I think the advantages or disadvantages to having either would be minuscule. I prefer a revolver with flutes, but that is just aesthetics. The reason I picked the Pietta 1860 Army clone I bought back in the '90s was because it has flutes.
686 Cylinder; Fluted or Unfluted
- Thread starter RMS272829
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To me the Classic Hunter is the best looking of all the modern Smiths from the very first one that's on the cover of The 1987 Handgun Quarterly Magazine "The Mystery Magnum" Through some of the last series in the year 2000 before the internal lock.
Tom
Tom
cgt4570
Member
Unfluted adds just a little bit of additional weight to help tame recoil in magnum chamberings or snubs. I personally like the look. I've upgraded several of mine to unfluted, while keeping the original fluted cylinders in the safes.
Yendor357
Member
They put a full lug under the barrel. Put that front sight on it. Didn’t flute the cylinder. Then they called it a Classic? It wasn’t a bad gun, buy why call it a classic? There was nothing classic about it.
This thread was started out specifically about a 686 then got derailed (which often happens, which is ok).
If I remember correctly, the unfluted cylinder started on the 29/629 when Silhouette shooting had its flash in the pan. The idea was to try to keep the cylinder from rotating backwards upon recoil, which the heavier cylinder actually had the opposite effect. Smith eventually came out with the the enhanced, or endurance (whatever they called it) packages.
This thread was started out specifically about a 686 then got derailed (which often happens, which is ok).
If I remember correctly, the unfluted cylinder started on the 29/629 when Silhouette shooting had its flash in the pan. The idea was to try to keep the cylinder from rotating backwards upon recoil, which the heavier cylinder actually had the opposite effect. Smith eventually came out with the the enhanced, or endurance (whatever they called it) packages.
If you look closely on the pinned front sight in my pic, you'll see that it's an SDM Super Sight. Check them out...it works well and they're relatively cheap ($28).
SDM Fabricating Home
i like their SDM Gold Bead Sight.
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I have fluted and unfluted cylinders in both .357M and .44M revolvers, 3" barrels. The unfluted cylinders tend to be a bit sticky in holsters, in comparison. On the other hand, they tend to be a higher grade of fit and finish.
bananaman
Member
Thepreparer
Member
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-BTM-
Member
The classic hunter is my favorite pistol, but S&W has put out so many unfluted versions it has kinda lost its distinction. Nobody remembers it as a 1 in 5000.
Mine was tuned at the Bill Davis service center way back when.
Mine was tuned at the Bill Davis service center way back when.
Doug M.
Member
I have a 25-7 5", which IIRC is my only unfluted revolver. I like it for other reasons. I doubt the flutes make much difference. I dislike the full lug barrels, which started on the 581/586/681/686 models as a purely cosmetic effort to compete with the Python. To me, a solution in search of a problem.
I most certainly do. I have a lot of research tied up in them.
Those 5000 are the original Classic Hunter that Smith & Wesson introduced in the fall of 1987 it was called the Mystery Magnum and let readers compete for a chance to win one by sending in names suggestions and the name that was wound up chosen was the Classic Hunter and Lew Horton ordered 5000 of them
This thread reminds me about the guy that said the only Pickup truck worth having was the Ford F-150, because his dad drove one and his grandpa drove one and there was no reason to have a 4 wheel drive.......
GypsmJim
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Some of the Ruger Convertibles have one cylinder fluted and the other caliber unfluted. That's really neat because at a glance I can see what caliber I have.
An engraved unfluted cylinder looks really cool.
Fluted single action revolvers are cool because they look like cowboy guns.
Brass framed black powder revolvers with unfluted cylinders look really cool.
I have to say I like em both.
An engraved unfluted cylinder looks really cool.
Fluted single action revolvers are cool because they look like cowboy guns.
Brass framed black powder revolvers with unfluted cylinders look really cool.
I have to say I like em both.
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