Barrel change

I have an L frame 686, stainless steel, 357 magnum. It has a 4" barrel but I think I'd prefer a 6" because this would be a trail gun and all I would shoot is 357 magnums. I have a model 19 with a 6" barrel and a half lug under the barrel and I like the balance. If I did get a 6" barrel the only ones have a full lug. Can any 6" stainless 357 barrel be fitted to an L frame? I suppose I could file down a full lug to a half- but it would be a lot of work.
How hard is it to change barrels? The new barrel would have to be rotated so the sight was on top and the barrel against the frame and the cylinder gap correct.
Can anyone recommend and S & W gunsmiths who could do this work?

Sell the 4" and buy a 6", you should have an extra $100-$150 when you do.

To answer the question, any 6" L frame barrel will work, with the normal amount of fitting. Some will screw on and be OK, some will need a minor bit of TLC.

Red Owl said:

I have an L frame 686, stainless steel, 357 magnum. It has a 4" barrel but I think I'd prefer a 6" because this would be a trail gun and all I would shoot is 357 magnums. I have a model 19 with a 6" barrel and a half lug under the barrel and I like the balance. If I did get a 6" barrel the only ones have a full lug. Can any 6" stainless 357 barrel be fitted to an L frame? I suppose I could file down a full lug to a half- but it would be a lot of work.
How hard is it to change barrels? The new barrel would have to be rotated so the sight was on top and the barrel against the frame and the cylinder gap correct.
Can anyone recommend and S & W gunsmiths who could do this work?

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Almost any gunsmithing job can be accomplished with the application of enough cash

However for all practical purposes, barrels can not be installed on frame sizes other than the one they were designed for.

To do a barrel swap without damaging the frame, there is a specialized wrench that needs to be used. Some other special tools are needed as well to complete the job correctly.

Most folks will tell you to simply sell what you have and buy what you want. For commonly available configurations like a 4" or 6" Model 686 this is usually the most cost effective path to take.

You mention liking the half underlug barrel profile of the K-frames. There were some L-frame Stocking Dealer Specials that came in both 5" and 7" standard barrel profile if my memory is working this afternoon.

If you had one of those standard profile L-frame barrels to swap, I would say that is a worthwhile job since the original revolvers are hard to find.

Have you thought about just purchasing a 6" Model 66 and calling it a day?

I know we have a fellow Forum Member that was recently asking about selling his 6" Model 66. Perhaps the two of you could come together on that one.

As posted, unless doing work yourself, you'll likely be money ahead to sell the 4" and buy the 6". I'd keep the 4" regardless.
As to removing the 6" lug, that's not much of a step for a stepper with a mill (preferably) but a saw or grinder I imagine would get the job done depending on how handy someone is.
Currently it seems the 4" may be preferred to the longer barrels. This for complete guns or if buying/selling/swapping just barrels. In addition to any barrel fitting, a specific wrench is recommended for barrel install/removal.

For an expert barrel change you could send it to the S&W factory or to Frank Glenn.....

Frank Glenn-Glenn Custom Complete Gunsmithing Service Glendale AZ

Glenn is a Master pistolsmith with excellent pricing, turnaround, and top of the line quality of workmanship.

However, by the time you pay $80 or so for shipping, plus a new barrel, plus the charges for the job you'd be way ahead to sell your gun and buy another.

If you have a 686 you'll have to have a 686 barrel. Other size barrels won't fit.
You could have the lug machined to a half lug, or if you have the skills you could cut the lug with a good high tension hacksaw and high grade blades.
This is NOT easy and can easily be botched and ruin the barrel.
Doing this requires a special technique to prevent the blade from going off line and cutting into the barrel.
I have done it once by hand on demand of a relative but never again.

Changing a revolver barrel is a MAJOR pistolsmithing job.
The job requires some expensive tools, starting with a lathe.

Revolver barrels are not just pieces of fancy threaded pipe you can just screw on and off at will.
They require careful fitting and adjusting.
This includes trimming the rear of the barrel shoulder with a lathe to align the front sight and give enough torque to secure the barrel, setting the barrel-cylinder gap with a expensive cutter device, and re-cutting and gauging the critical forcing cone with another special device and a precision plug gage.
Also needed is a special frame wrench with the correct inserts for your frame, and a barrel vise insert to hold the barrel.

