Dale has his N frames set up exactly how I've set up all of my revolvers with the exception of my 620. IMO a 9 lbs. DA trigger is perfectly reliable with any ammunition and very easy to shoot well with. However, since my 620 features a lighter Service hammer, I've managed to take the DA trigger down to 8 lbs. without any reliability or accuracy loss.
Now, about the frame mounted firing pins. One aspect of the new system is that it's comprized of the firing pin and a small rebound spring for the firing pin. This provides a bit more access to features that allow tuning for increased reliability with a lightened trigger.
One thing that should be noted is that with the factory or aftermarket firing pins the hammer will NOT drive the firing pin to it's forward limit of travel. To some extent there is a reliance on the inertia of the firing pin itself to insure a good strike on the primer. If you want to see this first hand take a toothpick an push the firing pin forward while the hammer is cocked and compare that position relative to the recoil shield to the position set with the hammer fully forward in the frame.
I'll also note that the "long" version by Cylinder and Slide has the same overall length as the factory pin, what is different is that the travel notch for the retaining pin is longer by at least 1/64 inch. This means that it can travel a bit deeper into the primer during the ignition strike. When I first installed one of these extended travel pins in my 610-3 I noticed that 30% of the primers in fired casings showed dark and there had been gas leakage. Further examination under 10 X magnification showed that the primers had microscopic cracking in the dimples. As a result, I would NOT recomend the usage of this firing pin with the factory mainspring power, there may be a small potential for a pierced primer with the firing pin stuck in it. However, once I had lighted the trigger on the 610 to 9 lbs. installing this firing pin caused a notable increase in accuracy with the lighter trigger, group sizes were nearly cut in half and they lost the tendacy to string vertically.
As for reliability issues, in almost every case of reliability problems it's been reported with just one caliber. That caliber is the 45ACP and it almost always seems to be the model 625 that has problems, most likely due to the popularity of the 625. I suspect that a large part of the cause is due to the interface between the moon clips combined with an ammunition that features a thinner rebated rim. If the chambers in the cylinder are set for a headspace dimension at or near maximum depth the predictable result would be that thin moon clips used with a thin rimmed casing will result in a round sitting just a bit too deep for reliable ignition.
The only other reliability issue of note took place with the model 620 and it's was a European Police agency that had been forced to change from using Fiochi range ammo to the Speer Lawman Cleanfire using lead free primers due to environmental concerns. The department Amorer posted here for help and the consensus was to change the firing pins to those offered by Apex or Cylinder & Slide. Since then that Amorer hasn't posted the results.
Summng it up, the reliability issues with this system seem to be tied to just one model, the 625 in 45ACP. In that case I think that it's a very real concern because about a year back there was a real flood of complaints on this forum. Since then the complaints seem to have dried up, perhaps because S&W is now boring the chambers a bit shallower for the headspace dimension. It may also because the word has spread and those with this model are installing aftermarket pins before the first shot fired because it's a very easy change to make. Bottomline, it may not be perfect but it's a design that is very very easy to correct.
PS, final note of caution. Cylinder & Slide specifically instructs than ALL dry firing with their pin MUST be done using Snap Caps. IMO ALL of the guns that feature a frame mounted firing pin should have snap caps used for any dryfiring. That small retaining pin could get bent or shatter if snap caps aren't used and the only way to remove a damaged retaining pin would be via the EDM machining process, most likely a 100 to 150 dollar charge. Bottomline, if you aren't using Snap Caps you'll probablly come to regret it and I don't care what the manual says, you can hear the firing pin clang off that retaining pin if you listen for it.
. Plus if I was Apex - everything that I done or Sold would be better than anyone else.
