As noted, the S&W flange-barrels are non-user-adjustable, and done quite differently from the old DWs.


While the idea & approach used may have some merit in the .500, in the smaller calibers I'd argue in favor of it being a money issue more than any attempt at a product improvement, despite the issues related to production & inventory of two parts where previously the barrel was one part.

Advantages to the maker are that (like several other areas of current production such as MIM parts) the flange-barrels reduce assembly time, which reduces human paid-salary time.
The shroud can be cast, reducing machine maintenance (cutter heads) and related machining costs. The barrel "tube" is quicker to machine on a CNC center (being essentially a simple tube with a flange) than the more complicated shapes in a standard barrel.

Because the barrel shroud indexes itself into the frame, there is a slight advantage to the buyer in that it's pretty much not possible to turn out a canted front sight.

Otherwise, the flange-barrel involves some very distinct disadvantages to the buyer in that, should certain types of barrel work be needed or desired, your local gunsmith can no longer do it.
The flange-barrels are installed, tightened to a gauged depth, and/or removed the same way, by a wrench that fits inside the bore. S&W won't make that wrench available to anybody outside the company. That means if your flange-barrel has problems that need correcting, chances are your local guy can't do it. He can't do any custom work on a gun that requires removing the barrel, such as shortening it, or setting it back a turn or two to help correct a long barrel/cylinder gap. And so on.
Granted, the majority of flange-barrel buyers may never need work done on them, but....

As far as accuracy goes, I shot a flange-barreled 67 last year and found it was no better than a conventional barrel. Others may differ, but that was my experience.

Another note to consider about the S&W approach vs the DW approach is that while the DW action never impressed me I've never heard of a DW barrel breaking off.

S&W has dropped the flange-barrel in the 67 & (I believe) the 64, and that has to be for compelling reasons. They weren't working out, either as far as customer reception, performance, or durability goes, to a point where S&W wanted to keep them going.

Comparing the S&W flange-barrels to the DW barrels involves only a similarity in principle, with quite different executions.


Denis