If You Were Going to Buy Your Very 1st J-Frame What Would You Pick?

[326MOD10]

I would try and find either a place to rent one or someone who has one (or more) to try them out. I have carried a 642, for the most part for the past 15 years, and love the platform. I do have a 638 and enjoy it as well. I have no experience with the 640 or Pro Series in J Frames.

If you go with a basic airweight (442/638/642) I would consider picking up a set of the Uncle Mikes grips, located in the Closeout section of the S&W website, to replace the ones that come from the factory. That is if you plan to stick with the rubber style grips. They are inexpensive and in my opinion make a difference.

Good luck.

 

[Krell1]

I wanted a J-frame and decided on a Model 60. I searched numerous sites and ended up buying one. I didn't ask the specific model number at the time, I was more interested in the condition. It ended up being a Model 60-7 which is, apparently, a preferred model. It was exactly as described and it shoots quite well. I like some of the others but, for me, this little snubbie was just what I wanted. It also makes a great carry gun.

 

[BAM-BAM]

Someone mentioned grips above.......

to add a little class to your J-frame I would recommend Spegel Boot Grips or Hogue's Bantam wood grips.

One Step up in style....... a set of "Executioner's" stag grips w/ a T-grip.

 

[k22fan]

"If You Were Going to Buy Your Very 1st J-Frame What Would You Pick?"

A Model 35 6" .22 LR. Well you asked. The first J frame that I actually did buy was a 3" square butt Model 36 for $125 about 1977.

 

[robertrwalsh]

I would try for an original Centenial model.

 

[Jimmyjones]

My first was a Model 36, but I'd been carrying a stainless auto so I got a 638 for the lower maintenance. Carried it for a year or so.

Really liked the Airweights, so I got a 642 for a NY reload, it has a slightly smaller profile than they 638, and wound up as my primary. The 638 is my rural carry, the 642 my urban carry.

Picked up a 640- and a 60-14, I shoot the steel frames better, but carrying all day, the extra weight gets noticed.

The Airweights, primarily the 642 won the contest. I put it on in the morning, put it on the nightstand at bedtime, and pretty much forget I have it on the rest of the time.

Yes, the finish has gotten beat up but it doesn't affect functionality, not overly expensive if it needed to be replaced, and readily available. Mine has character, and if the character ever starts to bother me, I'll carry my spare while it gets a new finish.

 

[ginzo]

I went best of both worlds with a 638-3 then a 649-3. Both have a place in rotation. I like shrouded hammers. (Humpbacks).

Good luck, I started out with the same questions and took all replies into consideration.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

You need to shoot as many as you can.
Then decide hammer, no hammer, shrouded hammer.
Then you can move on to calibers and gun build.
Some of us never could decide, we just buy some of all!

 

[TazTJ]

Just picked up my first J Frame yesterday actually! Handled the 442 pro, 638 and the Bodyguard. Bodyguard felt like garbage, felt like the ejector rod was weak and would snap if I hit it hard to eject the emptier. Gun just felt cheap overall. 638 was nice, but didn't really want the SA option. 442 Pro/Moon Clip followed me home after a quick stop off at a local range to run 100 rds thru it and some +P Gold Dots and PDX1. I also got a set of Hogue wood 3 finger grips for it, too...much nicer to shoot than the factory boot fish scale pattern grips! Now I am on the search for a good IWB holster. Not a pocket carry fan!

 

[gen3guy]

I have 2 vintage J frames. A Model 36 no dash, and a 30-1. Both are in excellent condition. I got them each for $349. If I were to get a new J frame, I'd probably go with the 642. The 640 has been mentioned and would probably be preferable, but you'd fork over at least an extra $200 for it. As a side note, I once had a 3" model 60 with a full lug barrel and adjustable sights. I'm still mad at myself for letting it go. Smith still makes it only in .357.

 

[socrates007]

Lots of great advice from the many posters. Get whatever model you like and you can shoot well. But, please make sure you get a model without an internal lock if you are going to carry it for self-defense. That is the only suggestion I am making to you.

