Just out of curiosity...?

[Art Doc]

So many threads about recent acquisitions start off with "this gun has zero end-shake and locks up like a bank vault."

Has anyone ever bought a used S&W that wasn't tight? I never have. I've had guns made from 1917 to the 1990s and all decades in between and none, no matter how much wear or abuse was evident, were loose.

I suppose the 44 and 41 Magnums could shoot loose if one were able to shoot them enough (I can't) but it seems most of these comments regard a 38 Special revolver of some model variation. Has anyone ever seen a 38 S&W that was "shot loose?"

 

[diamonback68]

I agree Dr. Pig. I find some of the descriptive comments like that sort of humorous. Besides the 41s and 44s the only other possibility would be J-frame 357s.

 

[SLT223]

There's a guy on youtube who goes by "Hickok45". He has a whole channel dedicated to shooting many different guns in his backyard range. He's an older guy, and a big S&W fan.

One of his guns is an M29-2, 8 3/8" he bought new in '73 or '74. The trigger pin finally broker this year. He claims he has about 70,000 rounds through it. There is footage of him hitting a gong at 230 yards with this gun.

 

[palmetto99]

Yesterday, I came across a 5 screw M&P that was loose as could be. At a glance it looked pretty nice, but the re-blue job wasn't that good. The trigger and hammer had been blued too. It was a 5" barrel and the price was low, but the old girl wasn't worth it.

By the way, my model 15 doesn't lock up all that tight, but still shoots very well.

 

[boykinlp]

Besides the 41s and 44s the only other possibility would be J-frame 357s.

If you are talking about shooting your hand loose from your arm, I agree. Especially with the scandium models.

 

[Vulcan Bob]

Oh yeah, loose, out of time, ringed barrel's ect, been there done that! If you buy enough used revolver's you will have this. One of my best/worse example's of this was a sight unseen 625 Model of 1989 purchase. Holy smoke's the old owner must have shot all of the speed shooting game's and it suffered just about all of the malady's you could think of along with some home gunsmithing, it did have a good bore! With a little work it turned into one of my best shooter's. The only revolver's I've seen that lock's up like a bank vault are in time Colt's.

 

[sw282]

si----------

 

[deanodog]

I saw a 38/44 that was bad loose. The biggest barrel/cyl gap I have seen.

 

[Tom K]

Freedom Arms

.... The only revolver's I've seen that lock's up like a bank vault are in time Colt's.

You want bank vault, try a Freedom Arms revolver. As tight as a vault, and as strong. It gives me a visceral thrill to thumb back the hammer on my .454 and hear/feel the working of precision machinery. It's a slightly different kind of thrill when the trigger is pulled.

By the way, the very sloppiest gun I own is a Colt, an old 1878 DA. The cylinder fairly rattles on the base pin, both laterally and end to end. I put in an oversize .253 base pin from Brownell's and that helped some, but it's still pretty loose - really need one that's about .256. If the cylinder is pushed back against the recoil shield, barrel/cylinder gap is about .09. I've bought some black powder .45 Colt ammo, but I haven' tried shooting it yet. Someday....

 

[Gary7]

If my Colt Trooper and Detective Special are the definition of "locks up like a bank vault," then no S&W revolver I own or have ever handled "locks up like a bank vault." But that's a function of design differences. A "factory new" S&W revolver has always been relatively "loose" compared to a Colt, and all my S&W revolvers are acceptably tight for a S&W but relatively loose when compared to my Colts.

 

[29aholic]

My original 29-3 is shot pretty loose, a little out time...but it still shoots good. I recently looked at a mid 70's 29-2 that looked brand new. It barely had any indication of a turn line and no other wear of any kind. Bad thing was it is SO out of time it's bizarre!!! I have NEVER seen a revolver that bad!!!

 

[Duke426]

So many threads about recent acquisitions start off with "this gun has zero end-shake and locks up like a bank vault."

