Was at LGS Sat and there was a 4" 66 no dash w/yellow front sight insert for $475. Have read of the yellow insert but never saw one before. How common are they?
I was quite tempted but the gun was pretty tired looking and I've got a 4" 66-1 I'm quite fond of, wouldn't want it to think I was butterflying around.
Kevin

Certainly no yellow insert expert here but I've only seen a few. I do have a M27-2 with one.

Several years back I fell into a consecutively numbered pair of 29-2's. They have yellow inserts. I was happy to hear with a Factory letter that they did in fact ship from the factory that way. I once saw a white insert that was supposed to be Factory.


FN in MT

Models 27-2 and 19-2 both circa 1966 ,


I have seen yellow FS inserts on older blued Magnums but not on a SS revolver.

That might have been hard to pass up a yellow ramp. Never seen one myself - yet.

Thanks, for sharing.

Back in the 80's when the red ramp front sight came out it was fairly easy to get your local gunsmith to change it out to a yellow insert and it was done a lot at the range where I shot in Colorado.

Hmmmmm, sure makes me wonder about my recently acquired 28-2.



Sure looks factory to me. I guess only a letter will tell me for sure.......

Inserts come in a variety of colors (from your gunsmith or a Brownell's kit) and they looked exactly like the factory product. Only a letter could verify authenticity.

Do your own!!

FRONT SIGHT INSERT KIT - Brownells

I'm no expert but I do not think that insert looks factory. All the ones I've seen seem to have been cut with a dovetail cutter which would be a lot sharper in corners and the insert looks to have been cast into some of the serrations on the front face of sight. It looks to me that someone filed in the recess and cast the yellow insert. Still a very fine looking revolver though.

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Endeavor to persevere

Brownell's and others sell kits to change the FS insert to multiple colors. If done carefully one would probably not know it was not factory. Just saying.......

I recently missed out on a M24-3 with a white insert, and had a neon green insert installed on my M-28 duty gun in the 80s. (Don't knock it until you've tried it in low light). As others have stated the factory didn't do them all. Some of us heathens actually modified, carried and shot them, none the wiser that we were destroying valuable artifacts.

By the way, I'd have owned that 66 if I'd been in your shoes.

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I need ammo, not a ride.

I once owned a 3" Nickle Model 19 that came from the factory with a yellow insert. I know it was from the factory because I was at this particular LE distributor when the gun arrived from the factory. I wish I still had it.

I used to have a nice Model 49 with the factory yellow insert. It was a good gun, but I traded it away to someone (likely on this forum) for something that caught my eye. Probably a handful of magic beans....

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Ash

My 5 inch 1950 Target has a yellow insert and white outline. The cut in the front sight blade looks correct to me, and the insert looks like it has been there a long time. I lettered it but the letter said nothing about the sights or stocks.

My 3" 625-3 has a yellow insert.

The Smith & Wesson parts catalog used to include White, Blue, Yellow and Red ramps.

I only have a few left over...





Drew

Nice...thanks for the info.

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Lt. Dan, what R U doing here?

Check for other kitchen table gunsmith work. That MAY have been factory, but would, based upon the probabilities, bet against it. The 66 was never offered as a standard catalog item with a yellow ramp, although I think the factory or some "gunsmiths" changed them. Quality on aftermarket yellow ramps varies from quite good to "melted toothbrush handle." If you are buying as a "collector's item," then letter it first to see if it is original.

I just won at auction a S&W 659 with a neon yellow front sight . It also had a lanyard loop . I had never seen a 659 with sights like that or a lanyard loop .
I'm pretty sure it was former LE, it has all the tall tail sign's of one .

Here is my 19-4 with yellow insert. Can't be sure of it's provenance, except the nickel is factory. I just can't seem to warm up to the target trigger, however, which is a shame because the double action is as good as it gets.

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Some collect art; I shoot it!

Swap in a good smooth Ranger (.312") trigger or a smooth .265" standard trigger, then put the factory trigger in your safe.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

My 3" M29 had a white insert from the factory. Hated it. It often disappeared into light backgrounds in bright light, as well as in snow. A little bright red paint fixed that.

I recently found a 72-74 Model 29-2 with a yellow front sight.

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