S&W 442 Pro moon clip question

I just picked up a Smith & Wesson 442 Pro (moon clip) version with no lock. My question is: Is the barrel carbon steel or stainless steel ? The 442 with the lock and no moon clip i believe has a carbon steel cylinder and barrel. I looked at Smith & Wesson's website and the 442 Pro with moon clips has a stainless steel cylinder but does not mention anything about the barrel ? Carbon Steel OR Stainless Steel ? Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Got a magnet handy, most refrigerators have them on the door.

Magnet will stick to carbon will not stick to SS.

I've got a question
Can you load 9mm rounds in it?
If not, where do you buy moon clips for it? The only 5-round moon clip I saw on the smith & wesson site was the 9mm one for the 940.

Most Gun Stainless Steel is magnetic... A magnet is not a true test.
e.

TK sells moon clips for it. The ones that TK sells are the same ones that come with it.
The J Frame 38 5 shot moon clips are the thickness that likes Remington and Federal brass. Too thick for Winchesters thin undercut groove. Mine will also work with Speer, as I carry 135 Short Barrel +P in it.

Stainless or Carbon barrel? A magnet will stick to both the cylinder and barrel. Who knows.
The finish seems to be fairly durable. Looks to me like the same finish as my Night Guards have.

The 442 Pro Moon Clip is a great J Frame revolver, and the ability to use moon clips is just another Plus on the list of good points.
It will load with individual rounds by hand, Speed Loaders, Speed Strips, OR moon clips.
They also make a J Frame Jet Loader that most folks do not seem to be aware of. Spring driven like a Safariland Comp III. It is small enough to carry.

California Competition Works also makes a spring Steel Belt Carrier for the J Frame 5 shot 9mm's and 38 moon clips. I have a pair and they work great.

Does it shoot 9mm? NO Not without some work anyway. Then you get mixed results due to the 38 Special's bore size for .358 bullets and 9mm's .355 bullet size.

I really wish S&W would have made the 442 Pro with a pinned on front sight. Then it would have been perfect. That would give you the option of a 24/7 Tritium Night sight for those who carry at night a lot.

NOTE on moon clips in the J Frame 38. They have some advantages in use. ONE, all 5 rounds eject together as a package with no chance of a round getting under the ejector star. TWO on a Short Stroke Ejection you can grab the shell cluster and get the empties out of the gun. This can happen if you do not get the barrel vertical and hit the ejector rod briskly. Long shell case and short ejector rod. Another case of size does matter. I am not a fan of short ejector rods, but in this case you do not have an option.

Reloading with moon clips:
If you carry your reloads on the belt infront of your holster moon clips carried in a Shoot A Moon carrier are the quickest method of reloading the 442.
The second fastest would be a Jet Loader carried on the belt in a kydex carrier.

When we go to pocket carry I do not find a great deal of difference between an HKS and a Comp I on reloading speed. I would see if I could carry the slightly larger Jet Loader in a pocket if I ever thought I might need to do a Serious Tactical Reload. A Jet Loader will probably shave a Full Second to a Second and a Half off you reload speed if you are up to speed doing reloads with your equipment.

Speed strips are flat and easy to conceal, but you need to practice with them a great deal to get a rapid reload with them. I would recommend to carry the Tuff Products Speed Strips, and get the 6 shot version and load with 5 rounds. The extra length gives you a better grip on the speed strip to get started reloading.

On the front sight issue. I have Green Site Brite on all my fixed sight revolvers. I see it way better than Black or Stainless.

Good luck with your 442 Pro.

Bob

ICORE MO2908

+1 on the 442 Pro Moon Clip. Very high on my wish list since I had a chance to shoot one. I've been a fan of J frame snubs since my first Chief's Special in the 70s. Great guns.

My initial testing of my moon clips for my new Mdl 442 Pro was not very encouraging. A lot of my filled moon clips would bind on insert. However, I just loaded up a moon clip of Speer God Dot short Barrel nickeled brass rounds and it is slick as can be. I have TK clips in both .020 and .025 thickness. The key is to match up the bullets with the right clip and then test it to make sure it works well. I am very happy with the 442 Pro and am thinking about turning the Mdl 640 into a moon clip gun via TK Customs. In short, this is a great way in increase speed and reliability of reloads. No reason why a 5 shot J frame can't really be a 10 or 15 shot J frame, in immediate potential.

ohio58 said:

I just picked up a Smith & Wesson 442 Pro (moon clip) version with no lock. My question is: Is the barrel carbon steel or stainless steel ? The 442 with the lock and no moon clip i believe has a carbon steel cylinder and barrel. I looked at Smith & Wesson's website and the 442 Pro with moon clips has a stainless steel cylinder but does not mention anything about the barrel ? Carbon Steel OR Stainless Steel ? Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Click to expand...

To the OP, I've wondered the same thingabout the barrels ...

It would seem to make sense from an economic standpoint. If S&W already makes stainless steel barrels and cylinders machined for moon clips, and they list the 442 Moon Clip model as having a SS cylinder, you could make the leap that the barrels are SS also.

I'm not sure what the black coating costs, but it is apparently economical enough for the cylinders, so why not the barrels? Aren't the S&W autos also sporting SS slides with a black coating?

OBTW, according to a YouTube video the SS J frame barrels are MIM. I'll try to find the video and post.

On edit: I found the video.MIM video The image is at time stamp 2:10. Don't take this as a ding on MIM parts, but rather an applause for S&W at pulling it off so successfully.

Edmo