• Update – 12:30 PM EST
    Attachments are now working, and all members can once again upload files.
    We are currently testing URL redirects and other miscellaneous features across the site.
    Thank you for your continued patience and support during this migration.

    Prefer a darker look? You can switch between light and dark modes in your account settings:
    smith-wessonforum.com/account/preferences

Why Is the 3” J Frame Not More Popular

W

Whit

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 6, 2001
Messages
338
Reaction score
524
Location
Baytown, Texas
You can glean from reading posts on this forum that the J Frame is a very popular carry option. And for many good reasons that is so. But you can also surmise from the same posts that the 2” version is seemingly the choice of most folks who carry a J Frame.

Thus the question, why is the 3” version less popular? On the surface it would seem that the 3” would have some advantages. It might produce more velocity, perhaps better balance, maybe a tad less recoil with extra weight or a more shootable/natural pointing revolver. Certainly the one extra inch cannot be much harder to conceal. It is interesting that the 3” K Frame is more desireable than the 2”, but the J seems to be just the reverse.

Your observations and comments please.
 
I like the 3'' tapered bbl j frame very well, but as a IWB carry option. I once crono'd it against a 2" 36, just a few rounds of 158g lead with mild 231 pdr. It seemed to go 75 fps faster. I like the Sile rubber grips.
 
The 2" J frame is carried in places a 3" can not conveniently be. A pocket and ankle holster are two prime examples. More weight & larger profile, with only a slight advantage.

They are also less common and usually more expensive.
 
The 3’s are almost all adjustable sight. When you are used to the J fixed sights, the adjustables seem way up there!
 
I have two 3” J frames, and one in 2 1/8”. I like them all, largely because those barrel lengths have the longer ejector rods.
The 3” in a pocket holster will not conceal in my pants pockets, and I buy jeans with deeper pockets with wider openings.
You don’t see them very often, but the J frame with 2 1/8”” barrel is a very good compromise, as is my Taurus Model 85 Ultra-Lite with 2”’barrel.
 
I wasn't aware that 3" J-frames weren't popular. I just think the 2"+/- aluminum and titanium frames are more popular because of the light weight and size which lends itself to pocket carry and deep concealment better.

While I love my 3" 60-15 that I purchased from a member of the forum, if I and most people are going to EDC a belt revolver, we typically tend to upgrade to a K or L frame. The 3" Colt King Cobra and Python are popular. The 3" 6 shot Taurus 865, 605, and 942 are popular too. Kimber has the 3" K6S as well. It's just that people prefer larger frames with a 6 rounds if they're belt carrying, and small pocket sized J-frames for pocket carry.
 
OK, I get that many people pocket carry which hesitates a 2” barrel. My original post was based on belt carry because I seldom pocket carry. I should have been more specific.
 
Whit said:
OK, I get that many people pocket carry which hesitates a 2” barrel. My original post was based on belt carry because I seldom pocket carry. I should have been more specific.
Click to expand...

People who belt carry typically perfer K or L frames. I own a 3" M60, but don't perfer it when I can just as easily carry a 6 or 7 shooter on the belt.
 
Last edited:
The pocket carry thing, plus the cool factor makes the 2 inch the better seller as a "belly gun." IIRC, everyone but Mike Hammer carried some version in fiction. Probably in practice too.

Waaay back when I was buying J frames, the 2 inch guns had those teeny, tiny front sights, the 3 inch guns came with a "heavy barrel" and an 1/8 inch wide ramp. Very much the better sight picture. Except for pocket carry, I prefer the 3 inch if I'm carrying a J frame.

There is a notable weight difference between J & K frames. Circumstance or just plain handiness might make the J frame a convenient choice. Come to think of it, the guy next door totes one in a holster as his daily farm gun. I was wearing one in one of my (maybe) three open carry instances because I flat forgot I was wearing it when I went to get parts so I could finish mowing pastures.
 
Years ago I carried a nickel 3” J with a bull barrel & fixed sights. Stoked it with 200 gr. .38s, figured I wasn’t going to get much velocity so I may as well have a heavy bullet.

I put Mustang combat grips on, liked the way it fit my hand but could never get that coil spring action to feel right.
 
I have two, a 36 and a 30. As others have mentioned the two inch guns are easier to pocket carry. The three inch is pretty much a holster carry and as long as you're going to carry in OWB holster you may as well go bigger.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
2” K Frame for Carry
2 3
Replies
47
Views
6K
ISCS Yoda
ISCS Yoda
D
Anyone have an idea as to the approximate quantity of S&W 3” Barrel, Model 640’s Mfg
Replies
4
Views
285
Exchipy
Exchipy
J
Pachmayr Compac Pro J frame discontinued, apparently
2
Replies
34
Views
2K
bronco45
bronco45
S
S&W N Frame Grip Adapters
2
Replies
22
Views
1K
StrawHat
StrawHat
J
WTS-J frame Titanium case,AR .22 Conversion kit
Replies
4
Views
1K
Aircrewman
A

Latest posts

Back
Top