This past weekend I traded my seldom shot, never carried Glock 48 and $75 for a NIB 617 with a 4 inch barrel. I am pretty happy with the trade. The 617 has a better trigger than the 22LR Ruger GP 100 I bought and quickly sold a few years ago. And while the 617 is big for a 22 it doesn't have the clunky, built like a tank feel in my hands the Ruger did.

It didn't shoot as well as I had hoped for but am pretty sure that was my having a bad day, not the gun. Ejection was sticky a couple of times but not real bad. My other 22s are a M&P compact and a model 41. I shot the 617 a lot better than I shoot the 22 compact but not as well as I usually shoot the 41. Next time I go to the range I am going to take all 3 and see how they really compare. The 41 sets a pretty high bar.

While I am happy with the 617 right out of the box I am already thinking of making a couple of changes.

I bought a set of reduced power rebound springs for my model 69 and have all but the 14 pound spring I put in that gun left. Changing the rebound spring doesn't affect ignition reliability so I am thinking of trying either the 15 or 13 pound spring in my 617.

The stock rubber grips felt pretty good but I think I like the 500 grips on my 69 a little better. Still debating if the change would be worthwhile or if there is some other grip I should consider. Recoil is not an issue so I might even look at wood grips.

I am not going to change a thing until I shoot the gun a few more times as it is.

Anyone make any changes to their 617 that you feel made it a noticeably better gun?

You can put your spring in and have no problem, you will love it, it is alot of fun.

I round butted my 4 inch 617 no dash back in the 80s to go with my round butt 4" 686....... both had trigger jobs

I have not done it yet . . . . . but I am toying with the idea of adding a 22 Magnum cylinder

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"Acta non verba"

I put a set of Altamont Roper grips on my 4”.

Give it some time and learn to shoot it. My 617 is one of the most accurate 22’s I’ve ever owned.

Anytime you trade a Glock for a S&W you do well. Changing the rebound spring should lighten the action a bit but might slow the trigger return (probably not an issue w/ a gun that's not used for defense). While you're inside you might lightly hit the rough spots inside w/ a fine stone (stay away from the sear). Smoothing out the tool marks cuts the friction & makes it lighter & much better. I prefer Altamont grips.

I would try the 12 and 13 pound rebound springs. To make the rebound slide go forward easier with a lighter spring or faster with a heavier spring, you can radius the corners and polish the rebound seat on the hammer and the hammer seat on the rebound slide.

You can cut a pound or so off the trigger pull with the right rebound spring. The rebound springs account for 2 to 4 pounds of the trigger pull, depending on what one is in there. Try different ones to get the trigger return the way you want it.

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protocalldesign.com

I'm off tempted to grind that stupid full lug off my 4".

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S&W Accumulator

You may want to ream the chambers if they stick too much for you. There's a lot of good info here:
Finish reaming K22s, or, How To Solve Difficult Extraction In .22lr S&Ws

I was fortunate to purchase a wonderful 617-4 from a forum member. It was wearing a set of Culina round/square conversion grips in no time. They feel much better than the rubber.

I have two sets of grips for my 4 inch barrel 617-1. Both are smooth Hogue tulipwood grips, one is combat and the other is round butt to square butt conversion grip. The combat grips are more convenient to carry but the conversion grips are more comfortable to use for target shooting.

I have a 4" M617. I don't change the springs on any of my guns -- just my preference. I do have the X Frame 500 grips on most of my S&Ws that they are compatible. Pic of M69, M66-8 and M617



One of the handiest accessories - Speed Bees load block and loader - I bought it specifically for winter shooting - old, cold fingers don't have to fumble with those tiny little 22s at the range.



Mine is really accurate

Rested 100 yard 20 shot group shot with a bit of wind (Leupold 4x)



Rested 25 yd group



Enjoy you 617.

Paul

Yea. They were real sneaky when they made those few S&W 617 mtn guns . had i known I would have bought one or two and sold that boat anchor heavy 4"........I can't imagine the heaviness of the 6" & 8 3/8".........Probably need wheels for those. Oh Well I still have those svelte 17's & 18's to enjoy.

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S&W Accumulator

Gotta love those Model 617-6 Mountain guns.

I love mine.

enjoy,

bdGreen

I modified my 617 -1


I like it this way


Ned

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Devil's afraid I'll take over.

I made a few mods to help mine,
1. clymer chamber reamer, ream all holes
2. 11 degree forcing cone cut and polish
3. powers detent ball for crane
4. sights , LPA rear, Hi-viz front
5. herretts trooper grips
6. almost forgot the mass driver hammer
7. assorted springs until it worked

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I just changed the rebound spring to 14lb, hammer spring is stock, cleaned and polished the rebound slide and shot thousands of rounds at steel plates and pins, the latter seems to smooth it out the best. I've tried lighter rebound springs but the trigger return can be too slow if you do speed sports. I like the Hogue wood grips, I also have the same grip on my 6" 617-2.



And of course a few DS-10-SPEED loaders, loading blocks or box.

Thanks everyone. I had not even considered speed loaders but they do look convenient. I am still planning to shoot the gun a few more times as is before I change anything.

But I might go ahead and buy a set of the 500 grips I like on my 4.25 inch 69. As I learned in another thread here if I decide to keep my 617 as is worst case is I would have to buy a 2.75" M69 so the grips would not go to waste.

Not a 617 but pretty close. I’m happy with these Hogue conversion grips.

