That's an awesome idea! Just curious, do they make a walking stick/shooting rest; great concept...I don't recall seeing a manufactured one.
It would certainly be a big help on those distant shots.

Everytime I see a post like this I want to run-out and shoot my 686
Thanks for sharing!

Wow, that would be in tune with what I would want to invest at this time...Thanks for the info and link!
I just may be able to start reloading sooner than I was thinking.
I don't want to invest a lot of money into it at this time...Got the Holidays and all...But mostly I need to have money to start my S&W Collection
Thanks, Drew

You can buy one from Midway USA.

I don't remember going into a gun shop that has any hunting gear that has not had them for sale. I live in a small hick town in MO and those with hunting supplies always have shooting sticks.

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Cranky Old Retired USN Guy

Cool; I gotta say I never had the need, so I guess I never paid much attention...
I've always been aware of shooting sticks, just never thought about them being used as a walking stick too.
I wouldn't want to carry an extra accessary into the woods for the sake of having a steady rest...I would just try to get by with a natural rest (tree/stump) or whatever.
But, thinking about the advantages of having a good walking stick that would double as a shooting rest; well, that might be worth it.
Just something I hadn't thought about until reading the post. Probably because I never really took the concept of Handgun Hunting to serious...However, with the accuracy of the 686 I am looking forward to next season and the challenge of giving it a try.

Thanks, Drew

Ok, I have a M19 that I really like buy know I'm thinking 686 also. Is the big differnance frame size? Never shot anything bigger than a K frame but know I am very curious...thanks alot!

Not that much bigger for you to notice, unless your a gun nut. I have both and actuall size is not much, but weight is way up as thisngs like full underlug on most 686 models and the beefed up the top strap and cylinders some I believe.

I own a K frame, a K22 Target Masterpiece Model 48 22 WMR and from just casual use of the K-22 and L frame 686 there is some weight difference as indicated. Not enough to bother most people who just plink at the range, but if you are a serious hiker you will know difference after a few miles.

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Cranky Old Retired USN Guy

I have both. Two K frame model 66s and one 686-3 L frame. All three are 4 inch barrels. I like the balance of the two 66s better. The 686 has a full underlug barrel and has a heavier feeling muzzle. But also the 686 soaks up recoil better when shooting 357s. Actually, the only revolver I have thats better shooting 357s is my model 28-2 4 inch. I think the N frames are the best Smith and Wesson has for 357s. But that is just me. Others feel the L frame is the best. Both L and N frames are about the same weight and heavier than the K frame.
A nice pre-lock 586/686 is one of the best 357 revolvers out there. You can't go wrong with either a L frame or N frame for shooting 357s. They are a lot easier to shoot 357s.

Thats my view,
roaddog28

My 5 inch 686 could put holes in an 8 inch target at 50. The best factory load I tried was the Hornady LeverEvolution.

You know I have 4 lever guns and a know a few locals with them and not a one of us has ever used that ammo in anything but a revolver and not many have done that. What is the odds of that happening?

Well I found some new over-sized finger groove round to square butt grips for less then $60 shipped. Hope they make the gun feel better in my big paws or it will be trading fodder before I ever shoot the gun.

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Cranky Old Retired USN Guy

I Dunno. I had a bit of a laugh at Scheel's when I bought it. The sticker on it clearly said, "Must be 18 to buy." I was waiting for the "Is this for a handgun?", like I get at WalMart. But nothing... I asked why the age restriction of 18, and the clerk looked at me like I was an idiot, and said, "You have to be 18 to buy rifle ammo." Since when did the 357 Magnum become rifle ammo? I guess the Name LeverEvolution confused them. Maybe it's the drawing of the levergun on the box? I looked, and the 44 Magnum was the same.

My next rifle purchase will be a Marlin 1894C to pair with my S&W Model 65.

At any rate, I have nothing but good to say about the Hornady round. The 30-30 and 45-70 rock too...

I had to check to see if the LeverEvolution had some feature that kept it from working in a revolver. It is too long to work in a semi-auto but it works fine in my 629. It works very well in fact. The weird thing is I have some 180 gr. PMC ammo that is supposed to be slower but it kicked harder and made more noise than the Hornady which is 225 gr. and shoots at 1400 fps.

; I also found the Hornady LeverEvolution in 357 Mag, to shoot tight groups and I would also think it would make a good hunting round. Kinda wish it came in 158 grain though.

