617 Owners, Modifications and Why...

[Mark F]

I just picked up a 617 10 shot from my LGS and I would like to see what you all have done to your 617 and why. So far it's been great

If you had an action job done please list who did the work

I did pick up a Ansac speedloader and 60 round loading block also looking for new grips.

Thanks for your answers and imput

Matt

I have a 617 and I've shot thousands of rounds through it. I use a SPEEDBEE speed loader and love it. I have used it with a Burris FastFire III with good success, but I prefer the good ol' reliable iron sights. If you prefer a larger grip, install a X-Frame grip. It'll surprise you, how good & solid it feels.

 

[MJS]

Wow, that's a tough question. I'd say it depends on how "mechanically inclined" a person is, more than anything else.

I read a book on pistolsmithing many years ago, in which the author took you through an action job on a S&W mod 36 (among other projects). More recently, I read the Kuhnhausen book. Both were very clearly written and I'd say that anyone with reasonable mechanical skills, the right tools, and patience should be able to tackle a revolver action job. It also helps to have a genuine interest in doing the work, not just the desire to get it done as quickly as possible. If that's how a person feels, then paying a gunsmith is probably the better way to go.

That said, I would probably NOT recommend "learning" on a factory-new S&W. I was fortunate enough to have an older model S&W 66 to mess with the first time I removed a sideplate. Although I did not damage anything on that gun, and left it better than I found it, I felt better working on a gun that was NOT new, and had seen some use.

My advice would be to do some searching on Youtube (others here may be able to provide specific links) and watch a few videos before you dive into this. Then you can make an honest self-assessment of your skills and interest in doing the work.

Lou

Thanks Lou.

 

[MJS]

I have a 617 and I've shot thousands of rounds through it. I use a SPEEDBEE speed loader and love it. I have used it with a Burris FastFire III with good success, but I prefer the good ol' reliable iron sights. If you prefer a larger grip, install a X-Frame grip. It'll surprise you, how good & solid it feels.

Mark, what mount did you use for the FastFire? and is your front sight just painted with orange paint?
Thanks Matt

 

[MJS]

Maybe I should have waited and found one with a rear sight.
This came with just a mount so I added the Ultra Dot from my .22 rifle.

That's a good looking set up Matt, how do you like the red dot? what's the dot size?

Thanks Matt

 

[Mark F]

Mark, what mount did you use for the FastFire? and is your front sight just painted with orange paint?
Thanks Matt

Hey Matt,

I used a plan ol' Picatinny for a S&W. They're available everywhere. I bought mine on line for 10.00. Yes, I painted my front sight with Hi-Viz Orange paint. It really helps when using iron sights. Here's a photo of my Burris FastFire II on my 686 Pro Series. The mount is the same. I also use a Red Dot on my 500, same mount on it too.

Mark F

 

[MattJames]

That's a good looking set up Matt, how do you like the red dot? what's the dot size?

Thanks Matt

Thanks..I do like the open red dot. I don't know what the dot size is and couldn't find it referenced anywhere quickly via a google search. It has four different reticules including the dot.
I have another, an Ultradot 6 which has 4 different sized dots 2, 4, 6 and 8 moa. It's a tube style which I did mount on the 617 but I like the reflex style best of the two.

 

[Mark F]

Thanks..I do like the open red dot. I don't know what the dot size is and couldn't find it referenced anywhere quickly via a google search. It has four different reticules including the dot.
I have another, an Ultradot 6 which has 4 different sized dots 2, 4, 6 and 8 moa. It's a tube style which I did mount on the 617 but I like the reflex style best of the two.

Matt,

The mount I use is made by WEIGAND. Here's a photo of it. My Fast Fire II is 3MOA, and my FastFire III is 1MOA. My favorite Reflex sight is my Leupold Deltapoint I use on my 500. It is claimed to withstand 6000G's of shock. So far it has held up great.