That adds up several hundred dollars minus the lathe.
So, unless you're going to be doing barrel work for a hobby or for money the price of the tooling is not supportable for a one-off job.

Best advice: Sell your gun and buy what you want, you'll come out way ahead.

There are a few questions that come up frequently that really deserve stickys. Wonder if anyone would read them?

I like the pre war tapered barrels with the old style shroud:
My 686 with 4" Mtn Gun barrel replacing full lug barrel.







K and L barrels will interchange. I first tried a K frame M 66 1/2 shroud heavy barrel which I liked. But like the above even better. CORRECTION; THEY DO NOT INTERCHANGE. I'm thinking now that I must have milled off 1/2 the shroud from an L frame full lug 4" barrel.

Both barrels tightened up and indexed fine with front sight straight up and down. I don't even think I had to adjust the cyl/bar gap IIRC. Smith barrels tend to do that when similar vintage frames and barrels are used.

Hamilton Bowen is a renowned pistol smith. I can share his home shop barrel changing methods w/o needing all the fancy expensive equipment from his website if you like.

Hondo44 said:

K and L barrels will interchange. I first tried a K frame M 66 1/2 shroud heavy barrel which I liked. But like the above even better.

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How do K and L barrels interchange? They are 2 different thread sizes.

Well, the thread count per inch is the same for all the S&W barrels*, I guess diameter doesn't matter. Or the barrel centerline to extractor centerline either.

*At least it is for J, K, & N frames, never took an L apart, but I sort of assume they kept the same tpi spec for the L frame.

I don't know about J, never checked. The K, L and N are all 36 threads per inch (TPI), but the diameters are different, and that matters a lot. You can screw a K barrel in an L frame, but it probably won't be there long after you start shooting.

The crack about diameters was sarcasm. Thread depth at 36 tpi suggests the isn't much engagement if the K barrel goes into the L frame.

Mr. Bowens website notes that in 2017 they quit accepting S&Ws as the barrels were so tight the factory wouldn't try to remove them citing probable frame damage. Dunno if Bowen would do earlier guns, the post doesn't make it seem likely.

Sorry, missed the sarcasm part. Maybe Hondo44 can enlighten us.

Toolguy said:

How do K and L barrels interchange? They are 2 different thread sizes.

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Well you're absolutely right, of course! Sorry about that. I did the barrel changes in 2012 and now I have to remember which heavy barrel with 1/2 shroud that I used. I'm thinking now that I must have milled off 1/2 the shroud from an L frame full lug 4" barrel. I'll know for sure once I dig around and find that barrel in my parts stash, but that's got to be the answer.

Thx for the correction!

bigggbbruce said:

Sell the 4" and buy a 6", you should have an extra $100-$150 when you do.

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THIS IS AN EXCELLENT SUGGESTION, WHICH I FULLY ENDORSE ! ! !

ANY BARREL SWAP WOULD JUST DESTROY THE VALUE OF THE VERY DESIRABLE 4" REVOLVER, WHILE ADDING TO THE AMOUNT OF MONEY INVESTED, THAT WILL NEVER BE RECOUPED AT RESALE......

Yes it's always cheaper to buy the gun you want, IF it's produced.

If not, a barrel swap is the only way to get it. AND it'll be worth that much more with two already fitted barrels! Piece of cake to swap already fitted barrels. And cheap if one can't do it and has to take it to a gunsmith.

Sometimes those of us who do forget about things. LOL. I have a lathe, a mill and a setup to recut forcing cones and cut the barrel extension. A tap and die for both N, K and J frames to clean up threads. Plus, a frame wrench. A drawers with cylinders, barrels and misc small parts. With the right stuff a barrel change is really not to hard. KEY being with the right equipment. Plus, what happens is a bit up to the gods of gunsmithing. Almost every barrel I have taken out has came out easily once it is initially broke loose. But, a old K frame barrel came out kind of tough. Evidently when the pin was installed or possibly when I punched it out a slight bur on hole in frame caused it to grrr up the last threads on the barrel and those threads grrred up the threads in frame a bit. Not a huge deal as the metal isn't gone its just displaced. Plus, the new barrel would not want to turn in easily and it would ggrrr its threads and make final torque while getting barrel timed anyone guess. Correct solution is buy a tap to clean up frame threads. None of them are standard size for any other use. If I want to use old barrel on something else need a die to clean it up. (actually once you have a tap you can make a thread chasing die from tool steel IF you have a heat treating oven to harden it once its threaded) From Brownells a K frame tap is $45 and a die $70 N frame are more. A tools to do forcing cones is $82 for the basic kit then about $50 for each different sized cutter (J,K,L,N) for adjusting the gap or $280 for the whole kit. A frrame wrench and inserts More money.

