Doing a "Search" here gives no matches.

The nearby S&W dealer, a very big place, has never had one in stock and has been telling me their distributors don't have it.

Has anyone actually been able to buy one of these?

Thanks!

I saw the pic of it on the S&W website. Might be a great
trainer, or carry for some people. Looks like a Centennial. TACC1

I believe 3 letter search terms give the forum search engine difficulty. If you use google and search "43c site:smith-wessonforum.com" you get a number of threads:

NRA Convention - S&W - Model 43C

CCW For Wife- Model 43C

I think the short version of the story is the gun exists, but S&W has only shipped extremely limited quantities.

The uncorroborated story I've heard is that shipments have been held back for some "issue". If so, hopefully it's taken care of soon. I'm waiting for one too.

I know there have been newer threads on this subject, but I can't get the Search function to work with short words like "43C". Is there a way to work around that, or can someone link to the other 43C threads?

Anyway, my friendly FFL got me a 43C yesterday. This is entended to be a low cost & low recoil way for some of my practice, my pocket gun is a 340PD.

I had been using a 2" 317 and wasn't very impressed: the trigger, even with lighter springs and some polishing, was heavy and "lumpy"; sights couldn't be easily changed; hammer snagged in my pocket; silver color caught my eye differently; ejection was sometimes sticky.

The 43C is a big improvement. It looks like my 340PD, feels like the 340PD (I switched to bantam grips), trigger is closer to my 340PD, and it's overall a much better practice gun. Empties extract easily. I fired about 100 rds of mixed Rem and Win from Walmart, only one FTF on a Rem rd.

Downsides: The triggr pull is smoother than the 317 but still heavier than the 340PD with its 8/14 lb springs and polished internals. I put 8.5/13 lb springs in the 43C and it didn't seem to change much (haven't tested for reliability yet). That white blob front sight is ok at 7 yds, but accurate shooting beyond that is a chore; I'll change it to match my 340PD.

There one quality problem that irks me: on 3 chambers, the flash gap actually closes up as the hammer drops, it looks like the front face of the cylinder is just barely touching the rear of the barrel until I release the trigger. I've never seen that before on any of my S&W revolvers. But on the other 5 chanbers, the flash gap does not change and looks normal. Hmmm...

I have seen one on Gun Broker lately. I believe it was over $650 shipped. I am not sure what one should sell for, but that seemed a little high as compaired to a 442.

The 43C is going to have some very serious competition. Ruger has the new LCR 22 out in quantity, and near as I can tell no issues what so ever. It also is a 8 shooter, with a stainless steel cylinder, with a very good trigger for a J frame size handgun, let alone a Rimfire J frame size handgun. Near as I can tell, the LCR 22 is priced the same as an LCR 38.

The 43C is a very nice looking handgun. I personally wish that S&W would have made it with more steel parts like the proven 442, and also kept it the same price as a 442. I think the 43C will be a pretty fair gun. I also think S&W would sell a lot more of them with SS cylinders, and at the same price as a 442.

My 2 Cents

Bob

__________________
ICORE MO2908

I concur. Anymore, I only buy S&W and Ruger revolvers. The LCR .22 has a stainless (vs. alloy) cylinder and barrel AND costs a lot less. Being a person of limited means, I would have trouble buying a new 43C over the LCR .22 - with the LCR costing $200 LESS....

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But then, what do I know?

I just picked up an LCR 22 a few weeks ago. Here's my report.

I shot about 350 rounds through my brand new LCR 22 today.

Shot Aguila Super Colibri, Aguila Interceptors, Aguila Super Maximum, Remington
Jellow Jackets, CCI Blazer, Federal Auto Match, PMC Zapper.

I had a few FT fire with the Yellow Jackets. All other ammunition fired on the first
strike.

Extraction was effortless with all but the higher energy rounds which took a small
push to extract. I considered it excellent.

The gun was way more accurate than me at 10 yards. The bullets would go in the
bulls eye when I focused on the front sight and maintained trigger control. The
trigger is very nice and smooth. And it doesn't feel like it progressively loads like
a coil spring. Much nicer trigger than my S&W 317. You can really take your time
squeezing the thing and still keep the gun steady.

It seems a little longer than a hammerless J frame Smith, but doesn't have
quite as much frame above the hammer and seems a little thinner. So I think
it will be at least as good for pocket carry as a J frame S&W although a little
heavier than an AirLite.

The down side: it's not exactly what I'd call an attractive looking gun. And the
manual says use a polymer safe cleaner but doesn't give any suggestions.

