686 no dash question

[sanger1977]

Hi everyone, I just picked up a 686 no dash from a member on this forum and have a question. First, this is my first revolver. I have several slide guns including a few Gen 3 's that
I love. The gentleman that I purshased this from said that it has only had about 18 rounds through the pipe. His relative bought this brand new and after he passed away, he sold the gun for the family. I talked to S&W and they told me it was manufactured in 1987. The original wood grips have the date of March 6 1987. On the bottom of the grips, on the outside, there is a sticker with the number 11. See photo. I have no idea what this sticker is. Does anyone out there have any ideas.

 

[DDDWho]

My guess is its an inspectors sticker. It should peel right off. Ruger puts small colored dots on guns that I know are inspection stickers. The fact it is still there confirms its light usage.

 

[Gunner4640]

May I ask where you found the date on the grips? I have the same model no dash 686 Thanks

 

[butchkent]

Sounds great to me. Hope you plan to fix the problem with lack of use. These are great shooting guns. Have one myself and wouldn't consider letting it go. Strong, smooth and accurate. Enjoy!

 

[Hillbilly77]

May I ask where you found the date on the grips? I have the same model no dash 686 Thanks

Remove the grips and the date should be stamped somewhere on the inside of them.

 

[surveyor_nm]

Gunner,
Check inside the stocks...date should be inked there...right stock IIRC.

Bill Mahnke
SWCA #1915

 

[silvershot]

Awesome first revolver no doubt.

I always find that ads or people that claim low rounds fired to be mostly untrue. Not saying your seller lied I'm just saying it's easy to white lie about rounds fired for any firearm. When I see ads like this I always ask myself why in the hell do these people even buy firearms if they are not going to shoot them? Then I remember my dad who buys a new corvette every 3-4 years and only drives them a few thousands miles. So either you are getting a firearm that has been shoot a lot more times than said or you are getting the truth and most who buy something and rarely use it obviously take great care of that item.

The 11 sticker is meaningless as are some of the stampings on the gun itself.

Have fun!

 

[amazingflapjack]

Some 686 no dashes had a minor recall-you may want to contact S&W for verification. If the recall has been done, there should be a "C" stamped on the frame, inside the crane area. They will pick the gun up and perform the service at no charge if it needs it, as far as I remember.

 

[surveyor_nm]

C or M?

Bill Mahnke
SWCA #1915

 

[S&W Fan]

Just goes to show that with S&W you never know. The no dash was supposed to have ended in 1986 when the "-1" came out. If it went back for the retrofit it would have an "M" stamped in the crane cut-out section of the frame. The "C" was marked in red on the boxes of 624s that had the cylinder metal issue.

Here's my 686 no dash I inherited from my father. He bought it new in July of 1981 (I have the original box, papers, tools & receipt), sent it in for the modification as he had issues with some ammo binding. You can see the marking in the second photo. Great revolvers, seems like lately there's a big uptick in interest in the L frames.

 

[greenmachine]

Sanger1977, you chose a fine first revolver. Don't worry how many rounds have been through it, take it out and shoot it, a bunch.

S&W Fan,I also have a 686 no-dash in the AAB serial number range, although mine is a 6". I believe these are first year production specimens. The date on my original stocks is simply '2 80'.

 

[Hillbilly77]

Some 686 no dashes had a minor recall-you may want to contact S&W for verification. If the recall has been done, there should be a "C" stamped on the frame, inside the crane area. They will pick the gun up and perform the service at no charge if it needs it, as far as I remember.

C or M?

Bill Mahnke
SWCA #1915

On the L-frame recall, it will be an "M" stamped between the S/N and the Model #.
It affected the no-dash and the -1 models.