The vast majority of Model 12s never crack. Will yours? Maybe, but not likely. People bought them because they are a delight to carry, not a delight to shoot. They weigh very little more than the five shot aluminum J frames but are much easier to hit well with. I have two of them, have shot several hundred rounds through each of them, and they are fine. I don't worry about it.

If you never CARRY a gun on your person, except at a shooting range, then there may be little to no reason to buy ANY Airweight. If you ever carry a gun all day long, you understand perfectly well why people like them.

Folks spend thousands, tens of thousands on cars that they KNOW will eventually fail and be worthless. The cost of ownership seems a reasonable alternative to not having the car. If my carry gun breaks and becomes useless after years of carry, the fact that I got years of service out of it was the price of the use I got.

Will it crack? Sure it might.

Probably not. In fact, it's very unlikely.