all this sounds bewildering, well it is. Just remember that the humble beginnings of a lighter 44 mag branched off into a number of experiments, a variety of calibers, and unique configurations. Enough, I'd imagine, to keep any well heeled collector busy.
These days, we have the 329 PD, for those who carry too much weight and can't have enough recoil.
Yeah, the last Mtn Gun run I saw was a 7 shot 357, off the L frame. Unlike the PD, it was all stainless, with the ubiquitous black rubber finger groove stocks. I wish now I had picked it up. To my way of thinking the Mtn Gun has gone the way of genuine deep blue, mostly a memory. However, if I still ran across the high lonesome the way I once did, I'd choose one over the PD in a heartbeat.

Thank you for the memory jarring. Now you have me longing for a Mod.  657  Mountain Gun . Just because it was made in Stainless Steel. 
Not saying if I came across a 57  Mountain edition, I would discount it, and pass over it. My affinity for the .41 mag is nagging me, as I have just 2 . A Mod. 58 (blued) &  a TC/Contender 10 inch.   

If there is one fact of sixguns, it's that there always is another around the bend to intrigue and tantalize. It doesn't seem to matter what it is, once it bites, it has you. A late friend of mine developed a passion for Iver Johnson's, to the point he had models even the factory forgot they made.
We come up with all kinds of justification for this passion, maybe so we can convince ourselves that we're being practical, and have an easier time with our critics, but it ain't so, it really is that passion that got a hold and won't let go.
I daresay most of us here have at least had a taste of it. Sort of like Mr. Keith himself, who was described by one who knew as a compulsive gun buyer. 
Of course today we have a unique situation. The new market is dominated by polymer, flat finishes, and electronic sights. Very capable, they are, but heirlooms, and treasures they are not. The time for exquisitely crafted military firearms is gone, and now the sixgun occupies a more specialized niche.
Good luck in your search for that elusive Smith, and remember to enjoy the quest. It makes it all worthwhile.