Some of the stuff you can do mills and lathes and some of the tools you can built. I built my own frame wrench and inserts. But, some of it your better of to spent the $ if you want to do it right. Just like threading a barrel. I have cut rifle barrel threads no problem , most of them are fairly large, but when I tried to make a N frame barrel from a blank I found it difficult using a lathe to cut the treads so the engaged smoothly. Best solution was to bu a tap and make a chaser to clean up cut threads. Later said hey if I am going to do this some more I am going to buy a die. &
$90.

Point is it all adds up and some times just like the K frame barrel deal, you find yourself needing one more tool than normal.

I do it because I like it and I want what I want and would rather spend money on tools than pay a gunsmith. But, in the long run most of the time it would be cheaper to simply sell the gun you have and pay the money for the gun you actually want.

Oh, and I am a fan of half length shrouds myself. Don't really get the full length shrouds. You can mill them off. Best way is with a radius cutter ($$ for various radius cutters) You can d passes with a ball end mills to, but then more hand filing sanding to get the finish nice and to match factory. Nobody is going to machine one off and not have some hand finish work left. Best way would be to make a piece with the same radius and barrel and use it to hole sand paper to sand barrel where you milled and beside it to blend in. Plus, its like drilling the small holes for pinning sight ramps, milling a fixed sight gun for adjustable sights. ANYTHING GOES WRONG you has a mess. Try drilling a .050 hole though the side if a rib, the piece on ramp that rides in slot in rib, other side of rib and having it come out dead straight and perfeect on other side. You did it! Ah, but it take 2 of them. Just move the mill bed forward the correct amount and start in the correct spot with the exact same feed pressure right? @#$%#@+_ second one wire drill drifts a little bit and comes out a tiny bit high and hits corner of rib. Now you screwed. Either get a new barrel or make that one shorted and decide never to try that again. LOL

I love to use my mill but frankly only use it when needed like to remove rib, when making a non-target barrel out of a target barrel. This one is milled and ready for the belt sander and final hand work:



Completed with pinned round sight:




But I always calculate milling time INCLUDING SET-UP. Often hard to justify milling time for every job, especially if I don't already have cutters I would need.

For me, shortening the full shroud to a half shroud; it's the band saw and and a vertical belt sander. No more hand work after that than milling if the belt sander is used after milling.

It all comes down to; some like White horses and some like Bays.

I have a 6" 686 barrel laying around somewhere. I purchased a 7" barrel from a member here and had it put on my 6" gun. Still not sure what I accomplished but I now have a 7" Mod 686-1. Looks cool and different. Does it shoot any better than the 6"? I try to convince myself it does mainly to justify the cost of the barrel swap which I think my gunsmith charged me $60. Even though I'm satisfied with mine after the swap, I agree with all above. If you just want a 6' then sell yours and get one or better yet, keep yours and just buy a 6" to keep it company

Hondo, nice work. I love target gguns so I am usually going the other way and milling the frame for adjustable sights. Kinda got that figured out pretty well. I do have a band saw and a couple of good belt sanders. I do like to get stuff as close as possible with a mill before going to either hand tools or the belts. Mill is way steadier than my hands now days.

I have a couple of 45 full lug barrels and will be giving one of them a half shroud treatment, maybe both.

Have a couple of projects on the bench right now. When I get those done. Maybe. Always something in my head. I am thinking of finding a 325NG, and making a stainless 44 mag cylinder into a 45 colt, trimming the NG barrel extension and installing the cylinder to have a light 45 colt snub.

There is also the 45 colt triple lock project, using the shroud off an chopped down old TL barrel. Always something rattling around in my head.