 

[SandWAlphabet]

Hello MJS-greets from another fellow Coloradan! I got some Nill's on mine along with a Trijicon red dot and a Wilson Combat spring kit with polished trigger and hammer. Did the spring upgrade and polishing with an FFL buddy of mine to lighten up the trigger a bit and smooth it out some. The grips definitely help me out with my control of the revolver and I have larger hands, so that is another big reason I went with this Nill grip. Very sweet shooter!

 

[one eye joe]

THIS IS MY NEW 4 INCH 617. I SWAPPED OUT MY PATRIDGE FRONT SIGHT FOR A S&W RED RAMP, MY REAR SIGHT FOR A WEIGAND COMBAT OR PPC REAR SIGHT WITH A .125" NOTCHED BLADE, AND A SET OF AHRENDS TACTICAL CONVERSION GRIPS. A PLUG IN THE UGLY HOLE FINISHED THE PACKAGE. THE SIGHTS WERE SWAPPED OUT TO ALLOW FOR QUICKER TARGET AQUISITION. THOSE UGLY GROOVED GOODYEARS DON'T FIT MY HAND AND HURT MY EYES, AS DOES THAT DISFIGURING IL. NO TRIGGER WORK WAS DONE, AS I'M TRYING TO SEE HOW MUCH BETTER IT WILL GET. I HAVE ABOUT 10,000 ROUNDS DOWN THE TUBE AND IT HAS IMPROVED SOMEWHAT. IT'S STILL FAR FROM MY BEST S&W TRIGGER. THAT WOULD BE IN MY 625-3 MODEL OF 1989…….

 

[bbqbob51]

My 617 was great right out of the box; accurate, nice trigger pull and comfortable to shoot. No need to have a trigger job done and I expect it to be even better once I shoot it more. All I have done is get accessories which just add to the fun:

 

[gr7070]

Green fiber optic front sight.

Replaced rear sight blade with a taller one to accommodate taller front sight. Same blade as the 686. Placed it on backwards for all black rear blade for better/faster sight acquisition.

Agrends cocobolo grips.

Light Wolff rebound spring.

Wolff ribbed main spring.

Replaced main spring screw with a set screw. Loc-tited down.

DS-10 speedloader with handle and 2x3 loading block for Steel Challenge.

Ran nearly 6,000 rounds through it. Flawless and fast!

 

[1coolcat]

I love mine..the only problem is, so does the rest of my family.. It is the gun everyone reaches for first at the range. I have been thinking of picking up a 6" ..that way I can shoot too. Every one will say is to heavy..and I'll have it all to my selfish self..lol


http://

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[zidecar]

I just picked up a 617 10 shot from my LGS and I would like to see what you all have done to your 617 and why. So far it's been great

If you had an action job done please list who did the work

I did pick up a Ansac speedloader and 60 round loading block also looking for new grips.

Thanks for your answers and imput

Matt

I have a DS-10 loader with long handle and loading block case. I keep a small screw driver and various allen wrenches for sights & scopes in that case.

I painted the front sight bright orange but only to a depth that matches the height of the notch in the rear sight. This makes aiming simple and direct, i.e., by aligning the orange box in the rear sight notch.

I have a large hand and didn't like the stock rubber grip. I replaced it with a Hogue checkered conversion grip with end cap. The added length of the square conversion grip and end cap feels much more comfortable for my hand. I've attached a pic in case you want to see what it looks like. No changes contemplated for trigger pull or smoothness. I shoot mostly SA. I am thinking about changing to a wider competition hammer, but have yet to act on it.

-- Bill Z.

 

[Macinaw]

Modification: Only if you have sticky extraction problems or are a competition shooter.

Ream the chambers to bring them up to spec. Some leave the mother ship with undersized chambers. Some do not. This is easy to do and has been proven by shooters on the Gun Smith section of this forum. I shoot Steel Challenge twice a month and this modification has helped!

 

[Lief]

Modification: Only if you have sticky extraction problems or are a competition shooter.

Ream the chambers to bring them up to spec. Some leave the mother ship with undersized chambers. Some do not. This is easy to do and has been proven by shooters on the Gun Smith section of this forum. I shoot Steel Challenge twice a month and this modification has helped!

