686-3 questions

[rforgy]

I just picked up a 686-3 in trade and have a couple questions.

Ser # BBD93XX, when was it made?

It has a Black Flute-less cylinder, is this normal or did someone paint it? Can I remove the paint and have it match the rest of the gun, it is a stainless 6".

 

[Torakan]

Cant comment as to its date of manufacture, but since the sights are not factory and the hammer has been jewelled i'm thinking the cylinder was changed at some point. I'm also pretty sure S&W did'nt offer a non fluted cylinder on the 686-3. Looks to me to be a competition gun.

 

[kinar]

It looks just like a 686-3 Classic Hunter that I own, except yours appears to have been modified. Flute-less cyl, same, but mine is still SS. Plus on mine the front sight is the std S&W insert ramp style, and there is no "art work" <G>. BTW, my S/N is BDRXXXX. The Classic Hunter with unfluted cylinders were made in the 686 & 629 series, there may have been others but these I have seen & owned. Hope this helps, k

 

[kinar]

Just a little more info, from my notes on the 686-3 Classic Hunter: It should date between 1988 and 1993, also it seems that (data varies?) there should have been some 5 to 7.5 thousand Classic Hunters (of all dash numbers) produced. I'm sure there is much more exact numbers and info out there, but that is what I found when I checked on mine.

 

[AveragEd]

I have a 6" 686-3 with an unfluted cylinder. The box label lists "unfluted cyl" under "Features" but there is no mention of "Classic Hunter." Roy Jinks advised me that there were several different unfluted 686-3s made, all with different SKUs, that differed in sights, grips and (I'm guessing) barrel length as well as other things. There were three 686-3s made with my gun's SKU (black ramp front sight, black rear sight blade and checkered Goncalo Alves target stocks) and something like 5,700 in total.

Ed

 

[rforgy]

Thanks everyone, yes it has been modified, trigger job, sights and ??

Guess I will try removing the black from the cylinder since it doesn't seem to have come that way. It is scratched up and needs to be removed.