Like many of you, I’ve been owning, shooting, & using for work S&W Revolvers since 1985. I’m no authority, I’m not a gunsmith, but back when S&W revolvers were King in American Law Enforcement, slicking up the trigger pull was something that was done often, both for work, competitive, and recreational shooting purposes.

Over the years, I’ve observed a few things I’ve liked and don’t like when it comes to tinkering with a Smith & Wesson Revolver, things that work well and some things that don’t.

Things I don’t like: Jewelling the hammer and trigger, or grinding off the serrations on the trigger face.

Messing with the Single Action pull. In my opinion, there is no reason to try and improve on the SA pull of a Smith revolver. My personal observation is that when this is attempted, the usual result is an unsafe revolver, where the hammer will malfunction & fall, or the revolver has hammer push-off.

Round butting the frame, narrowing the trigger guard or fitzing the trigger guard altogether is a no-go in my book.

I’ve heard of guys “stoning” the internals, or polishing. My concern with this practice is taking too much off the hammer or trigger, making the revolver unsafe. I steer clear of this practice.

Magna-porting. I don’t like it. I’m probably uneducated on this. I’ve not much experience with the factory ported models like the new model 19’s and the 586’s. If it causes lower velocities, I find this mod akin to drinking near-beer, putting low-octane gasoline in your 1969 Chevy, or getting all your protein from soy.

Things I like. Now concerning the DA pull, some work can be done here, with positive results.

Talking with Art Bellerose from S&W, he advised the thing he likes most is just swap out the main and trigger springs for a better DA pull. He’s done that at the factory for several of my Smith’s, and they never fail to ignite a primer, and the DA pull is awesome.

A .160 rear sight blade notch will help older eyes, but for accurate work, the stock plan black rear blade works best for me. Ditto up front, I like plain serrated black front sights. Skeeter Skelton liked a 1/10 thick front sight blade as opposed to the newer 1/8th. Charles Askins Jr. liked a gold bead front on his New Service, I’ve yet to try it on a revolver. I did have one on a Colt Government Model. I found it washed out in bright snowy conditions too much during the winter to be of any practical use.

So, what do you like to do to improve the performance of your revolver, to make them your own, and maximize your performance with them?

Almost forgot, grips. Always on the hunt for the ultimate grips.