I bought a new 686+ Tuesday and took it to the range on Thursday. While shooting it I noticed a couple of times that the hammer slipped when I pulled the trigger and would not cycle through double action. Other times the trigger pull seemed to increase in weight. Finally, I had a couple of instances when the hammer seemed to become jammed.

I usually put in Wilson Combat springs in my revolvers and when I got the gun I ordered a set. When I swapped out the springs, i hoped it might correct the problem but the problem worsened. I swapped back to OEM springs and it was better but still failing as above. I called S&W and have a return shipping label. Just bummed. I really like that revolver.

As rare as that is, I understand on how that could be disappointing on a brand new gun. That said, rest assured S&W will make it right. You will love that gun again!

__________________
Dave

I'm sure they'll return your revolver in perfect functional condition but I'm surprised that these type of flaws exist with all the MIM parts that are supposedly interchangeable with no hand-fitting needed.

Maybe someone with more knowledge than me can explain what could cause this in light of all the new manufacturing techniques.

The "new" techniques have been the standard production for 20 years.

__________________
~ S&W aficionado in training ~

I had the same hammer slip thing happen on a new 3" 686-6 Plus. Sent it back to S&W, and it came back completely locked up. None of the moving parts would move. Returned it the same day and when I got it back it was fine.

Disappointing, but I've had new firearms from Mossberg, S&W, SIG, and Walther all fail soon after purchase, since I started this hobby a few years ago. I sold off all but the S&W revolver, because the problems were bad design. The revolver design is solid and once fixed, gave me confidence it was dependable.


Good luck with getting it fixed right.

Hopefully they fix it for you. I have a 6" 686 plus and it's one of my favorites.

Just call the factory , talk to customer service and in a nice voice explain what is happening . They will fix it , I'm sure of it . Things happen so just give them a chance . S&W builds fine guns but they aren't perfect every time .
My girl friends boss bought a brand new Toyota Camry , it should of been painted yellow for all the problems he's had . The dealership is working to fix them . So just be patient , it will get fixed and it will be a good purchase . Regards, Paul

OK so it's been 20 years. My question really centered on manufacturing techniques that produce interchangeable drop-in parts with no need of hand-fitting yet can still result in a revolver with this type of behavior. I feel it was a fair question.

I too had 2 problems with a NIB 686+ 3". The grips
were loose & the DA was 11.5 lbs +/-. I sent it back to
S&W & was told I'd have a 4 week wait to take care of both problems. This was unacceptable so I told them just fix the grips.
When I got it back, I went to my local GS & had a trigger job done
bring the pull down to a comfortable 9 lbs & I finally got to enjoy
a great revolver for play & SD.
It appears to me that S&W has had quite a few prblems with their revolvers especially the 686 + model from all the posts that I researched on the 686 after I bought it. Yes, it's a keeper now.

"Modern" machining is just like outdated machining. Fixtures move, tools get dull, operator doesn't make sure parts are properly loaded and clamped into the fixture. Quality Control is having a bad day, and on and on. It's like gun safety, it's between your ears.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

This could NOT be true, a problem ridden new Toyota! Being facetious here, there are so many people who are so vocal that foreign makes are much better cars than domestics. Simply not the case.

I think most foreign cars (that term applies to foreign brand names whose cars are built in the US) require more preventive maintenance from the owner. Too many US car owners, I think, believe a car is like a refrigerator, no care necessary. Think BMWs are inexpensive to maintain. Don

Saw a study a few years ago that said that while domestic cars had more problems overall, "foreign" makes had more instances of problems that the dealers couldn't fix satisfactorily. Don

I just called S&W customer service today to see how long approximately they would have my brand new revolver to fix it. I got the same 4 weeks estimate. That is unacceptable in my book as well after paying $750 hard earned dollars. It’s just sad they are backed up like that. It does agree with the info I got from my local FedEx office. It is a sad commentary about S&W’s QC but the lady at the FedEx shipment center saw me walk in with my revolver in its blue box. She spoke right up and told me the correct express box to get to fit “your Smith and Wesson”. She had obviously seen a few of them and said so when I commented on her knowledge. The “every manufacturer has a few lemons” comments loose their meaning given that.

I’m just aggravated.