Dan Wesson Revolvers

glenncal1 · Jul 28, 2021

I am down to one DW, a .32 that I had Andy Horvath ream to .327 Fed. No I am not worried about the higher pressure of the .327. DWs are about as stout as a DA revolver can be. The 715 you are looking at should be a good gun if in good condition. Remember these are big guns, more N frame than K frame.

Bhfromme · Jul 28, 2021

Is there a way to look up born on dates on the DW revolvers?

Papa-T · Jul 28, 2021

Bhfromme said:
Is there a way to look up born on dates on the DW revolvers?

See Duckfood's response above regarding born on dates and the Dan Wesson Forum.

Here's a look at one list from that forum: https://www.danwessonforum.com/wp-content/files/DanWessonSerialNumbers.pdf

Greyman50 · Jul 28, 2021

Had a 15 back in mid 70’s, very accurate, would have kept if could have found 4” and 2 1/2” barrels for it. Some guy wanted it more than I did and had just bought my first 19 6”. Wish I had it back, regret selling it every time I see the receipt where I sold it.

Doug M. · Jul 28, 2021

glenncal1 said:
I DWs are about as stout as a DA revolver can be. The 715 you are looking at should be a good gun if in good condition. Remember these are big guns, more N frame than K frame.

*
IIRC, more like the size of an "L" frame, and fit a holster for a Python very nicely.

Papa-T · Jul 28, 2021

I found the following 'revolver function test' information on another forum back in 2014 and saved it for my own use because I found it helpful. Maybe some here will also find it helpful. Sorry I don't know what forum it's from and I don't know who wrote it so I can't give credit where credit is due.

Bhfromme · Jul 29, 2021

Papa-T said:
See Duckfood's response above regarding born on dates and the Dan Wesson Forum.

Here's a look at one list from that forum: https://www.danwessonforum.com/wp-content/files/DanWessonSerialNumbers.pdf

Thanks Papa T. I really appreciate you taking the time to send that. Very thoughtful of you.

hemiram · Jul 30, 2021

glenwolde said:
I've had two different 715's. Both were wonderfully accurate. About as accurate as one could hope for. Right out of the box. Very good single action trigger. Really like the interchangeable front sight blades.

The only thing was swapping barrels, while not difficult, wasn't something done casually. It's not like you'd go to the range during the day, swap barrels to conceal carry to dinner, then swap back for the range the next day.

Each time you swap it takes a bit of shooting them in and adjusting. Often your point of impact would change a tad.

I used to put my 6" barrel on to target shoot, and then put the 4" one on to use at work. The POI was so slightly changed it was meaningless to me. I lived around the corner from a shooting range and back then I was shooting 2-3 times a week.

hemiram · Jul 30, 2021

Bhfromme said:
Asking for some wisdom on the old Dan Wesson revolvers. I'm looking at an old 715. Looks like a great shooter but I'd like to hear from people that have fired these.

I know DW went through some tough times. Not sure the age of the 715 I'm looking at but it's stamped Main Street, Monson if that helps. So my question. Do these have smooth, light single action trigger pulls or is it going to be stiff like some of the lesser quality Taurus revolvers that I've owned? And lastly, is there a way to look up born on dates on the DW revos?

I have two 15-2's and a 715. The SA is great on all of them, as it was on the 12 or so I've owned previously. DA ranges from pretty decent (715) to pretty stiff (the ugly 15-2 not pictured). I've had almost zero issues in any of the DW's I've owned, and almost all those issues were springs breaking or clueless previous owners messing with them.

3wire · Jul 30, 2021

Purchased my Dan Wesson Model 15-2, 357 mag with 6-inch barrel new in 1979. DA trigger pull is great, SA pull is nice and crisp, but I sometimes find it breaks before I'm expecting it to, so I seldom shoot it SA anymore. A couple of years ago, I was experiencing intermittent light primer strikes. I installed a new Wolff hammer spring, which resolved the light strike issue.

I qualified for my concealed weapon permit in 1980 and again in 2018, shooting DA with this handgun. This is the one handgun I would (probably) never sell. It always gets noticed and inquired about when I'm shooting it on at the range nowadays.

I briefly gave thought to trading it in towards the purchase of a Glock 19, but reconsidered and purchased the Glock outright. I'm glad I didn't trade, I hated the Glock and sold it within five months. While Glocks may be reliable, I think they're overpriced and overrated for what you get.

I still enjoy shooting my Model 15-2, but I'm more partial to S&W 3rd Gens now. I now carry a S&W 6946, I like the DAO S&W, which I believe is a carryover from shooting the Model 15-2 double action all of these years!

