Send it Back or Live With it?

[Nightowl]

I would adjust the sights to where I can be satisfied with POA=POI. If the edge of the rear sight blade extends past the body of the sight, then it goes back! Almost all my guns shoot point of impact when they came to me. I have seen several guns where the sights were all the way to one side. First thing I did was center the sight by eye. Most needed no more adjustment. I do have two that the sights had to be moved a bit more than I like to center up. One is an S serial model 27, and one is a Model 29 Light Hunter Plus, probably made in late 1990s.
So, I think yours is out of whack and needs to go back.

 

[H Richard]

Some guns just fit different peoples hands differently. I have a 9mm shield that I had to move the rear sight at least .020+ to get it to center. A friend shot it and he shot 2" left at 10 yards with it. I still shot it to center.

 

[Hapworth]

Too, suggest you use single action only to zero -- you're looking for as absolute a test of accuracy as possible right now and double action introduces a lot of variables.

 

[theoneff]

What Hap said and a rest for starting zero. Then make personal adjustments if you need. Maybe I missed it but are they reloads and are the primers seated fully. If not it may be that. The first strike seats the primer and the second strike goes bang. When you choose a rest keep in mind the cylinder flash gap and dont blow a hole in your rolled up vest like I did with a Redhawk

 

[g8rb8]

Again, never had to do this before so I don't know what's within reason.

Matt,
I bet it's the gun and not you. I have a different response regarding recommending you get someone else to shoot your gun. Instead, take another similar revolver you know is sighted in to the range and 2 or 3 different brands of ammo. Try the other revolver with the various ammo side by side with the 686 Plus Pro. If the 686 Plus Pro still shoots to the right compared to the other revolver then the issue is the 686 Plus Pro and not the shooter. If you already have the rear sight adjusted half way to it maximal setting then go ahead and see it taking it to maximal adjustment corrects the problem and if not then the answer is simple ------- the revolver is misaligned and return it to S&W. On the other hand, if you can get it sighted in but the rear sight is so far to one side it looks obviously out of alignment you will be the one who has to decide if that will drive you nuts. Personally I would not like looking at a sight adjusted so far to one side that it looks obvious there is something out of alignment with the gun.
Best of luck.
John

 

[scooter123]

Matt, the 686 series feature a 1 piece barrel so whoever told you they replaced the barrel liner was blowing smoke at you.

You didn't state which weight bullets are shooting right for you but that can sometimes be an issue with bullet weight. Why I don't know for sure but I suspect that some of it may be due to a torque reaction in how we hold the pistol. What I do know for certain is that I can tune my 625 JM to be dead on with a 230 grain bullet at 825 fps and it will shoot 2 inches right at 15 yards if I load it with a 185 grain bullet clocking 1050 fps. I've also noticed that my 1892 Winchester in 357 Magnum will shoot a 140 grain bullet 2 inches right at 50 yards when it's dead on perfect with a 158 grain bullet. Then to really add to the bafflement my Rossi M92 (an 1892 clone) shoots 140 and 158 grain bullets straight on center with just a slight change in elevation. Frankly it doesn't make any sense at all to me but sometimes guns will shift the POI horizontally with a change in the weight or velocity of the ammo. When it happens the only logical response is to either tweak the sight adjustment or use some Kentucky windage.

 

[Matt Hooper]

What Hap said and a rest for starting zero. Then make personal adjustments if you need. Maybe I missed it but are they reloads and are the primers seated fully. If not it may be that. The first strike seats the primer and the second strike goes bang. When you choose a rest keep in mind the cylinder flash gap and dont blow a hole in your rolled up vest like I did with a Redhawk

Using factory ammo only. Using a metal two piece rest with fork for the barrel. Very safe but thanks for the tip!

 

[H Richard]

Never rest the "barrel" on a solid object to sight in, the pressure will do funny things to your shots. Use "sandbags", and only rest the "frame" of the gun, never the barrel.

 

[Matt Hooper]

Never rest the "barrel" on a solid object to sight in, the pressure will do funny things to your shots. Use "sandbags", and only rest the "frame" of the gun, never the barrel.

Thanks for the tip! I'll try this out.

 

[riverrat38]

If the gun is an "L" frame and has a two piece barrel, I would think it would be a M620. I haven't heard of a 2 piece barrel on a M686.


Best,
Rick

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

It has been my experience that not too many new firearms come from the factory truly zeroed. If you can bring your groups in to POA by adjusting your sights then you really don't have a problem. As said before, if you have to adjust to the point the rear blade is protruding out of the mount then that is an issue that warrants a return to Smith. Otherwise, adjust it in and enjoy!