You know I was thinking back today; about 15 years ago I purchased a TC Contender with a 10" 357 Mag barrel...my thoughts at the time was to possibly use it for hunting. Well, I never did end up using it. Never really became very proficient with it. I am sure I just never put in the time needed. I guess at the time, I was into Archery pretty heavy and also Blackpowder so they must have been enough of a time consuming challenge.
Anyway, I know the Contender is known for accuracy...But, I gotta say for me, from the time I first shot my 686, I shot better than any other handgun I have tried. I realize that I am more knowledgable about shooting now and all. But, mostly there's just something about this Revolver...and also, it makes me want to do better and after reading all your posts; I know I can

Thanks!

Hi,
Just thought I would share that my Wife got me an adjustable single shooting stick for Christmas. She must have got in my mind again, as I was really wanting to try one since reading your post.
Anyway I had a chance to try it today and I gotta say I am stoked;
What a difference on the long shots...with the stick I am easily shooting proficient at my goal of 50 yards for hunting and I am sure I will be able to increase that even more by next season. Ran out of daylight to try any farther distance today.

I was thinking I would be limited on my radius as to where I could shoot from once I had my shooting stick in place and my supporting arm resting in the V...But, I was pleasantly surprised that I could shoot a full 360 degrees, without changing the base position.
I am really impressed with the difference this stick makes and it will be easy to collapse and carry, as it weighs very little...Or it can be used as a walking stick too. Awesome!

Mechanical accuracy of your 686 should be in the range of 1.5 to 2 inches at 25 yards with a well matched ammunition. As for finding that particular ammunition, you'll either have to handload and work up a "tuned" load or experiment with various commercial brands and "buy out" a particular lot that works well. Personally, I have found that Federal ammunition is very consistent. Others may chime in with some other suggestions.

As for sighting, I have the model 686's younger sibling, the stunningly accurate 620. Because it's a 35 mile trek to the nearest outdoor range and only 2 miles to the nearest indoor range, I have set my sights for a distance of 40 feet. I feel is a good compromise for defensie use and my choices for nearby ranges are either 45 or 60 feet. With 130 grain Federal LE 38 spl. I have the sighting tuned for a "European" sight picture, which has the red insert covering the POI. I did some experimenting and found that this setting will yield a perfect strike on the bullseye by using a 6 o'clock hold on a 3 inch bull when shooting Federal 158 grain SJSP 357 Magnums. Point is, 2 different ammunitions can be shot well with just one sight setting by using a different sight picture. The key to doing this is to experiment by shooting different ammunitions from a fixed bench rest in single action and discovering how to compensate.

BTW, it may seem counter to logic that the Magnum loads shoot high in comparison to the much milder 38 spl. However, that gun muzzle is moving due to recoil while the bullet is still in the barrel. This is called bore transit recoil and it's somewhat dependent on the person shooting the gun. Those with a very firm grip during recoil will experience less bore transit recoil that those with a more relaxed grip because there will be less movement during the bore transit time. Point is, you'll need to not only practice getting the trigger pull just right, you also need to practice enough that you develop a consistent grip. Since I discovered that a very firm grip caused a lot of shaking, I have adopted a somewhat relaxed grip. However, by striving to always use the same level of force in my grip, I have found that a somewhat relaxed grip results in me shooting much more accurately.

I'll also point out that fatigue can have a big effect on accuracy, last time I hit the range I finished up doing some weak hand practice and that change resulted in groupings that were 1/2 the size of my right handed groups just prior to the change. Fact is that most of us don't do nearly as much weak hand practice as we should and I discovered another reason for changing hands. From now on when I start shooting poorly with my strong hand I won't try fighting it, I'll just change hands.

Finally, concerning hunting loads for Whitetail sized game. Double Tap ammunition offers 2 good 357 Magnum loadings that are suitable for this, one a 180 grain load at 1400 fps out of a 6 inch 686, and the other a 200 grain load at 1300 fps, both of which use a Wide Flat Nosed Gas Check bullet that will provide superb penetration. This ammo is too expensive for pure range play, however I would suggest purchasing enough so that you can find tune your sighting and adapt to it's recoil. I would also suggest purchasing the larger monogrip for the X frame Magnums, IMO you'll probably find the 180 grain a bit too stout with the standard grip for the 686.

You should also think about a factory action job. S&W does an amazing job.

I agree...the biggest noticable difference is weight. I like the heavier gun (686) but the trigger is worked on my M-19 so its a very accurate range gun and I prefer it if want an impressive target. For every other purpose, hunting, CCW or just plinking I prefer the 686

Same here! I already out-shot the amount of rounds I put through a Sig P226 I had.