I've been wanting a new .357 revolver for a while and I might end up getting a post-lock model. One thing that I don't clearly understand about the plugging process is what happens to the flag that pops up to indicate a "locked" condition. If this is removed when the plug is installed, then wouldn't that allow for crud to get in? Is it okay to leave that flag in place?

There are 2 ways to do this. Remove the flag or grind off the "nub" on the flag that actually locks the action. I choose to remove the flag. On centennial guns it only leaves a super tiny pivot pin hole open but there will be a gap on guns with external hammers. However revolvers are hardly a sealed unit with lots of places for dirt to enter anyway. I just wouldn't worry about it.

Edit. Forgot to add if you leave the flag in place INTACT and remove the key, if it were to lock up on you, you'd have a lot of fun trying to unlock it. The flag is the actual "problem", the key hole where the plug goes is merely for aesthetics after deactivation.

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Jim

Take heed of another recent thread on this forum noting the difficulty/near impossibility of getting a replacement flag WITH locking nub should you decide to grind the nub off the one that comes with your gun and decide later that you'd like to restore the lock to full functionality. S&W apparently takes a dim view of folks who do this, will not sell replacement flags with locking nubs, and charges a huge amount to restore the lock if you send the gun to them.

My only lock-gun is a 638 on which I've removed the flag and lock entirely. The large side hole is plugged with a PLUG, the tiny flag pivot hole is still there, and if you look there is a narrow space next to the hammer where crud can theoretically get into the action. I've actually thought about making a flat flag of the same general shape as the original, installing a pin for it to pivot on, and putting it in the gun just to fill up the slot. But until I get around to it, I periodically stick the straw/nozzle of a compressed air can down next to the slot and blow things around/out. I shoot the gun regularly, and have had NO indication over the years that there is anything building up inside that might jam things up.

One thing I can NOT imagine anyone (sensibly) doing is grinding off the locking nub from the flag and leaving the (now nonfunctional) lock mechanism in place. While that would certainly eliminate the risk of the gun ever locking up under recoil, it would create a gun that could LOOK like it's locked when in fact it isn't. Now THAT strikes me as a lawsuit waiting to happen, while just removing the whole lock mechanism and making the gun work just like all the other S&W D/A revolvers did for the first 100 years of their existence seems like a hypothetical lawsuit risk at best.

I carry my 638-3 all the time and I don't worry about it. Left it as it came from the factory. My $.02

OOPS, welcome to the forum.....

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Criminals don't register guns.

I completely agree with this although I alluded to it because these threads seem to go the "what's legal and what's gonna get you in trouble" thing almost every time. And then they ultimately get locked.

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Jim

Thank you for mentioning that.

There are countless "grind the nub" threads that come up with a google search on this subject, and nearly all of them mention the ease of obtaining a replacement flag... which may have been the case at the time of writing, but certainly isn't now.

I also appreciate the sentiment about having something that looks like it works, but doesn't (a nubless flag).

I completely removed the flag and lock from my 438 for both of those reasons. I'm awaiting someone offering plugs again, but not really that ate up about it.