Thank you all for your input! I was unaware of not allowing 7 shots in competition. There really aren't any competitions around me (I live in Upstate NY) but if one where to come up I would like to have that option.

@bryan87 thanks for the info on the weight. I should have looked that up and not just gone by how it felt.

@roundgunner I like the looks of the ssr better but the finish is what worries me. Do you have trouble cleaning the carbon off at all? Does the bead blast finish show scratches more than other finishes? Since you have both the 686 and the 686 ssr is there one that you prefer to shoot for a regular range day.