I rate it 10 out of 10. Another excellent Ruger product that simply works great.

After a few weeks I can say that it is more bulky than a J frame. And is significantly heavier than a 43c. The alloy cylinder is the beauty of the 43c in my opinion. I assume the 43c is very similar to the 317 and that is one light gun. I use it as a sports gun for trail running, backpacking, snowshoeing, hiking, x-country skiing. As much as I like the LCR 22 and would recommend it highly, I'll be saving up for a 43c. Something that's so light that it doesn't bother you while running in nylon running pants has a lot to be said for it.

J-frame DA trigger pulls:

All of my current S&W (Edit- except the 317) have a reasonably smooth trigger pull. I especially like that the pull feels both smoother and lighter toward the end of the stroke, after the cylinder has locked in position. That allows me to smoothly roll the trigger that last 1/8" or so when trying to be precise.

Here are some numbers, using a recording scale and angling the scale rod so it passes beside the bottom-rear corner of the grip. That keeps the scale hook about 3/4 of the way down the trigger. Different hook positions can give very different numbers, but here are mine (average of 3 pulls, all very close):

66-6, factory tuned = 9 lbs
340PD, polished and light springs, fired a lot = 9.5 lbs
640-3, light springs = 10 lbs
340SS, light springs = 10.5 lbs
340PD, light springs only (different gun) = 11.5 lbs
317, light springs, fired a lot = 11.5 lbs
43C, light springs = 12.5 lbs

So my 317 is actually a lighter pull than my new 43C, but the 317 feels heavier and is harder to hit with because the pull is lumpy; it starts and stops twice on the way back. No rough spots, just the way all the angles mesh and transition inside.

Just purchased a 43C from local gun shop.

The revolver is just plain fun to shoot! I shot about 100 rds of Federal bulk from Walmart, no failures.

I was actually quite surprised with the trigger, it was very smooth and the pull was not too heavy in my opinion.

What pound hammer spring are you using on the 43c?

All of my J's have a 14 lb rebound and 8 lb hammer, except the 43C as of last night now has a 13 lb rebound and 8.5 hammer. I'll be testing it.

Stock, according to Wolf, is 18 rebound and 8.5 hammer, except the .22's have a 12 lb hammer. I think the 43C comes from the factory with a lighter hammer, but don't have the ability to separartely measure it. 43C firing pin nose is a small blade rather than the round one on my 317 and other J's.

I have two 317's and there's no comparison with the 43C. The 43C trigger is, by far, smoother and better overall. S&W must have realized that the trigger on a DAO "317" would have to be improved.

If all else fails,
Read the Instructions
Sticky: SEARCH Instructions

Click "Search", and type 43c in the top block ("Google Custom Search" which is for the forum only), and you get 10 pages.

Using "Search Forums" and searching the term "model 43c" (WITH quotes) returns 18 threads.

__________________
Regards,
Lee Jarrett

Today I fired 50 rds of Rem Golden Bullets bulk, and 50 Win 550 bulk, all from Walmart. The lighter springs worked just fine.

And thanks for the tips on "Search".

Thats good to know! I changed my rebound to 13lb. and kept the stock mainspring. I was thinking of trying the 9lb. mainspring? I have to say, this is one nice little gun, and it shoots well also. Probaby the best fit and finish I have seen in a long time!

The stock mainspring seems pretty light already, wish I knew what it's "weight" is. I'm guessing pretty close to 9.

I think it is 12lb. Just comparing it to my other J frames??
Keep us updated on any light strikes, etc. if you try different ammo.
I guess we could figure out the hammer spring weight if someone has a trigger pull gauge?

According to Wolf, the J-frame .22's have a 12 lb hammer spring. But comparing my new 43C trigger pull to my 317, and comparing the springs themselves after they have been removed from the guns, I'm confident the 43C hammer spring is lighter. It feels about like the hammer springs that came from the factory in my other .38 J-frames, which Wolf says are 8.5 lbs.

As noted above, I fired 100 rds of mixed Rem and Win bulk pack from Walmart yesterday, no missfires and I never "beat" the trigger return. That is with the Wolf 8.5 lb hammer spring and 13 lb rebound spring.

I always felt like my 317 trigger was fighting me, even after a mild trigger job from a S&W tech- it felt heavy and lumpy. Installing lighter springs made it lighter but just as lumpy. The 43C now feels just like a 340PD that is fairly new, both will get a bit smoother and lighter with extended use. I'm very pleased, except for the strange flash gap issue in my second post (01-11-2012).