I'm in need of someone with either a crystal ball, or inside info on what S&W is up to...

I've been holding off on purchasing a 686+ 3" for a very long time now... like over a decade. I keep throwing my money at other manufacturers. If I bite the bullet on a 686+ 3", am I going to get an email next week that Smith is about to put out a no-lock option?

It feels like I'm at the worst possible time to buy my first Smith with the positive changes I'm seeing on the horizon, and that waiting a little longer will pay off. Perhaps it should be one of the snakes, and give S&W the pass this go-around, once again?

Any advice or soothsaying from the salty old dogs here is greatly appreciated.

My advice? Buy the gun and don't worry about the lock. The lock on my 3" 686+ doesn't bother me at all. If it bothers you too much, get a delete kit. Waiting on S&W to put one out, without a lock, might take a long time and may never come.

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The best I can with what I got

I also was and am generally anti-IL. That said, several years ago my range/shop had a used one that my impulses would not let me walk away from. I am very glad I gave into my impulses, it is a great revolver! It lead me to not care about ILs on two other Smiths. Buy it, you'll like it.

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My advice is put a present day manufactured 686 next to a new Python. That question will answer itself.

I'm not crazy about the internal lock either, however, I changed the springs on my 3" 686+ and it now has one of the better triggers in my collection.

Sent from my Pixel 7 Pro using Tapatalk

You can buy an IL 686-6 and it will be awesome.

The trouble is, around the time the shine has worn off and you forgot you even have a 686, SW will quietly introduce the no lock variant.

I suggest you wait it out.

Well no crystal ball here, nobody can predict what S&W may do. But like many here I to was anti lock but now have 4 with locks and they shoot just as good as anything without the lock. Like mentioned earlier...Buy it you'll like it! And by the way Welcome, you came to the best place for Smith & Wesson advise.

I've had that exact configuration for about 10 years. I love it. Despite it's weight and larger size (L-Frame), it is incredibly accurate and has a great trigger. I'd buy one. The lock never scared me away.

It would be nice if they made them in blue again.

Why not buy a pre-lock model? My 686 no dash had hardly been fired when I bought it. They didn't start putting locks on them until the -5 models.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

One of the greatest things in the world is that you can get an old revolver for less than a new one. And they are often (if Internet hype is to be believed) better guns than current production. They certainly have more character.

I have two S&W’s with the lock. Both deleted. A 686 plus 3 inch. Hands down it’s been a flawless example. Never a problem. Tons of rounds through it. Still perfect. As far as the new python mentioned above. Hands down. The 686 is twice the gun my python is. I’m no fan of the lick either but they are great guns. No telling when they may be out with no lock.

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Bobby SWCA #4067
SWHF #1144

Keep putting cash to the side and wait for the gun you want. With that being said, don’t sleep on a good deal.

The 3" 686+ is my most-often carried CCW for nearly 5 yrs now. I love it. Insanely accurate and handles well. Full power magnum ammo is easy to manage in it and that 3" bbl is the "Goldilocks" length - not too short and not too long. It's got the full length ejector rod also which I prefer over the abbreviated ejector found on the 2.5" 686.

It rides in a Milt Sparks Summer Special IWB daily all year long.

The IL has never been an issue. Who knows when / if S&W will come out with this gun in non-IL configuration. If it ever does you can buy one then. You'll never notice it.

I'll agree with several other members...the 686 is an outstanding revolver. I bought a used 3" Model 686-6 Plus late last year and have been extremely happy with it. Yes, it has the IL, but I just ignore it like I do with my PC 627-5 (2-5/8") and 642-2. I carry mine in a 1791 Gunleather holster. I did change out the stocks (the original 3-5-7 wood stocks are much too thin and don't fit my hand which makes shooting uncomfortable), and will probably get some nice Altamont combats for it sometime soon. There's no telling if S&W will release a no-IL 686 version anytime soon, so perhaps you should invest in a new or used one now. You can always buy and install an IL plug if it really bothers you. Good luck!

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Better yet, shoot both for accuracy. My Python is awful for accuracy. My Smiths, not so much. My 19C AND my King Cobra both out-shoot my Python. I wasted my $$$$, IMO.

You have been waiting ... 10 years !

Life is short and Pleasures are few ... Buy the 686 and start enjoying it !

The lock can be removed if it bothers you .

I would never let a lock stop me from buying and enjoying a nice revolver ... Do It Now !

Gary

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Certified Cajun
NRA Member

Maybe because he wants a 3" model?

I would worry less about the lock and more about the quality of the specific revolver being considered. Whether or not S&W deletes the lock from future production L-frames is less important than the quality control issues they seem to have post-pandemic.

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VCDL, GOA, NRA

I get the "Hillary Hole" hate, but to be real honest it's about:

- a perceived decline in S&W quality (which came with many of the dash number changes, many of which were to reduce cost);

- the appearance of the hole, which has been described like "putting a tattoo on a prom queen"; and

- a still lingering huge dose of the topic that shall not be mentioned, as evidenced by the fact Hillary had absolutely nothing to do with it.

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But lets also look at what you've stated here - that you've waited a decade in some sort of vague hope that S&W will delete the lock.

There's some things to consider:

1) That's 10 years without a 686+. Besides not being able to enjoy it, the price of a 686+ has also went up significantly while you've been waiting, as have the prices of the pre lock 686s.

2) They are not going to get cheaper, especially in a tariff, trade war economy.

3) While there have been lock failures:

- they have almost all been in lightweight scandium frame revolvers in heavy recoiling calibers; and

- there have been very few in steel frame .38/.357 revolvers and then were mostly talking 2.125" or 3" Model 60s or similar steel frame J frame .357s.

- the odds of having an un-messed with 686+ experience a lock failure are up there with winning the lottery.

4) You can delete the lock and plug the hole.

5) Time isn't on any of our sides. I had a sudden clotting event May 22, 2024. No prior heart history, riding my bike 15-20 miles a day, back packing, cave diving, etc, but none the less took a nose dive and died June 9. It was nothing 7 weeks in the hospital, a heart transplant, and almost a year's worth of recovery and $2.7 million dollars in medical bills couldn't fix.

But I'm extremely fortunate to have survived and I've been advised that someone in lesser condition or poor health most likely would not have.

Every day since has been a bonus day. Period. Full stop.

We don't like to think about our mortality, but tomorrow isn't guaranteed for any of us.

Buy the 686+.

They didn't make 3" models pre-lock?

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Or you could own a 3" 686 CS-1 as I do!

I might not like the IL for various reasons but none of them were sufficiently substantive to stop me from owning this 3" 686+, or its 4" cousin. That's a lot of years of satisfied ownership while you've been sitting around pining for something that doesn't exist. Jus' sayin'.... and the posts above say it even better.

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Come and take it!!