Smith and Wesson Model 19

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by KC911

But this thread is far from over....it's who we are !

I wouldn't have it any other way.

The main problem with this place is all the cool sche!t people are interested in...Honda Acty has become a near obsession to me. A niche itch.

I am headed up to Baltimore in a few weeks to meet with a guy that will let me dick around with his for an hour or so.

WTF has happened to me?

[speeder]

Originally Posted by KC911

My hand spoons stay "safe".
Fiocchi defensive load buckshot out of a 20" bbl.....spread is shaped like football at say 30'...and very tame compared to regular buck. Game over when it's not a "game" anymore.

The stopping power of 4 .45ACP rounds...all at once....or so they say .

If you hit what you’re aiming for w a .45, you can’t lose. Great guns.

[flipper35]

Dad has a 19 with the 4" barrel. I never thought it was too bad with full .357 loads. It is as accurate as any other 4" barrel revolver I have shot and I can usually hit what I am aiming at with it. I don't know what year it is, he bought it used in the early 80s for $75 with a belt and Hunter 1000 holster. We mostly shoot cowboy loads at a Texas Star with it and carry .357 during deer season. With .38s my daughter starting shooting it at 14.

S&W has a pretty sweet double action pull.

That said, my 6" 28-2 will out shoot it every day of the week but it ain't as pretty.

[pwd72s]

One thing to say for a wheelgun...they don't jam...no stovepipe.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

One thing to say for a wheelgun...they don't jam...no stovepipe.

Revolvers can absolutely jam but usually they have to get really hot first, like in a protracted gun battle w multiple reloads and no time to cool. Exactly when you need a gun to NOT jam, as opposed to killing paper at the range.

Generally, you are correct, though. That said, I’d trust my Glock not to jam 8-ways from Sunday.

[flipper35]

A squib round can absolutely end your day shooting. They go into the throat and get stuck so the cylinder can't move. Of course you can push it back through the barrel, but I wouldn't want to do that for a minute or two.

[Jeff Higgins]

The revolver vs autoloader debate will go on longer than any of us will. In my experience, the difference in reliability has been absolutely moot. Modern guns of either variety, from reputable manufacturers, are virtually 100% reliable if kept clean and fed good ammunition. I would stake my life on either without hesitation.

The real difference for me, as a hunter and outdoorsman, is in the difference caliber selection available for them. My "outdoors" guns are all revolvers, from the ones I hunt with to the ones I carry when back packing, hiking, and fishing in the wilderness. My "social" guns are, for the most part, autoloaders of the 1911 variety. They are simply easier to carry, and hold more rounds.

Where revolvers really shine, for me, is in the outdoors. We can pack one hell of a lot more power in a truly portable revolver than we can in even the biggest, most ungainly autoloaders. My favorites, as most of you know by now, are my variety of .45 Colt chambered single actions. A close second are my various .44 mag revolvers. I have both in "hunting" barrel lengths and in "general woods bumming" barrel lengths. The longer ones afford a bit more sight radius, and in some cases (but certainly not all), more velocity. My only complaint is they make them harder to carry when all you want is some level of protection, and you are not actively hunting with it. The shorter ones are much better for that, out of the way and forgotten until you might need it. Oh, and none are inherently more accurate than the others - barrel length has nothing to do with that, it just makes them easier to shoot well.

Hunting revolvers and "defensive" revolvers, .45 Colt and .44 Mag:

[vash]

i'm with TABS.

686plus.

[Bill Douglas]

Just a toy.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by vash

i'm with TABS.

686plus.

The 686 and it's blued companion, the 586, are fantastic revolvers. Built on the newer "L" frame, they are a much better platform for the .357 mag than the smaller "K" framed Model 19. The "L" frame was introduced to solve all of the problems inherent in the smaller "K" frame, but only weighs a few ounces more. They are much handier than the huge "N" framed .357's which, unless they hold eight rounds like Mike's Performance Center gun, just don't make any sense. Those big "N" framed .357's are a holdover from a time when metallurgy just wasn't what it is today, and their only answer to holding the high pressures generated by the .357 mag was sheer bulk. They don't have to do that anymore.

[Bill Douglas]

We've got a 686 at pistol club. It's ridiculously accurate and I don't know why. It never gets cleaned or looked after.

[Tobra]

It is a 696 Bill, that is why it shoots like that.

Originally Posted by craigster59

I shot Joe Bob's Air Weight with a 357 load. No bueno!