Has anyone ever bought a used S&W that wasn't tight? I never have. I've had guns made from 1917 to the 1990s and all decades in between and none, no matter how much wear or abuse was evident, were loose.

I suppose the 44 and 41 Magnums could shoot loose if one were able to shoot them enough (I can't) but it seems most of these comments regard a 38 Special revolver of some model variation. Has anyone ever seen a 38 S&W that was "shot loose?"

Yep, one cylinder full of +P will do that to a k-frame S&W.

Just kidding you

 

[BUFF]

I have seen brand new, old stock S&W handguns that timed poorly and had a lot of cylinder rotation slop (sideways) before they had been fired outside of the factory. I think that some fitters were just in too big a hurry when they put the guns together.

 

[Texas Star]

I have seen brand new, old stock S&W handguns that timed poorly and had a lot of cylinder rotation slop (sideways) before they had been fired outside of the factory. I think that some fitters were just in too big a hurry when they put the guns together.

This was almost chronic in the Bangor-Punta years.

A Dallas detective (who also made excellent Gaylord style holsters) used to trade in his used snub M-19's to a local shop. I saw 2-3, all with significant endshake. I think he shot a lot...

The USAF cited looseness and other issues with their M-15 .38's when used with their Plus P ammo. They were begging for 9mm's until the M-9 was adopted. Most of the .38's had been rebuilt several times.

T-Star

 

[44wheelman]

I had a 629 with so much endshake, the cylinder would drag on the barrel. This gun looked like new.

Some of my S&Ws lock up very tight with little discernable rotational travel of the cylinder with the trigger pulled, others .010" .020, some even .030" of motion.

I understand the comment. I have single actions (TLA's), that when the hammer is cocked, there is no movement- none.

 

[Vulcan Bob]

You want bank vault, try a Freedom Arms revolver. As tight as a vault, and as strong. It gives me a visceral thrill to thumb back the hammer on my .454 and hear/feel the working of precision machinery. It's a slightly different kind of thrill when the trigger is pulled.

By the way, the very sloppiest gun I own is a Colt, an old 1878 DA. The cylinder fairly rattles on the base pin, both laterally and end to end. I put in an oversize .253 base pin from Brownell's and that helped some, but it's still pretty loose - really need one that's about .256. If the cylinder is pushed back against the recoil shield, barrel/cylinder gap is about .09. I've bought some black powder .45 Colt ammo, but I haven' tried shooting it yet. Someday....

Tom K, sorry I should have said DA revolver. You are right those Freedom Arm's gun's do lock up!

 

[GF]

Yep I did.

Bought a Mod 10 at a gunshow, my fault for not checking closer, draw the hammer back and the cylinder would move side to side and then unlock.

Took it back to the gunshow and sold it to some poor unsuspecting soul at a $50 profit.....

No I didn't. Just kidding.

I just broke even.

GF

 

[ScottJ]

The 28-2 I'm saving to buy from a friend has conisiderably more end shake than my 629-3 I've had since new and my 66-3 I bought from the original purchaser with less than 200 rounds through it.

But I plan to buy it anyway because of what it is and my friendship with its current owner.

If it shoots good as-is then great. If not then I'll put a shim it in.

I just hope I can sell off enough of these hoarded car parts out of my garage to raise the funds before the end of the year.

 

[NFrameFred]

I've seen quite a few loose ones over the years (usually on tables at gun shows where someone hopes to lure the uneducated) but as far as everyone making the statement when they try to sell a revolver, that's one of the first questions a lot of prospective buyers ask, even when I suspect they really don't what it means or how to check for it - they've just read enough here to know it must be bad and they should ask about it . . . .

I'd say 98% or better of S&W's I've seen that were made after 1950 have been pretty tight guns. YMMV

 

[madmikeb]

I Have a 29-2 I bought new in 1980 that has seen a lot of use, been back to the factory and overhauled and refinished twice, once with a broken trigger stud and the other time it went way out of time, I'm not really sure what the problem was. It does have some end shake now so I keep it for light to mid-range loads.