 

[tim c]

638 is my every day carry

 

[ISCS Yoda]

I bought my first J-frame, a nickel Model 36 SB around 30 years ago. A former Oklahoma LEO was delighted to sell it to me for 125 dollars! I changed the grips several times; gorgeous gun but I could never warm up to that square butt. A friend one time whined that he needed a J-frame for his wife. I happily gave him mine - as in GIFT! Okay, today I wish i had it but only because of the current colelction of S&W revolvers that I possess. I'd still not like it!

I did tote it around some, in a briefcase (totally illegal back in those days but that doesn't count any more), and was a tad heavy, even as a small frame revolver.

My next J-frame was a M649. It's all steel, too, like the M36, so it's no lightweight, but I always adored that shrouded hammer. Because I was into pocket carry I didn't carry the 649 much due to the weight.

Then one day I saw a M642, my heart went pitter patter, and it's been my daily companion for years now. I did acquire a M638 (again, love that shrouded hammer) which I tend to tote around some also, in a briefcase. Lightweight J-frames are great - and I do not load them with +P ammo just because S&W says that I can. High quality .38 Special defensive ammunition is all that I use.

***GRJ***

My 642 has an internal lock. No big deal. The 638 has one, too. They simply don't bother me. YMMV.

 

[wrangler5]

I started with a 49 many years ago, and it's still the one I use if I want to shoot a lot at a particular practice session - its extra weight and Pachmayr Compac grips make it by far the most comfortable to shoot over many strings, although the grooved trigger is a bit of a negative after a while.

But for carry, I wanted something lighter, and got a 442/no lock. It carries fine, but I missed the single action option, even though I only use it at the range. I also found that the 442 would begin to rust on the yoke if I didn't wipe it down every night with a silcone cloth. So I've ended up with a 638 as my daily carry - no rust issues, and with the larger LG-305 laser grip from Crimson Trace it's tolerable to shoot at bit for practice.

If I could only keep one J frame, it would be the 638.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Here are some pictures. I need to get one for my 649:

What follows are pictures of my 638 with 3 different sets of grips. I prefer wood so it carries the wood banana grips; the Goodyear is put up and will likely stay put up.


Smith & Wesson Forum - ISCS Yoda's Album: Revolvers - Picture

Smith & Wesson Forum - ISCS Yoda's Album: Revolvers - Picture

Smith & Wesson Forum - ISCS Yoda's Album: Revolvers - Picture

The next is my 642 with Eagle stocks. As noted, I prefer wood.

Smith & Wesson Forum - ISCS Yoda's Album: Revolvers - Picture

 

[Kernel Crittenden]

...I go back and forth all the time from the 638 to a few others.....

Your first instincts are almost always correct. Go with the M638. You don't need anyone to tell you. You know why.

 

[eveled]

I like black centennials. The 442 is the best value, the 340pd is the best of the best, but expensive. The M&P340 is probably the happy middle ground, and it also comes with probably the best sights available on a Jframe. edit; I forgot to mention the 43c .22lr black centennial and the 351c .22 mag.

 

[DTL]

I'm loving this thread, thank you guys! I've started looking at J frames for a pocket-carry gun and this is definitely helping me learn!!

 

[straightshooter1]

I love J-frames! If I could have only one handgun, it would be a J-frame! Really.

I started carrying my first one, a Model 36, in an ankle holster in the late 60s because the holsters we carried our duty revolvers in made the guns almost inaccessible in our patrol cars.

The little J-frame, in the ankle holster on my left ankle, was very easy to reach from the seated position.

After leaving policing, and finishing law school, I became a Prosecutor and carried a nickel Model 37 with a bobbed hammer. Foolishly, I sold it to buy some other gun and I can't recall what it was.

I soon settled on a Model 38, then the 638 when they came out. I found them as easy to conceal as a 642 and the way the frame was engineered fit my hand a little better.

Foolishly (is this getting to be a pattern?) I sold it to my friend, a LEO. He left it in his car and, yup, some stinking burglar has it now.

I've been looking for another Pre-lock 638 for a few years now. I "think" there were two on here for sale since I started to look, but someone beat me to them. Otherwise, I haven't seen any (I'm not a fan of GB, so I don't buy there).

I am certainly okay with one of my two 642s, just have a hankering for the 638 which is, I'll bet you are surprised to read, the J-frame I'd recommend to you or anyone else who asked.

Bob

 

[jtcarm]

Just bought my first: a model 60 no-dash.

Pics as soon as it arrives next week.