Even +P .38 is a bit much for an Airweight. Wadcutter or even Long Colt is a little less snappy

[GH85Carrera]

Jeff, little doubt if someone was breaking into your house your many years of using various guns there is no way you would have to worry about forgetting the safety, or forgetting to rack in that first round.

I just knew when I bought my 38 revolver back when I was a youngster I wanted something that was a total no-brainer when my heart rate is at max, and I am shaking from adrenaline. I know I can shoot anyone that comes in through a broken down door or window without having to worry about anything else. Point and shoot. Repeat.

[speeder]

Definitely a valid point but the only way you can go wrong w my Glock 23 w one in the chamber is if you forget how to pull the trigger.

[vash]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

The 686 and it's blued companion, the 586, are fantastic revolvers. Built on the newer "L" frame, they are a much better platform for the .357 mag than the smaller "K" framed Model 19. The "L" frame was introduced to solve all of the problems inherent in the smaller "K" frame, but only weighs a few ounces more. They are much handier than the huge "N" framed .357's which, unless they hold eight rounds like Mike's Performance Center gun, just don't make any sense. Those big "N" framed .357's are a holdover from a time when metallurgy just wasn't what it is today, and their only answer to holding the high pressures generated by the .357 mag was sheer bulk. They don't have to do that anymore.

i'll get a 686P with a 3" barrel someday. it is so accurate!! and fun to shoot. they feel great in my hands. so hefty, so substantial.

i cant hit anything with a .44mag. so if i ever do go to AK, i think a hot .357 would be the better option for me.

[Bill Douglas]

Originally Posted by Tobra

It is a 696 Bill, that is why it shoots like that.
y

Sorry, my trigger finger is playing up, what with all this gun talk and stuff.

[craigster59]

Originally Posted by Tobra

It is a 696 Bill, that is why it shoots like that.


Even +P .38 is a bit much for an Airweight. Wadcutter or even Long Colt is a little less snappy

I know. I think Joe Bob just wanted to see me break my wrist!

[vash]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

The 686 and it's blued companion, the 586, are fantastic revolvers. Built on the newer "L" frame, they are a much better platform for the .357 mag than the smaller "K" framed Model 19. The "L" frame was introduced to solve all of the problems inherent in the smaller "K" frame, but only weighs a few ounces more. They are much handier than the huge "N" framed .357's which, unless they hold eight rounds like Mike's Performance Center gun, just don't make any sense. Those big "N" framed .357's are a holdover from a time when metallurgy just wasn't what it is today, and their only answer to holding the high pressures generated by the .357 mag was sheer bulk. They don't have to do that anymore.

didnt S/W make a 8 shot .357 purpose built for the first SWAT member to breach a door? is that one a N frame? i cannot remember the numerical nomenclature. it was a wild looking revolver. i never wanted one, but i was a cool handgun.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

Jeff, little doubt if someone was breaking into your house your many years of using various guns there is no way you would have to worry about forgetting the safety, or forgetting to rack in that first round.

I just knew when I bought my 38 revolver back when I was a youngster I wanted something that was a total no-brainer when my heart rate is at max, and I am shaking from adrenaline. I know I can shoot anyone that comes in through a broken down door or window without having to worry about anything else. Point and shoot. Repeat.

Glen, that is by far the single biggest, most important issue in any defensive firearm - being able to use it effectively when under more stress than you have ever felt in your entire life. I cannot believe how often this simple point gets overlooked.

This is where a simple double action revolver, or something like the Glock really, really shine. There is only one thing to do - pull the darn trigger. Anything more than that could have, and has had, disastrous consequences for even trained professionals.

This is the one point of concern with my choice of a single action as the "house gun". You have to cock it. Second nature to me, but I worry about my wife. We drill on it every time we go shoot. It has now reached the point where she almost subconsciously thumbs that hammer when picking up any handgun to shoot it, which is kind of what I'm after.

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by vash

didnt S/W make a 8 shot .357 purpose built for the first SWAT member to breach a door? is that one a N frame? i cannot remember the numerical nomenclature. it was a wild looking revolver. i never wanted one, but i was a cool handgun.

I have no idea about the SWAT connection, but they do make eight shot .357 mag revolvers. They are, out of necessity, on the "N" frame.

S&W frame sizes run from "J", which are the little snubbies, through "K" which are .32 and .38 caliber, then "L" which is a recent introduction to mitigate the issues with the .357 mag in the "K" frame, then the "N" frame, which is for .357, .41, and .44 mags plus .45 Colt. I think their silly .460 and .500 are what they call the "X" frame, but they don't really count. They are just an exercise in stupidity, and not really "hand" guns at all.