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S&W Revolvers: 1980 to the Present All NON-PINNED Barrels, the L-Frames, and the New Era Revolvers


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Old 06-25-2009, 03:14 PM
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... a revolver for the nightstand that potentially could be used by me or the wife. Features we are wanting are matte black, rubber grip, night sight, managable recoil, stopping power. Wife does not carry and at present has minimal experience with handguns. My daily carry is a CS45 with Trijicon sights and also keep a M686 6" in the truck. I practice and am proficient with both, however neither is suitable for her use at her current level of experience. I already have .45 .357 and .38 cartridges available and am not looking to add another caliber. Your opinions would be appreciated.

I am considering:

Night Guard 325
+ lot of confidence in .45 ACP
- large and heavy

Night Guard 327 loaded with .38 only
+ eight round capacity
- large and heavy
- less confidence in .38

M & P 340 loaded with .38 only
+ small and light
+ could become a "purse gun" if she later chooses
- reduced capacity
- increased felt recoil
- less confidence in .38
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Old 06-25-2009, 03:22 PM
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I vote for the Night Guard 327, along with training for the wife with 38s.
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Old 06-25-2009, 04:18 PM
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Three inch barrel J frame w/ round butt and dehorned hammer (DAO).
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Old 06-25-2009, 04:44 PM
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I would have to go with Misty. The larger frame will suck up a little recoil. women that are inexpierenced with guns and shooting seem to have a hard time with the small J frames. My wife is one of those people. My 66 does her very well it is a little bigger and heavier. She can actually hang on to it.
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Old 06-25-2009, 05:22 PM
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What the gentle lady from Nashville said IMHO.
FYI- With the proper .38 +P loading out of the N frame, it will be nearly as effective with far less muzzle blast, recoil and flash as any realistic .357 Mag loading out of the J frame. With likely 1/2 the recovery time also shot to shot.

Last edited by Spotteddog; 06-25-2009 at 05:26 PM.
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Old 06-25-2009, 05:28 PM
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My girlfriend can shoot my 4" 681 (with .38+P) with my big fat rubber hogue grips much more comfortably than her Bersa .380.

I'd take your wife along and let her feel the ones you're thinking about. If you know anyone who owns any of the guns you're thinking of, ask if she could try them.

The Bersa was a gift from my GF's father.. and she's not a huge fan of it. That's why the only person I'd ever buy a gun for is me.. and my brother.. and my father But I know them so well and have shot with them so much... I know what they like.
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Old 06-25-2009, 05:29 PM
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+1 Spotteddog.
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Old 06-25-2009, 05:43 PM
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My vote would go to the 432PD, mine is pictured below. The first pic is with the original rubber grips. The second pic is with the Crimson Trace Laser grips I installed yesterday.

+ Light Weight
+ Small Dimensions
+ Very Manageable Recoil
+ 6 Round Capacity (1 more than nearly all 38 spec snubs)
+ Could be a Purse Gun
+ Works Well For CCW
- Some People Think .32 H&R Magnum Is Not Strong Enough For Self Defense...I Am Not One Of Those People



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Old 06-25-2009, 05:52 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skeeterbait View Post
... a revolver for the nightstand that potentially could be used by me or the wife. Features we are wanting are matte black, rubber grip, night sight, managable recoil, stopping power. Wife does not carry and at present has minimal experience with handguns. My daily carry is a CS45 with Trijicon sights and also keep a M686 6" in the truck. I practice and am proficient with both, however neither is suitable for her use at her current level of experience. I already have .45 .357 and .38 cartridges available and am not looking to add another caliber. Your opinions would be appreciated.

I am considering:

Night Guard 325
+ lot of confidence in .45 ACP
- large and heavy

Night Guard 327 loaded with .38 only
+ eight round capacity
- large and heavy
- less confidence in .38

M & P 340 loaded with .38 only
+ small and light
+ could become a "purse gun" if she later chooses
- reduced capacity
- increased felt recoil
- less confidence in .38
You might want to consider a 66 with 4" barrel or the black equivalent of it. Small enough for a small hand, handles .357 no problem, not too heavy. Not a fan of J frame snubbies because I think the untrained shooter will be putting all the follow up shots into the ceiling.....
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Old 08-07-2010, 01:35 AM
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My wife shoots far better with my M65 with 3" barrel than with any of my J-frames. We stoke it with GoldDot .38-SPL 135-gr +P loads. It is not too overbearing for her to shoot. So, I would suggest a K-frame in either 3" or 4" and let her practice and work her way into a light-weight J-frame.
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Old 08-07-2010, 02:52 AM
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I would recommend the 325 NG with a pair of Crimsontrace Laser grips.

My wife is not a "shooter". She does not like to shoot or plink...

