I have been reading up on Bullseye competition and, for revolvers, it seems the K22 or M17, K38 or M14 and M26 or 625 are the models to start with. I would like to start with a new revolver but, looking at the S&W website I do not see any current offering which is similar to any of these older models. In fact, I did not see anything at all for 45 acp.

What current models would be a good starting point for trying Bullseye if I want a new revolver?

i believe the 625 is still available, lot of new in the box on gunbroker. i know you said revolver, but in 22, the ruger mark 2, is hard to beat......dan

At bullseye competition 45s dominate.
A major reason, 1911s aside is simply that the .451" hole will cut more rings on the target than will a .358" hole.
If you're set on a revolver, then it's hard to do better than the 625.
If you can handle rapid fire, 5 shots in 10 seconds, that is.
I do prefer the older -3 625s for this.

Now using a 5" one for occasional open sight matches.

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-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

when you get one, i hope you post results
the truth is, i'm curious to see if s&w can build guns as well as they used to.
my beat up 1980 15-4 will shoot a one hole group at 25 yards, better than modified 45s that cost thousands.
yeah, harder at timed n rapid but quality machinery counts for lots.
the guys here told me to get a 14 or 15 for bullseye n they were sure right.

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susie

I have my mother's 14-3, my model 17, a K-22 (1948 vintage), .38-44 outdoorsman, and Model of 1950 .45. I had always hoped to do bullseye with them but now I can't find any group that does 25 and 50 yard course of fire. Not to mention it seems like red dot sights are the latest thing (I don't own any). Even though I have a Model 41 and a Colt National Match .45 I have always wanted to compete with just revolvers.

The OP might consider the Performance Center 625. Its only a 4 inch barrel but mine is really accurate. The grips are ugly though. And need to be swapped.

Going Distinguished with a handgun through the CMP or NRA Distinguished Revolver Program is national honor and the envy of thousands of other shooters. If you choose to take up this challenge, good luck to you. You will need it. There will be frustration and disappointment along the way. During my journey of earning my Distinguished Rifleman's Badge I won and lost Excellent in Competition Matches by only one 'X'. Hold hard, hang tough, and never, ever, ever, ever give up.

Listed below is a copied post from the Bullseye-L Forum you might find interesting. Bullseye-L Forum

Distinguished Revolver
I am not one to gloat nor have any desire to write about my own accomplishments. But, I happily learned that I earned my Distinguished Revolver badge this year!!! Started shooting the revolver in April, 2011 and earned 6 points at the Bristol Regional that year shooting a 268. This year I won the Bristol Regional with a 281, shot 3rd at Perry with a 271 and won the Indiana state match with a 276. Shooting the revolver matches is very rewarding. I wish the NRA would offer additional rewards for those, who are already distinguished, to keep the participation and interest up.
I purchased a nearly new Smith 14-4 last year for this purpose. I followed Jerry Miculek's action job video, KC Crawford tuned a mainspring, switched to a 15# rebound spring and had Hamilton Bowen ream the cylinder throats to .359 - .3595". The gun would put 10 shots into 2 - 2 1/2" at 50 yards. The load was Zero's 158gr. SWC, 2.7gr. Bullseye, Winchester or Federal small pistol primers and mixed brass. The only external modification was to use Hogue's finger groove rubber grips.
I've mentioned it in other posts but I shoot slow fire SA and sustained fire DA. I really believe if folks would practice DA, using a gun with a fairly smooth action, they would find greater consistency than shooting SA at 25 yards.

The K38 is a perfect choice for the revolver "leg" matches. Just make sure you don't make any mods to your revolver (besides maybe a trigger/action job and grips). Experiment to see (for the 50 yd. slow fire phase) which chamber is the most accurate, and which 158 gr load it likes the most. That will take some time and ammo. The 158 load is not the most accurate and different loads will give different group sizes. And practice double-action for the timed and rapid fire phase... sounds difficult, but it's fairly easy to master. PPC shooters that win consistently use DA even at 50 yds.

For information on the NRA Distinguished Revolver Program, go to the NRA Competitions web site.
NRA Competitive Shooting Programs|Distinguished Revolver Program

For information on the Distinguished Pistol Shot badge, go to the Civilian Marksmanship Program web site.
Civilian Marksmanship Program |

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DRB #2276

I am not the brightest bulb in the pack when it comes to computers so I may be missing the obvious, but I don't see the 625 for sale on their site. I think I will call them and ask about that PC version. I understand most people use the 45 for both centerfire legs of a match.

I plan to shoot iron sights only. I shoot red dot better, and I shoot semi autos better still, but I enjoy shooting revolver with iron sights, especially in DA mode. I am starting this late in life and I don't expect to break any records but I do think it will be great fun.

I appreciate the load info and note that mixed brass was used, but primers were two particular brands. Is that common, that for accuracy, brass head stamp is not a concern but primer brands can make a difference?

I very much appreciate the comments. This forum has a great wealth of info available.

PERFORMANCE CENTER(R) Model 625 | Smith & Wesson

There you go!

Thank you.