Myself, I would also recommend working with quality 158gr magnum loads. The 158gr is the standard bullet weight for 357mag and it has been my experience that it is a good practice to use the standard load when doing initial sighting in of a new firearm. Once you establish your initial sight in that way, then move on to testing other weight and pressure levels you may be interested in using. And there WILL be differences in group POI and even tightness when trying different weight bullets and charge levels. Sometimes it is drastic, other times the difference is only slight. Every firearm is different in this way.

 

[Snowwolfe]

I just don't grasp what the problem is. Pretty much every handgun I own has the rear sights moved way over to one side most likely due to the way I hold it. So what?
THIS IS WHY THEY HAVE ADJUSTABLE SIGHTS, PERIOD.

Would you send a scope back because it was not dead on the first sight in shot? Same principal.

 

[arjay]

Ive only owned one gun where the rear sight had to be cranked way off of center.I sent it back to Colt and they fixed it for free.I wasn't the original owner.

 

[buck460XVR]

THIS IS WHY THEY HAVE ADJUSTABLE SIGHTS, PERIOD.

This is where I'm at. If there is enough adjustment in the sight to make it shoot to POA and the gun is accurate that way once sighted in, what's the problem?

 

[TazTJ]

My 686+ 3" had a canted barrel, so the sights were almost all the way to the left at 10 yds and I was still hitting to the right a bit (it was 8-10"
off at this distance almost when I first shot it!). If it's a couple inches off at 10-15 yds, use the sight to dial it in; this is normal. More than a few inches, send it back.

Adjustable sights aren't meant to be maxed out in one direction to be zero'd! They are meant for the end user to dial the sights in to their shooting style, ammo, etc, not to correct for big errors from the factory.

 

[Hapworth]

I just don't grasp what the problem is. Pretty much every handgun I own has the rear sights moved way over to one side most likely due to the way I hold it. So what?
THIS IS WHY THEY HAVE ADJUSTABLE SIGHTS, PERIOD.

Would you send a scope back because it was not dead on the first sight in shot? Same principal.

This is where I'm at. If there is enough adjustment in the sight to make it shoot to POA and the gun is accurate that way once sighted in, what's the problem?

Adjustable sights were not designed to make up for errors in manufacturing or gaps in shooting technique.

They can be used to, but it isn't their purpose and has potential drawbacks if extremes of elevation or windage are necessary to mitigate fundamental problems they may not have "room" left to perform their proper task of making finely tuned adjustments to dial in preferred point-of-aim to point-of-impact based on load and distance.

Better to confirm the firearm and one's basic skills are sound and then start the adjusting.

 

[buck460XVR]

Adjustable sights aren't meant to be maxed out in one direction to be zero'd! They are meant for the end user to dial the sights in to their shooting style, ammo, etc, not to correct for big errors from the factory.

Better to confirm the firearm and one's basic skills are sound and then start the adjusting.

The OP stated that he was able to zero the POI to POA well before maxing out the rear sight. He also was questioning if adjusting the sights was really necessary since he never had to do it before. Me, I have never had a gun with adjustable sights or a scope that did not need to be adjusted from the factory to fit my shooting style, my eyes or the ammo being used. The rear sight on my old Winnie .32 Special was bottomed out on the barrel, but still shot very well and I never felt a need to send it back. Many of my big bore hunting revolvers are halfway between center and max(like the OPs) and they are more accurate than I am, and odds are more accurate than both of you. Since they are well within the limits of adjustment(again, like the OPs) I see no reason to send them in for any reason. But others are free to feel differently and send the firearm in.

 

[Snowwolfe]

Adjustable sights aren't meant to be maxed out in one direction to be zero'd! They are meant for the end user to dial the sights in to their shooting style, ammo, etc, not to correct for big errors from the factory.

Please tell us how much the sight can be moved before you consider the package defective?

If they aren't designed to be maxed out than why can they be moved that much?

 

[muddocktor]

If you can zero the POI within the sights adjustment range, then you are good to go as far as shooting it. But, if it is needing to go halfway to the side or more on the adjustment, I would also think that something might not be aligned right or the frame tweaked or something of that nature. You shouldn't need that much adjustment on a properly built firearm, IMO. Now, if you have to adjust all your weapons that way then I would say it is user error, but if it was just this pistol I would at least a qualified gunsmith to give it a thorough checkout and make sure the frame isn't tweaked or the barrel installed cross-threaded or something like that. In other words, get it checked for something that might let the pistol come apart on you when shooting and possibly hurt whoever is shooting it.

 

[Matt Hooper]

OP here - I just took another look at the work order… It says "relined barrel". The more I think of it, I'm wondering if it should have said re-aligned barrel?

Thoughts?