Hello I am getting ready to buy a revolver. Of the above mentioned revolvers which cylinder design is the strongest? I have read the the 6 shot is weaker because of the bolt notches location. Does that affect strength that much? Wouldn't the thinner walls of the 7 round cylinder make it weaker than the 6 shot?

Also I read that the 7 round gun was more prone to timing issues is this true?

Any help answering the questions and any advice in picking a revolver would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy a 686+ over concerns about its strength.

Usually we write timing when we mean carry up or the cylinder rotating into lock up before the hammer falls. Since the 7 shot cylinders rotate a smaller number of degrees before locking on average they complete carry up with the hammer not as far back. Consequently it would take more wear to give 7 shooters "timing issues."

While the relevant answer to which cylinder is stronger should be it does not matter the first place S&W cylinders with an even number of chambers permanently distort is the stop notches. Negligent reloading can create dimples on the sides of the chambers under the stop notches. That might mean 6 shooters will permanently distort at lower pressure but who wants to test it?

Most competitors pick the number of chambers that gives them the best advantage under their local match rules. Here that means either 6 chambers or 8 chambers depending on the match. In order to make them "revolver friendly" many of our matches do not allow loading more than 6 cartridges into any gun. An empty 7th chamber has to be aligned behind the bore making 7 shooters a wee bit slower to reload. Probably the most popular matches here are "single stack" matches that restrict all guns to 8 cartridges. In them 8 shot revolvers have a big advantage over 6 or 7 shooters. When restricted to 6 cartridges 8 shooters reload just as fast as 7 shooters. I have not competed in a match in which a 7 shooter would have been the most competitive revolver.

Bottom line is either is strong enough for SAAMI max loads.

The notch on the (6) shot cylinder would be the thinnest point, ~.040" (.078" OD - .038" notch depth).

(FYI: My M29 & M629 have .039" thickness at the notches. 357Mag max. pressure is 35K PSI & 44Mag is 36K PSI.)

On the (7) shot cylinder the walls between the chambers are the thinnest point, ~.051", as the notch is between the chambers & the outer wall is .078" thick.

Get whichever style you like & feel safe with either.

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686-6+ TALO, 5"

(-01)

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Waiting for the break of day

WELCOME TO THE FORUM, Scooter. BY DESIGN, EITHER VERSION OF THE 686, CAN HANDLE A STEADY DIET OF ANY FACTORY LOADED AMMO. ON PAPER, AND IN THEORY, THE 7 SHOT CYLINDER DESIGN SHOULD BE STRONGER, BECAUSE OF THE PLACEMENT OF THE NOTCHES. OF COURSE, AN IGNORANT HAND LOADER COULD BUILD AMMO THAT WOULD EVENTUALLY BLOW UP EITHER CYLINDER. A REGULAR RANGE SHOOTER, AND READER, I HAVE NOT WITNESSED, NOR READ OF ANY DOCUMENTED OCCURRENCES OF EITHER.......

IMHO, YOU HAVE OMITTED ONE CRITICAL BIT OF INFO---YOUR INTENDED PURPOSE FOR THIS WEAPON.......

I OWN A 6 SHOT, NO DASH, 8 3/8", FITTED WITH A RED DOT SIGHT. IT SHOOTS LIKE A RIFLE, AND IS EXTREMELY ACCURATE, AT LONG RANGES, AGAINST SILHOUETTES, STEEL OR PAPER TARGETS, OR OUT OF A TREE STAND, FOR HUNTING. I ALSO OWN A 2 1/2" NO DASH, THAT I HAD S&W FIT WITH A 7 SHOT CYLINDER, FOR CARRY AND I PERSONALIZED TO MY TASTE......

MY MOST VERSATILE, DO ALL VERSION OF THIS MODEL. IS MY 7 SHOT, PRE LOCK, 686+ MOUNTAIN GUN. WITH ITS SEMI LUGGED, 4" BARREL, ITS AT HOME, CARRIED THROUGH THE WOODS FOR HUNTING OR PROTECTION, ON THE RANGE, AND IN ANY OF THE ACTION GAMES. IT CAN DO IT ALL. IT IS ON THE EXTREME LEFT IN THE 3 MOUNTAIN GUN PHOTO. IT WEARS AHRENDS, TACTICAL CONVERSION GRIPS, AS DO MOST OF MY REVOLVERS..........

PICK THE VERSION THAT SUITS YOU BEST......

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'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.

Thanks guys!
This will be a woods carry/hunting gun. I would also use it for my night stand gun. My dad has a 686 and several speed loaders kind of leaning towards the six for consistency. But the extra round would be nice for the hd role.

I am a Big Fan of the unfluted cylinder and the 7th shot.

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I also find it interesting that ppl mention the bolt notches weakness on 686 but ppl don't mention it on the model 66 which would have a much thinner cylinder correct.

Some good writeup's here. I have a couple of 7 shots and one 686Pro Series. I personally prefer the seven shot because it is a 7 shot especially for home protection. After a gunfight, nobody ever said they had too much ammunition with them.

Be alot simpler just to make all stages multiples of 6 rounds.
Then it wouldnt matter what your revolver held.
Seems alot of these sports dont get what a simple rule could do to stop farther watering down the revolver pool.
think about it. 6 round stage , no reload.
12 round stage, 1 reload for all.
18 round stage. 2 reloads for all.
IDPA used to run about 80% 12 round stages in my area, as the same thing worked out and eliminated division so every one shot straight up on equal footing. whether 6, 7+1, 8+1, 9+1, or 10+1. 12 rounds everyone reloads once and only once.
As far as the Ops question,,, its not relevant. Either will shoot more sammi spec ammo than you can shake a stick at.

Same use as mine, although I may play with Bowling pins.
I went with the 5" Pro series 7 shot.. Love this gun, had to ge tbarrel recrowned from factory, but it is very accurate. I use 140 gr XTPs,,

That's true, but... I wanted a 5" 686 for classic competition which requires a 6 shot, so I bought the 5" 686+ Performance Center and had my smith swap out the cylinders. I now have a 6 shot PC.

And yes, before anybody has a hissy fit, you can exchange between 6 and 7 shots cylinders, it does not require a different hand.

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Semper Vigilantes

I think you should buy a S&W revolver.

Both will handle any standard .357 loading you can find ind the books. But it's not 'extra strong' like a Ruger Blackhawk SA where you can load it beyond what the pistol can take.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

My 66-8 snubby's notches run .034" thick (.075"-.041"). I don't think it'd have any issues with SAAMI max pressure loads either.

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Waiting for the break of day