But she had no problems carrying and shooting a S&W 44 Mag Mountain Gun. She uses full power loads when necessary [Bear country} the rest of the time she carries loads with a 240 gr lead bullet with 8 to 9gr of unique or a Speer short barreled 200gr HP.

She should be able to handle the 325 with "standard" 185 gr HP ammo.
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Old 08-07-2010, 06:00 AM
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Keep in mind that .357 Mags do not make a good inside the home defense round. Too much recoil, muzzle flash, penetration, noise. Even JHP's will penetrate multiple layers of sheetrock. Stick with +P's like the Gold Dot or Critical Defense.
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Old 08-07-2010, 07:50 AM
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Unless your wife likes the large N-Frame grips, she more than likely would be more comfortable with a k or j frame set up. Have her feel the different guns and if she can shoot them before you buy thats even better. The N-frame may be good for you, but too big for her.
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Old 08-07-2010, 08:05 AM
scooter123 scooter123 is offline
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I find it a bit stunning that I am making this recomendation, because it's probably the ugliest S&W ever made. However, you might want to consider the M&P R8. Yeah, it's UGLY, expensive, and too large to consider for carry. However, on the plus sight you can Barney it up with a light, laser, or some other modern gimmick.

As for why, NOISE. Take it from someone with over 30 years of saying "what" due to hearing loss from a misspent youth. I don't know of anyone who is going to don hearing protection during a Home Invasion, so the most reasonable option is to make a choice that is less damaging to the hearing.

Barrel length has a noticable effect on the volume produced by each shot. Anyone who has spent time shooting a snubby along with a longer barrel at the same range session is aware of this. So, for your HD choice, look for something with a longer barrel. The M&P R8 has that.

Caliber also has a distinct effect on the volume of each shot. Again, try shooting some 38 spl. or 38 +P at a range and then follow it up with 357 Magnums. The Magnums are so much louder they sound as if your shooting a different gun. BTW, this means that Magnums are OUT as a HD ammunition, without any hearing protection they will produce enough noise to cause an immediate and PERMANENT hearing loss.

IMO, you really don't need a lot of power in a Home Defense ammo. Fact is that you know the terrain, the cover points, and the sight lanes. This means that you have a tactical advantage over any invader, if you're well practiced you can use this to make up for any lack in power.

BTW, one other plus for choosing a larger and heavier gun for Home Defense is that they will be much more enjoyable to actually practice with. That's another plus for the M&P R8. I'll also note that I really don't see a need for a Black gun in a Home Defense use. You can save a lot of money by choosing a 6 inch 686 as an alternate and loading it up with 38 +P premium hollow points. In addition to the cost savings, the 686 will be a very enjoyable range gun for any shooter when used with 38 spl. and the sight radius is long enough that it's easy to shoot accurately.

Now, if you have your heart set on a Night Guard, go with Misty's choice, the 327. The plus for this choice is that you can load it with 38 spl. and even at +P levels it's a somewhat quiet shooter. Not as quiet as I would prefer, however it will probably only produce a slight permanent loss in hearing and it will be a somewhat easy shooting gun, both in terms of cost and recoil. In addition, you get 2 more rounds of capacity.
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Old 08-07-2010, 08:30 AM
prescobd prescobd is offline
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Although not listed, and it seems you like the Night Guard, format, I would recommend a 315NG. It is a .38 +P 6 shot K frame. Would probably fit your wife better than either the larger N frame or the smaller J frame and still fire the +P. After market grips are plentiful should the Pachmeyers(?) on the gun not fit. The gun has been recently discontinued but they are still out there if you look.
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Old 08-08-2010, 01:33 PM
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Scooter123,


That is some great advice. My wife and I have discussed the same things.

I have a G22 w/ TRL-1 attatched that she's seen (can't show her all my guns ). She really likes the light and wants one for her HD gun.

I'd love to get here a 4" 686...loaded with Gold Dots +P or even the Hornady 110gr Critical Defense (her snubbie has those) and then somehow attatch a good light. I like the weight of this one and the balance is nice, too.

I'm just not a fan of bottom feeders for her HD weapon due the low frequency she'd work with it at the range.


I'd most likely have to replace the grips for something that fit her best.


Great advice on your post.
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Old 08-08-2010, 02:32 PM
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I've trained my wife with an 18 inch Mossberg 12 guage. Pump and pull the trigger. 00 buck. It takes a lot of practice to get "proficient" with a handgun. Especially under duress. Shotgun, not so much. Can be had for a lot less money than a quality handgun.

Otherwise, any .38 revolver would do. Point and squeeze, the noise alone should bring help.
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327, 340, 380, 681, 686, crimson, cs45, hogue, hornady, j frame, k frame, k-frame, m65, m686, model 65, model 66, model 686, mountain gun, n-frame, pachmayr, round butt, snubby, tactical, trijicon

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