[Jeff Higgins]

Yeah, the lock doesn't really do it for me either. I do have plenty of pre-lock S&W's, though, so I figured I would get a new one and see if I could just ignore it. Turns out it's pretty darn easy to ignore.

I really didn't like the transfer bar on the New Model Blackhawks and Super Blackhawks either. Nor did I ever really see the need for the cross bolt safety on Marlin lever guns. I particularly disliked the tang safety on the Miroku built Winchester lever guns, since they preclude the use of a tang sight. Oh, and that damned firing pin block in the series 80 Colt 1911's just ruins the trigger pull on them. And let's not forget the "Swiss safe" extended base pin that can be used to block the hammer fall on the Virginian Dragoon single action that is sure to malfunction just as the elk of a lifetime steps out in front of you...

I could go on and on. The fact of the matter is that all of these "safety improvements" that have gotten incorporated into many traditional old designs are with us to stay, a product of our times. I own many examples of all of these, replete with the modifications that we all decried as having "ruined" them forever. I've gotten over it. Not a single one of them interferes with the function of the firearm, nor my enjoyment of it. They are all pretty darn unobtrusive, with the lock on the S&W being one of the very least obtrusive. And it really is one hell of a nice little gun.