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I had TK Customs do an action job on my 617 and my 686 at the same time. Love shooting them.

I don’t have a 617, but my 17-6s and 648 are stock. I haven’t changed anything, but thinking about drilling/tapping my 6” 17-6 and or my 648 to mount a scope/red dot.

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213th FBINA

Can you do that? Add a 22 Magnum cylinder? Smith does it? How much?

Here's mine...



And don't forget never dry fire your 617 without these dry wall anchors.

I have a bunch of 6 and 10 shot DS-10-Speed speedloaders. They are the bomb for matches or just target shooting. The drywall anchors are needed to keep from damaging the cylinder when dry firing a rimfire gun (any kind).

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I added a Burris FastFire red dot sight on my 6", and also find the CCI Standard Velocity give the best groups.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

I had a 617 briefly a couple of years ago. I replaced the hammer and trigger return springs with Wolfe springs, and I replaced the front sight with a fiber optic tube sight. All were great improvements. But the eyesore on the side of it just bothered me when I'd clean & polish it.

I like to admire the beauty of a S&W revolver after I get one cleaned and waxed. I was about to make the next investment and plug it, when an offer appeared that I couldn't pass up, and that was to trade it even across for a birth year model 28 no dash Highway Patrolman (shooter grade)

I don't regret it for a minute, but I would like to find a pre-lock 617 one day. I have a 17-2 that i lover to shoot, but it's only a 6 shooter. And I really enjoy shooting my Ruger MK II stainless Target model 22.

If I ever find a pre-safety 617 when I have money in my pocket, I'll own one again.

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My 4" wears LPA front & rear, a BIG help these past 10 years of geezer vision. And springs/ceramic polish some sliding parts.


Worked great, had to go for a Fast Fire 3 on the 6" to beat the results.
Great little pair for recreating & speed steeling. Oh, and paper punching.

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Dum vivimus Vivamas

Dave, I truly think you have the right idea when you say you want to shoot he gun a few more times before doing anything. Breaking it in will eliminate some minor glitches and burrs and at the same time make you more intimately familiar with its workings (and shortcomings, if any.) This is much better than jumping in Willy-Nilly and doing things you don’t need or may even work against you.

With a new 22 like yours, I’d buy several bulk boxes of ammo (Federal Auto Match is my personal favorite) and shoot them all up to break in the gun and gain full familiarity. The only things I would do prior to finishing that might be to change out the grips as you mention, and if the “draggy” extraction continues or worsens, finish polish/ream the chambers or have it done by someone I trusted. I might open it up and clean the innards to make sure there was no swarf left inside from the factory, but other than a little lube, I wouldn’t do much else (if anything) before doing a bunch of shooting.

Of course it’s your gun and your money, but that’s my suggestion.

Froggie

PS. Glad I reread this before posting. My auto-correct ( “Auto-error inserter”) had changed “swarf” to dwarf. I think I would notice if there were a dwarf in my S&W, wouldn’t you?

I never get tired of seeing this one. Let me now when you get bored of it....yeah, fat chance I know....

Yeah I leave my springs as is. The only time I ever had misfires in any of my Smiths is when springs were changed. My first "mod" of my recently purchased 617-1 was to replace the aftermarket mainspring the previous owner had installed. Smith was nice to send me one for free. No more light strikes.

Paul ,nice 25 yard group there! I was hoping to be able to fire tight groups with mine but about a 1.25" is about the best I've shot thus far with rest and optics. Firing off hand it still shoots quite well for me compared to most of my other 22 handguns.

Gotta love the unofficial "Model 618"...simply made too much sense to make it a standard catalog item, I guess.

I read several times the idea that the .22 Magnum cylinder would work in the M-617so I had one fitted to mine (six shot) and am very pleased, shoots just fine and the accuracy is as good or better with the mag cylinder installed. Another post questioned whether S&W would perform the mag cylinder fitting/installation but they would not because of the liabilities involved. My reason for having this done was because I was unable to find a M-648 for which I looked a year or more. Just to be clear the cylinder installed in my revolver is a six shot, not a ten, no experience with the ten.

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Sam
S&WHF 333 S&WCA 2198

You can't convert a 10 shot to .22 mag. because the rims overlap. Then only every other one will seat. A 6 shot works fine because there's a big space between each chamber.

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protocalldesign.com

I leave the mainsprings factory so I don't get light strikes. But I did put a 14 pound rebound spring in my M69 and am happy with it.

I am hoping to take my new gun to the range again this coming Monday but the weather forecast isn't looking real good. I sure am glad I stocked up on 22s before all the assorted craziness started this year. I have several thousand rounds which sounds like a lot but it is easy to burn through a lot of 22s in a single trip the range.

617, that reminds me...

On your Burris Fast Fire which MOA do you get for your 617 the 3 MOA or 8 MOA?

I have 8MOA's on my 617 and 627 Vcomp, they are used for steel challenge type shooting and bowling pins and a 3MOA on my GP100 10 shot .22 for longer range target shooting.

I put a 14 pound rebound and a Wolff standard power mainspring in mine, trigger turned out nice with no light strikes.

I never said I was converting my 10 shot 22LR cylinder to 22 Magnum

My post says that I plan on adding a second 22 Magnum cylinder.

That would make the gun a convertible.

I just need to get my hands on one of the 8 shot Model 648 cylinders

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"Acta non verba"