Is this as bad as it looks?

[privateinvestigator]

Just shot a factory-new 696 for the first time. 3 boxes of 44sp.

Now I see the internal lock thingy starting to pop up next to the trigger. I have never touched the keyhole.

Is this a problem?

 

[Old_Cop]

There is a man in Arizona can supply a plug, works in my 327.

 

[Collo Rosso]

The flag on my 627 sits like that. Lots of rounds down the tube without a problem.

 

[shocker]

Looks OK. Put key in hole, turn clockwise. If it doesn't turn, you are good to go.

 

[M29since14]

That, sir, is a hammer, rather than a trigger, and if your gun is working normally I'd guess it will be ok. Might keep an eye on it to see if anything changes as you use the gun. Otherwise, if it works, it works! Don't overthink it.

 

[ko41]

Put a little oil on the lock thingy and shoot the gun some more. It worked for me.

KO

 

[bigggbbruce]

I see the internal lock thingy starting to pop up next to the trigger. I have never touched the keyhole.

The keyed portion is a cam, the lock thingy is a flat piece with a lug that when it's pushed upward with the cam, it fits in to a channel in side of the hammer, blocking movement.

The lock thingy has a small, weak little spring keeping it down. If mine and I was going to carry the gun, I would pull the flag and toss it in the bag with the other ones I've removed. The keyway can stay and will not cause any issue, other than it's there.

 

[privateinvestigator]

That, sir, is a hammer, rather than a trigger, and if your gun is working normally I'd guess it will be ok. Might keep an eye on it to see if anything changes as you use the gun. Otherwise, if it works, it works! Don't overthink it.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm just being a nervous nelly. But it came from reading this forum! There are so many threads that give the impression that new Smiths are all defective, it started to affect my thinking.

Also, before I complain about lock thingys, I will go back and learn the diff between a hammer and a trigger, and between a 696 and a 629.

 

[stansdds]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm just being a nervous nelly. But it came from reading this forum! There are so many threads that give the impression that new Smiths are all defective, it started to affect my thinking.

Also, before I complain about lock thingys, I will go back and learn the diff between a hammer and a trigger, and between a 696 and a 629.

Not all of them are defective, we just hear about the ones that are defective.

 

[500SNW]

There is a man in Arizona can supply a plug, works in my 327.

But you can remove the IL without plugging the hole...right? The plug is strictly for cosmetic reasons...isn't it???

 

[nachogrande]

MAYBE, MAYBE NOT.

It could be a case of "not a problem, until it is).
If/when it drags on the HAMMER you then will have a definite problem. If it doesn't affect performance, STOP LOOKING AT IT. I have a lock on my 617-6 & try to pretend it isn't there, throw the key away. (be sure it's unlocked first)

 

[tom 45]

I've been thinking about putting a dab of super glue on the key slot and the flag (to the frame not the hammer!) as some added insurance against accidental movement.
I haven't tried it yet and I'm not sure how it would hold up to cleaning solvents...
Just a thought.

 

[Narragansett]

Just an observation. The pic by the OP is about as closely as I have seen a new revolver. What struck me was the missing hammer and trigger color case hardening. I know to each his own, and I am not bashing MIM. Just my own opinion

 

[Watchdog]

Just shot a factory-new 696 for the first time. 3 boxes of 44sp.

I swear I'm not trying to be funny here, or a smart aleck, or poke fun at someone else's gun...but from what I can see in that photograph, that gun doesn't look anywhere near "factory new". Even taking into account it's supposedly had three boxes of .44s run through it. It just doesn't.

 

[PALADIN85020]

With respect to the lock: NO COMMENT.

John

 

[nachogrande]

GOOD EYES.

I swear I'm not trying to be funny here, or a smart aleck, or poke fun at someone else's gun...but from what I can see in that photograph, that gun doesn't look anywhere near "factory new". Even taking into account it's supposedly had three boxes of .44s run through it. It just doesn't.

Now that you mention it, there does seem to be more than a couple of boxes worth of wear on the hammer, trigger, turn line & some abrasions near the S&W logo.

 

[MJFlores]

unfortunately, thats what the new ones look like these days.

 

[jtcarm]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm just being a nervous nelly.

Better safe than sorry when holding 18,000 PSI of expanding gasses in your hand.

 

[nachogrande]

NO WONDER I BUY USED.

unfortunately, thats what the new ones look like these days.

What a shame.

 

[Watchdog]

unfortunately, thats what the new ones look like these days.

I don't think so. Although I don't buy new S&W revolvers, I see them NIB in the shop, and even with MIM parts, the finish looks good...lots better, matter of fact, than the gun shown in this thread.

Anyway, the gun in this thread is a 696-2 if I'm not mistaken, since the -2 is when the IL was added. The 696 is no longer in production, anyway, having ended in 2002 after only a five-year run.