For rimfire, I believe S&W has a M17 classic offering. I knowthey have the 617 line as well. That said, I'd agree with the SW Dan. The Ruger MK II/III/IV is the way to go.
Rapid fire phase with any revolver can be more challenging than if shot with a semi auto.

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Dave

I never see the Dan Wesson revolver Model 715 (new) mentioned as a good choice for target shooting or any competitions. Just curious as to what the reason might be.

I am looking at options in a revolver for bullseyie shooting and the Dan Wesson is one of the revolvers I am considering. My concern is that noone uses that one.

A new thread will get you much better responses. Half the people who post to this thread will read the first post and then reply to it without realizing it’s over 2 years old and never see your post.

"I never see the Dan Wesson revolver Model 715 (new) mentioned as a good choice for target shooting or any competitions. Just curious as to what the reason might be."

I am looking at options in a revolver for bulls eye shooting and the Dan Wesson is one of the revolvers I am considering. My concern is that one one uses that one. "

Can' speak of the new DW's never shot one, but if they are anything like the earlier one's don't see how it would be a bad choice. Dan Wesson's are my most accurate revolvers.
A quick Google search of "Dan Wesson 715 accuracy" has many good reports.

Don't know about the new Dan Wesson. The old ones have a hammer and trigger 2X the size of S&W ones. The DA is heavy and clunky. The SA is fine, and they are accurate guns when fired SA.

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protocalldesign.com

thank you. That explains it.

I had a lot of fun shooting the Harry Reeves match (at Camp Perry) and getting NRA revolver distinguished. I used my old LAPD 68 and factory Fed 158 grain lead ball. I shot the timed and rapid fire stages DA. Mucho fun.
Bob

Having shot bullseye back in the 60's, PPC in the 70's, IPSAC in the 80's and now IDPA I have not seen primers or mixed brass to be an real issue with pistol loads. I find, (especially now with 9 mm) powder charge, powder type and bullet weight and seating depth to be more of a factor.

For .38, the old standard load 148 gr, WC over 2.8 of Bullseye has always been to go to load for 25 and 50 yard shooting. Found 4.0 of bullseye behind a 200 gr. SWC to be the top .45 load for both revolver and 1911 and now finding the Sig 320x5 likes the 120 grain Bayou bullets TC, HiTek coated ahead of 3.7 of bullseye seated to 1.065.

I have used pretty much what ever primers i had available, Remington, Federeal, CCI, Winchester and they all did the job. Same is true for brass, pretty much any head stamp.

Rife shooting is a whole different animal and I have found different brass and primer combos will perform better than others.

If they would only make that 625 with a 5" barrel like they did back in the 80's.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

I've been shooting bullseye for some time, not real good but I really enjoy it. This season I decided to use revolvers for each stage too. I was able to get a great trigger on my 617-3, I found a 16-4, and a 25-2 to complete the trio. I was at he range this afternoon and found the right load for each revolver. If you hunt the forums and sales you will be able to find what you need as far as revolvers for competition. Good luck in your quest.

...said every bullseye shooter, ever.

Not very sophisticated, and certainly not unique and full of panache; but put some target stocks on one of these, and it'll out shoot most factory revolvers from any maker.

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John

Smith and Wesson revolvers, the classic "hand ejectors", were designed ergonomically to suit the bullseye style of shooting. The trigger action, grip shape, hammer reach, are all well suited to the discipline.
I have no idea how well the new barrel and rifling style works for bullseye loads, but the older style was great. You sometimes have to tweak the forcing cone or cylinder throats, maybe even lap the bore, but that's it.

Al Miller wrote a series of articles on handloading 38 special for bullseye....everything from brass prep, to bullet casting, to Ransom Rest tests. Quite an endeavor. They were published around 1971 in Handloader Magazine.

I am very glad the NRA finally got around to things like the Harry Reeves match and Distinguished Revolver. That puts the challenge back into the Bullseye game.
People forget that the 45 stage was created for the National Matches around WWI because of the then new 1911 service pistol. Shooters had to draw a service pistol from inventory at the matches. No adjustable sights. No wadcutter ammo. No trigger jobs.
Fast forward to today....the 1911 is no longer the service pistol. Now, the shooting lines have guys using expensive custom 1911s with red dot sights, 3 lb triggers, powder puff loads, orthopedic grips.
Maybe the 45 stage should be changed to "service pistol" and follow CMP rules?

In the meantime, shooting revolvers with open iron sights is a great challenge, and relatively inexpensive.

Jim

PS: 44 Special is a great CF revolver chambering!

It was great hearing the 25-2 mentioned somewhere in there, Steve K.

It's an old thread but I'll bite....
I have a 625PC and like it well enough. I always like the ballance of 5" N frames though. I believe they behave better in rapid fire shooting too.

For anyone looking, I'd point out that older 5" 625's are not hard to find on the big auction sites. They are usually priced well below a new 625PC or Pro too.
Here is one I found locally last year. The owner had tuned it (VERY nicely) for competition shooing that never happened. One of the smoothest DA triggers I've ever felt.

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Dave