Beating a dead horse? 686 no M

[Retired W4]

I have a fairly early 4” 686 (AAR) that was pretty much unmolested/unused when I bought/traded for it. After taking possession last year I have put a few rounds of .357 magnum and a few rounds of .38 special+P through it with no problem. It’s not been back to S&W for the recall work, and their customer service rep said they had no record of that serial number. They did, however send me a shipping label which is still nearby. Here is where we get into beating the dead horse. I have been keeping the gun in the drawer by my front door as a self-defense weapon. What is the recommendation? Should I shoot it some more with .357 to see if I can generate a possible problem, or just send it to S&W for the recall work? I believe I was the first to fire this gun outside the factory.

I know this has been discussed here in the past, but I would like to hear the latest opinions on the subject by those who have experience with these guns.

 

[sbeatty1983]

My 686 has not had the recall work done either. I have shot quite a few very hot magnum reloads through mine using Win Federal and CCI primers. I can not get it to malfunction so Im not even worried about sending it back. My carry ammo is loaded with CCI 550 primers though instead of federal. If you are nervous about your 686 send it back

 

[diamonback68]

I'm of the old school, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

[DDDWho]

S&W recalled early 686's for a reason. Although reports of malfunctions are scarce if there is a possibility of some sort of problem I want to have the work done. I want to eliminate any potential problem before it happens because if it happens I don't want to be in a situation where proper operation of the gun is critical.

As to effecting resale value... I seriously doubt it.

 

[Retired W4]

S&W recalled early 686's for a reason. Although reports of malfunctions are scarce if there is a possibility of some sort of problem I want to have the work done. I want to eliminate any potential problem before it happens because if it happens I don't want to be in a situation where proper operation of the gun is critical.

As to effecting resale value... I seriously doubt it.

I'm glad you brought up the point of resale, because I have thought about that too. I am not particularly attached to this gun. To me it's a tool. A really nice tool, but a tool. Resale value of an original condition gun may or may not be affected. Don't know. Last weekend I traded a 6" 586 no dash for a 4" 586-1 (M) with some boot money to me. The fact that it had the recall work done did give me a little bit of warm and fuzzy. It comes down to confidence some times. When sbeatty1983 mentioned the word nervous I mentially resisted the term, but I guess that's what it is. Diamondback68 makes a great point too.

I guess I'll put a 13-2 or a 65-2 in the drawer, and shoot the 686 until I feel confident in it, OR it jams up.

Open to any other thoughts.

 

[chief38]

I bought a M586 (blued sister) when they first came onto the market in the early 80's. I shot the heck out of it with all kinds of ammo - NEVER had a problem. Got the recall notice, sent the gun back to Smith for modification, shot the heck out of it and still never had any problems.


Chief38

 

[BUFF]

I bought 2 new Model 686's when they were first introduced. My 6 incher has never choked on anything. My 4 incher experienced the lock-up that prompted the "M" fix, but it only did it with some makes and individual loadings of Magnums and not with others.

S&W did not know about the problem yet, and when I shipped it back to them, they returned it saying nothing was wrong with the gun, it was bad ammunition. One man I spoke with at the factory said it was Winchester's Silvertips causing the trouble but my gun worked well with that. The same ammunition that locked up the 686 was fine in my K and N frame Magnums, so I didn't believe it. S&W eventually found that there was a problem (firing pin and bushing in bolt face of the frame), and developed the fix. This was in 1985, from my notes on my guns.

As has been said by others here, not all early L frames experienced the problem, and oddly, the guns that did have it did not all have trouble with the same ammunition.

There is always some risk to sending a gun in to be serviced. It can be damaged or lost during shipping, or the repairman may flub up the job and mess up your gun. While I have never had S&W's service department do bad work, others have experienced this, although it isn't the normal outcome.

If your gun is going to be a problem with a particular loading, you will know it within the first 50 rounds of that loading, and probably sooner. One solution is to always buy 2 boxes of your "for serious" ammo (even the same lot number) and then shoot up one box in the subject gun to test the compatibility of the gun and that loading. The remaining 50 rounds should last you a very long time if you are just using them for emergencies, unless you live in a truly bad neighborhood! You should do this with any gun you want to have work, anyway. When the orks are kicking in your door or you have the buck of a lifetime in your sights are bad times to discover your gun and ammo don't like each other.

S&W wouldn't be making the repair and bearing the expenses if the problem was imaginary. Only you can decide if the problem is a problem for you, though.

 

[steamloco76]

I believe BUFF just gave the definitive answer to the M mod question.

 

[mball]

If you are using it for anything other than a range gun I think you should send it back. It's free and if they see any other problems they will address those too. Just my opinion.