Will long barrel revolvers ever come back?

When at the range I know I can make pinpoint accurate shots with a 4" to 6" +++ barrels at 100yds. Elmer Keith proved the accuracy of his 4" barreled m29 in 44 mag with his 230yds shot. So with the 4" barrel being so accurate why ccw a snubbie?

I've ccw the redhawks in 5 1/2" & 7 1/2" barrels shoulder holstered ever since they were first offered when I purchased them. I picked up a super black hawk with a 10 1/2" barrel with a new shoulder holster. I prefer longer barrels. I ccw the 5 1/2"/6"/6 1/2" barrels in the summertime and the 7 1/2" barrels in the winter time.

Am I alone with the fondness for the longer barrels?
 
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If you don't mind 'em new they are all over the place, and the older guns are less expensive. There's plenty of 6" and longer "hunter" versions available 'round here.

They aren't quite as popular, but they sell.

If I get a revolver over 4" it'll be cap and ball.
 
Are long barrels making a comeback, did they go somewhere?

Can we find out the production numbers between the snubbies and longer barrels I one caliber and frame size? I wonder which one out sold the other?
 
I like long barreled revolvers myself. Usually can pick them up cheaper than the 4 or 6 inch barrels. I'm still trying to understand why short barrel snubby revolvers are the most popular. I have one and it is a carry gun. The vast majority of the handguns I own are for plinking and target so I do not see a use for a snub nosed. My happy medium is 6" revolvers but I like the 4" and the 8" as well.

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I like barrels that are long enough to not be snubby, but short enough that they don't look ridiculous (like some of the photos posted in the thread so far). The Colt Python in TWD looks like a good example to me.

It does seem as if full-size revolvers are being used less and less these days though. Colt doesn't even offer many of their revolvers for sale anymore.

That said, S&W keeps coming up with new revolver models... and some of them look beautiful with long barrels! Personally, I'm hoping to get a Smith & Wesson 686 Plus that shoots .357 Magnum and .38 special with the 6" barrel and the black rubber grips. I wasn't initially very interested in revolvers, but their newer offerings in .357 Magnum that have higher capacity cylinders caught my interest.

I'd love to get one of S&W's 686s that can hold 7 rounds of .357 in the cylinder... and I kinda wonder if they'll find a way to make a bigger cylinder so they can bump it up to 8 shots. I think I saw some .357 snubbies on the S&W website that were 8 shots... so why not offer a full-size S&W 686 .357 that is an 8-shooter?
 
I have never shot a 8.75 inch barrel. Maybe that is a good thing. Do not hunt. I have a 6", K, L, & N. They are great at the range. Everything else is 4" or less. Bob
 
I'm liking 4.25" a lot these days.

I found I could shoot 4" as accurately as 8", for practical purposes. The weight, balance of the gun and the quality of the trigger trump barrel length, for me. I don't want a barrel shorter than 4" in 44 magnum.
SBR!, but I don't want to wait 10 months to get the stamp.
 
See, here's a S&W revolver that shoots .357 Magnum and .38 special, and has 8 round capacity:
Product: Model 627 V-Comp

Why doesn't S&W offer their 686 revolver with the 8-round capacity in .357 Magnum just like the revolver I linked to above? I'd love something like that... with the 6" barrel length and rubber grips.

And for that matter... I wonder how many more rounds of .357 they could squeeze in there if they kept making the cylinder bigger.
 
plinx said:
See, here's a S&W revolver that shoots .357 Magnum and .38 special, and has 8 round capacity:
Product: Model 627 V-Comp

Why doesn't S&W offer their 686 revolver with the 8-round capacity in .357 Magnum just like the revolver I linked to above? I'd love something like that... with the 6" barrel length and rubber grips.

And for that matter... I wonder how many more rounds of .357 they could squeeze in there if they kept making the cylinder bigger.
Click to expand...

That 627 is an N frame which is larger than the 686 (L frame). I'd say they're at the max at a 7 shot L frame because you can't really make a bigger cylinder and have it fit in the same window in the frame.


Oh, and I need to keep away from shows and gun shops until I have enough saved for a 6" L frame. That's the next on my want list, however if I see something else for a good deal I always pick it up. So just gotta stay away. :D

Edit:

Got me thinking I'd really like an 8 shot .327 L frame. I'm guessing that might fit??
 
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Will long barrel revolvers ever come back?

I don't know the answer to the above question posed in the thread but I know when I take my 586 with 8 3/8" barrel to the range I get a lot of lookers. Last time I took it to the range I was in the booth next to a nurse I work with and her sister was with her for her first time exposure to shooting. The next day at work the nurse I work with told me her sister's viewpoint on the 586. "He started to pull this pistol out of a case and it just kept coming out and coming out. It was the biggest pistol I've ever seen. When he stood there aiming it he looked like Clint Eastwood and every shot was in the red bulls eye. I want one like that." Needless to say my new nickname at work is Doctor Clint.

I'm partial to all barrel lengths.

John
Scoundrel and Ne'er-Do-Well in Training
 
Tastes change over time..............

...............,in my case when I first started buying S&W revolvers in the late 60s I did not care for anything other than 6-6 &1/2 inch barrels with adjustable sights.

Now the most appealing is a 4 inch fixed sight.

Quien Sabe
 
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plinx said:
I'd love to get one of S&W's 686s that can hold 7 rounds of .357 in the cylinder... and I kinda wonder if they'll find a way to make a bigger cylinder so they can bump it up to 8 shots. I think I saw some .357 snubbies on the S&W website that were 8 shots... so why not offer a full-size S&W 686 .357 that is an 8-shooter?
Click to expand...


Like a 627?
 
So it seems like the 6"/6 1/2" barrels just maybe more popular with many shooters?

The snubbies are wanted for ccw carry that's all.

I think the s&w revolvers have become so collectable and much higher in value it pays to carry something that's lesser in value?

A ruger in a 357 magnum snubbie is a great ccw piece. Unless your packing a light weight plastic pistol. At least your packing.


At least s&w is still offering the 6"/6 1/2" barrels. I just wish they offered more in nickel finish in the s&w N frames. Dirty Harrys m29 is cool in blue but the rest should be in nickel.

As the revolver market is left to us dedicated wheel gun guys I wonder if someday we will be able to order a revolver with the options we want like the car industry in the past. We can pick the frame size, the caliber, the finish, the barrel length, the target hammer,trigger & grips, plus the sights. Paying for tuning(trigger /action package) it is another option. I would use this option if we had it.

The offerings of the s&w classics are ok but they don't offer maybe what some of us are looking for. Needs, wants and directions do change.
 
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