I've gone Revolver Mad - Model 29 and 686+!

[S&WForty]

I last posted here:

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-re...1-model-625-vs-models-29-629-lgs-pricing.html

On 12/20, I picked up a new 29-10 4" Blue Steel. I fell in love! I finally shot it on Thursday (26th). I don't have an official range report. I was shooting with my dad, and we also shot his very old Ruger .44 Magnum (not sure if it is a Redhawk or not). My dad likes throwing the target to 9-10 yds. I can't see where I hit, so there was no rhyme or reason as we took turns shooting. I'd reel the target back to 4.5 yds for my shots! We shot .44 Special and of course .44 Magnums. I am a little surprised that the kick was not that bad. His Ruger has a longer barrel, and it didn't kick as much as the 29.

Time to back-track. Christmas Eve morning from 3:30-5:30 am, my dog had gotten on the bed, and had her nose smack up against the back of my head. After her breathing in my hair for 5 minutes, it was turning into a form of Chinese water torture. Inhale cold. Exhale warm and muggy! There went my sleep. I laid there and had visions of getting a holster for the M29 4"! It was just mesmerizing me. IMO, the proportions of the 4" barrel is perfect for that frame. It wasn't a 6.5" Dirty Harry, but it just seemed perfect.

I figured my LGS would be open part of Christmas Eve, and I would check out their holsters after work. Then I thought, "How will this blue finish last in a holster? This is supposed to be a novelty and fun gun, not to ever be carried. Are you crazy?" Then I thought, "Maybe it's time for a 586/686? I wonder what's the shortest barrel on a new 586?" Before I fell back to sleep, I knew my return visit would be more revolver hunting and not holster hunting!

I rushed to the LGS when work shut down early Christmas Eve, but they were already closed. On the 26th, I went there as soon as I could. As I scanned the display case, there was the very thing I had decided was my next gotta-have. A 686+ 2.5" barrel! I brought it home! A 686 3" or 4" was the first "real" revolver I ever shot, and I deep down always wanted one. When we got a M67 for my mom, I figured it was so close to a 686, I just would skip over .357 Magnum and go straight to .44 Magnum. Honestly, the 686 puts a bigger grin on my face than the M29!

So, the 686+ and M29 went to the range and met the Ruger. Fun was had. I had not been home from the range an hour when I got a call. I recognized the number - my LGS. "What on earth do they want?" I answered and was told, "Sir, you're not going to believe this, but on today's truck, we got one of those Dirty Harry 6.5" Model 29's you wanted. After you expressed an interest, the boss put in an order for one."

I called my buddy - the one that always wanted a 4" Model 29. He had told me last week, "Get the 4". When the day comes and you find a 6", I'll buy the 4"." Upon learning the news, he said, "YES, I'll buy your 4". GO GET IT THE BIG ONE!"

This morning, as soon as the LGS opened, I got the Dirty Harry Model 29 I had been after! For a few days, I'll have two Model 29s. I'll take it to the range and try to give a more formal range report. My buddy treats all range trips like drills.

The three new pieces are shown in the pic, and my girl claimed the 686 last night. What's hers is hers, and what's mine is hers, too! (no cats were shot in the making of the second photo )


Tupperware may have brought me to the party, but I'm going home with a revolver.

 

[shawn mccarver]

Nice little doggie.

 

[Laketime]

If it were me out of the three I would sell the 686 , if you could only keep two of them. I would remove the locks and install the plugs. Then I would buy a couple sets of re- pro cokes from Nill grips. Beautiful 29"s you picked up.

 

[snubbyfan]

Your doggie pic made my wife go awww.

 

[S&WForty]

If it were me out of the three I would sell the 686 , if you could only keep two of them. I would remove the locks and install the plugs. Then I would buy a couple sets of re- pro cokes from Nill grips. Beautiful 29"s you picked up.

Thank you! Does removing the locks mess with the S&W warranty? Is it a gunsmith job or DIY? (I've never had a gun apart.)

That dog is BOSS. Most people call them furkids/furbabies. I think mine is a furwife. I wait on her hand and foot. And she still gives me dirty looks if I don't do something just right!

So, I got even. I got a second rescue in October. He is a "coated" GSD and outweighs her by 20+ lbs. She now spends most of her time telling him she is Alpha. He looks at her the way she looks at me (unimpressed!) Best of all, she's a lot more appreciative of Daddy now that another canine is hoarding in on her turf.

I guess those M29s could be His and Hers for them. Hehe.

 

[shawn mccarver]

Removal of the lock is only a DIY job IF you have all the right tools, and IF you know your way around the inside of an S&W and HOW to properly remove and replace the necessary internals to do the job. Permanent damage can be done if it is not done correctly, including to the sideplate. Without proper tools, screws WILL be damaged and you will unnecessarily ruin a fine revolver.

The GSD is as fine a dog as there is (I am on my fourth), and they are somewhat playful, sensitive (they seem to get their feelings hurt easily), and they are fiercely territorial to strangers and protective to loved ones. They are easier to train than many other breeds and they shed. A Dyson "Animal" is a necessary piece of household equipment.

My GSD, Ziva, gets a monthly day trip to the doggie-spa, an anti-shed treatment that actually helps, and she comes home smelling of the finest (probably imported - haha) doggie "parfum."

Ziva is a "plush coat" and is truly prissy. She disdains mud and to her, the only purpose of the outdoors is to use the bathroom, or for her walks/exercise.

Sorry for the momentary distraction from guns to dogs.

 

[S&WForty]

Thanks for the lock advice! Ziva is gorgeous! My male thinks of the outdoors the same as her. My female is on a crusade to rid the world of squirrels! It's hard to keep her still indoors. She's always looking out the door for the tree rats!

 

[skiwesson]

I have # 29 that I got like 25 years ago & just recently (last month)couldnt decide about the 686plus or a Ruger Gp100,when I went to the LGS they had both,oh no,couldnt decide so I got both ,all 3 are 6" ,also had my eyes on a M&P 9pro ,so 2 weeks ago went back & got that,now awaiting for the Apex trigger kit,the revolvers feel like real guns ,the M&p feels like a toy compared at least for me.

 

[S&WForty]

the revolvers feel like real guns ,the M&p feels like a toy compared at least for me.

That's the feeling these revolvers are giving me. I still love my Shield, and I'll continue to carry it, but it just doesn't have the personality of the 686 or the 29s.