What Macinaw said ... I planned to shoot my 6" in steel challenge so I went to my smith to get a trigger job. He talked me out of it because the only thing lightening the springs would to is create FTF (as mentioned earlier). The action will smooth as you use it and you will not notice the trigger pull after a little bit. What he did say that was very good advice is to check the cylinder holes for roundness and size. Mine were way off so 20 minutes with the reamer and some conversation and I was good to go. I bought the DS-10 speed loaders and the 90 round block. Very cool. Then I thought I would shoot it in an action sport and the DS-10 speed loaders do not set the rounds in fully; the pushers are different lengths so speed reloads on the clock were non-starters. I think it is CA custom that makes the 10-shot speedloaders with equal length pushers.

I already had some DS-10 so I bought some split pins and measured the hole depth in one of the DS-10 bases (they are different). I figured to sacrifice one speedloader to see if I could make them better, since DS-10 did not want to trade me. I fiddled with a drill stop and made them all the same depth and then used the trusty dremel to make appropriately long pins. After inserting the pins I found the center screw was not long enough so I found some right-sized plastic screws to replace them.

I have the long handles and I find that the degree of tightness is important because if it is too tight the loaded rounds spread out (so they will not insert) instead of staying straight. All in all the first one worked so I did the rest. Fun if you like to fiddle in the garage. Great for IDPA or steel madness or some such where you reload on the clock.

I have the safariland speedloader pouches for my 686 and I accidentally found someone who makes 617 10 shot inserts to hold the speedloaders for the K-frame safariland comp-3 pouches. Of course I have the L-frame but I got some anyway and they work. Sweet.

As mentioned above; this is a favorite gun. I had a dot on it for a while but am back to the stock irons, which are fast and good for me.

 

[Ranger98]

Removed the lock and changed the grips

 

[MJS]

A BIG Thank you to all who replied with comments and pictures of your 617's I really appreciate it.
For now I think I will just shoot it and continue with the dry fire with the #4 drywall inserts, but new grips are a definite, now I just have to decide which ones

 

[DS-10-SPEED]

10-shot speedloaders with equal length pushers.

The very first (DS-10-SPEED) loaders I made 9 years ago had equal length pins, some shooters mentioned they were too hard to push. The reason they were changed was the reduce the loading force. I always recommend holding the cylinder when loading even with the new loaders, this takes the pressure off the spring loaded crane screw that can be broken or damaged with repeated excessive force. I do not recommend using equal length pins unless you firmly hold the cylinder while loading. Staggered length push pins reduces the loading force by 50%.

I have 3 617's that work great with speedloaders as far as the rounds going in all the way, they have never had the cylinders reamed. I have heard of some having tight cylinders and heard the finishing reamer fixed the problem.

 

[JWT]

I have not modified the gun, but have purchased the following equipment from Shooters Connection for use in our club's steel matches: Blade-Tech DOH/Sting Ray Holster, North Mountain Ansac Speed Loader Holders, and Ansac Speed Loaders with Speed Loader Block. the speed loaders are more expensive than similar plastic models, but they are worth it! They are machined out of aluminum with stainless steel drive pins that set the rounds flush in the cylinder without having to "wiggle" the speed loader to line up the rounds. The center bolt that holds it together is carbon steel, which also is used to hold it secure to the North Mountain Speed Loader Holder's magnetic center pin. It's a great system.

 

[MJS]

I have not modified the gun, but have purchased the following equipment from Shooters Connection for use in our club's steel matches: Blade-Tech DOH/Sting Ray Holster, North Mountain Ansac Speed Loader Holders, and Ansac Speed Loaders with Speed Loader Block. the speed loaders are more expensive than similar plastic models, but they are worth it! They are machined out of aluminum with stainless steel drive pins that set the rounds flush in the cylinder without having to "wiggle" the speed loader to line up the rounds. The center bolt that holds it together is carbon steel, which also is used to hold it secure to the North Mountain Speed Loader Holder's magnetic center pin. It's a great system.
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Thanks for your reply, and yes the Ansac speed loaders are awesome, for now I only have one but someday I'll buy another one

Matt