I have an 586 in the same configuration with the adjustable front sight. I've been told that the 586's with the 6" barrel/adjustable sight combination were made in fewer numbers that the longer barrel version, since it was intended for silhouette shooting.

They are accurate guns, and well suited (albeit a bit muzzle heavy for some people) for range target work.

The recall for the 586/686's in my opinion has been blown out of proportion over the years. There were limited reports of primer flow taking place where it would go into the firing pin hole and prevent the the cylinder from rotating, effectively locking up the gun.

The condition was limited to a specific brand of ammo and bullet weight loading.

You must remember, that when this occurred in the early 80's when the L-Frame's first came out, S&W was fighting to hold on to their lucrative law enforcement sales under siege by the 9mm semi-auto's, so the last thing they needed was bad press about some cop being shot after his revolver locked up, or a big lawsuit over product liability.

I suspect they decided to do the recall to error on the conservative side.

I have two 586's and one 686, all "no dash" early models included in the recall. Only the 686 has the mod, the two 586's I bought years later do not have it, and I have never experienced a bit of trouble with them.

If it doesn't have the "M' stamp indicating it has had the recall modification performed, I wouldn't let that discourage you from buying it as there are countless others in use that do not. You can always send it to S&W as I think they are still doing the mod, but if they aren't, don't sweat it.

The Combat Masterpiece it the 4" version of the K-38 (Model 15), the 586 is known as the "Distinguished Combat Magnum".