I believe the Model 15-2 nowadays can be had for the $350-$500 range, depending on condition. When I replaced the hammer spring a few years ago, I noticed all of the used Model 15 parts available on the internet and the costs they were bringing. It made me a little sad to realize the individual parts of my Model 15-2 were worth more than the selling the complete handgun itself. Depressing, but not exclusive to the Model 15, I guess this is conducive to older model guns in general.

luvsmiths · Jul 30, 2021

I prefer the Horace Smiths.

Dieseltech56 · Jul 30, 2021

The only issue I’ve had is used guns with excessive carbon buildup between the cylinder and yoke, if the cylinder doesn’t spin freely you can be sure this is what’s wrong. The ejector rod has a knob on the end making it not possible to use the same type of rod remover as a S&W. A loose drill chuck turned by hand worked for me.

Then the sideplate needs removed to remove the yoke and the cylinder, this is a little more difficult than a S&W

Gene L · Jul 30, 2021

The ones I have limited experience with weren't DA friendly. (2) Awful, DA in fact although I don't know if they all were. Silhouette shooters loved them because of the long barrels. As a LEO, I didn't find much use for them in a DA-only role for my agency.

hemiram · Aug 8, 2021

3wire said:
Purchased my Dan Wesson Model 15-2, 357 mag with 6-inch barrel new in 1979. DA trigger pull is great, SA pull is nice and crisp, but I sometimes find it breaks before I'm expecting it to, so I seldom shoot it SA anymore. A couple of years ago, I was experiencing intermittent light primer strikes. I installed a new Wolff hammer spring, which resolved the light strike issue.

I qualified for my concealed weapon permit in 1980 and again in 2018, shooting DA with this handgun. This is the one handgun I would (probably) never sell. It always gets noticed and inquired about when I'm shooting it on at the range nowadays.

I briefly gave thought to trading it in towards the purchase of a Glock 19, but reconsidered and purchased the Glock outright. I'm glad I didn't trade, I hated the Glock and sold it within five months. While Glocks may be reliable, I think they're overpriced and overrated for what you get.

I still enjoy shooting my Model 15-2, but I'm more partial to S&W 3rd Gens now. I now carry a S&W 6946, I like the DAO S&W, which I believe is a carryover from shooting the Model 15-2 double action all of these years!

I believe the Model 15-2 nowadays can be had for the $350-$500 range, depending on condition. When I replaced the hammer spring a few years ago, I noticed all of the used Model 15 parts available on the internet and the costs they were bringing. It made me a little sad to realize the individual parts of my Model 15-2 were worth more than the selling the complete handgun itself. Depressing, but not exclusive to the Model 15, I guess this is conducive to older model guns in general.

If you can find a 15-2 for $350, it's likely to be a sad abused gun. The days of cheap DWs are gone. I got my 715 for $269 with a ton of extra parts and 3 grips, in the box. My pretty 15-2 was about $400 with a 6" VH barrel, and the ugly 15-2 was about $300. All three were bought previous to 2010. My 44 was $410 in 2009. Add a couple of hundred and you're about right in today's world.

stansdds · Aug 8, 2021

hemiram said:
If you can find a 15-2 for $350, it's likely to be a sad abused gun. The days of cheap DWs are gone. I got my 715 for $269 with a ton of extra parts and 3 grips, in the box. My pretty 15-2 was about $400 with a 6" VH barrel, and the ugly 15-2 was about $300. All three were bought previous to 2010. My 44 was $410 in 2009. Add a couple of hundred and you're about right in today's world.

True, the days of cheap DW revolvers are long gone. In early 2019 I tried to buy another DW 15-2, blued, 6 inch standard shroud, so the cheapest of the DW 15-2 line. It was stickered at $650, I offered a top cash price of $500 and the offer was rejected. I'm sure it is sold now, any handgun with a barrel of 6 inches or less sells fast in the days of the panicdemic.

hemiram · Aug 19, 2021

A friend of mine saw a very nice 715 someplace in Southern Oh, and he was shocked at the price they wanted for it. When he told me about it, I just said, "Welcome to 2021". He passed over so many guns in the past, not thinking about the price increases that would come in the future.

stansdds · Aug 19, 2021

hemiram said:
A friend of mine saw a very nice 715 someplace in Southern Oh, and he was shocked at the price they wanted for it. When he told me about it, I just said, "Welcome to 2021". He passed over so many guns in the past, not thinking about the price increases that would come in the future.

You can't predict the future.

ol777gunnerz · Aug 19, 2021

info

I own Dan Wesson's father's S&W 3rd model 22lr single shot target pistol, lettered as shipped to Victor H Wesson at Smith & Wesson, Springfield, Mass.

Dan Wesson Revolvers

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