66-5 Unfired

[redbone]

How does the Model 66-5 2.5" barrel compare to the other various 66 Models? I have a 66-5 that is unfired, just curious if it is a little more special than the others.

It doesn't have a lock, so to some that's a good thing.

One thing's for sure, it is a sweet little revolver.

[rburg]

I don't know how to answer you. The Model 66 has been a winner from the beginning. The short barrel guns, I think they were called "Treasury Guns" were very sought after back in the 1970s. You couldn't find one no matter how hard you tried. They were more scarce than M29s, and that was Dirty Harry time.

As time has passed, we get all the new variations and another -#. The reality seems to be they're fine guns. Not too big to carry, but with a full size handle to hold on to when it fires.

My only complaints about them are that I don't like the cheap wood grips the more recent guns have been supplied with. But take heart, the K frame guns do share grip size with guns made maybe 113 years ago and between. My favorites are the round butt models from the 1950s and early 1960s. They completely change the character of the guns.

If you like yours, maybe you should shoot it. It doesn't hurt them in the least.

[Ashlander]

I agree with Dick on shooting it. Is it really worth the premium on resale to not shoot a perfectly good gun? You don't even know if it's any good unless you shoot it.

[wheelyfun66]

I had a 66-5 (just sold it to a forum member), and it seems to me like the barrel was almost a "bull barrel" profile....
A "heavier" barrel, is how I have heard it described...
Here is a pic from the front, so more experienced forum members can weigh in on this:


I also think that the profile is different from earlier models....that part on top of the barrel, that basically elevates the front sight....is shaped different.
On earlier models, "that part" started right where the barrel mated with the frame...on the -5 model, you can see that "that part" does not go all the way to the frame, but starts midway between frame and muzzle....


More experienced chaps than me will hopefully chime in!

[mag318]

The 66-5 with no lock is more desirable than one with the lock. I believe the prior 66-4 were the last to use forged not MIM triggers and hammers that some prefer.