New S&W quality

[sportbikeco]

Ordered a 686+ deluxe, barrel was just off center enough to bug me and I declined the transfer (big box store, they didn't care).

Had them pull a few from the case to compare, a new 610 which seems almost straight enough but had flashing up on the top (from setting barrel to length) on top in the sight grooves where it meets the frame.

A bit of variance in ejector shroud gap between the samples.

A 627PC on hand was straight as any of my vintage pistols, the 69 2.75" i ordered same time also looked great and came home as intended.

Seems Smith lacking a bit on QC maybe due to demand but a bit concerning at the price points of these "entry level" and now traditional construction revolvers.

 

[jughed440]

The buyers of S&W firearms have become the QC department.
Corporate S&W has chosen to eliminate their QC dept. and gamble on whether the buyer will notice or care enough to return a defective firearm for repair or replacement.

 

[smithman]

The buyers of S&W firearms have become the QC department.
Corporate S&W has chosen to eliminate their QC dept. and gamble on whether the buyer will notice or care enough to return it for repair or replacement.

Sounds like Taurus.

 

[shocker]

So, there are small variations in mass produced items, none of which affect the function. Shrug.
S&W will make more than 2 million guns this fiscal year, or about 6000 a day. Think about it.

 

[jughed440]

So, there are small variations in mass produced items, none of which affect the function. Shrug.
S&W will make more than 2 million guns this fiscal year, or about 6000 a day. Think about it.

I don't think anybody would care if we were talking about $10 box fans made in china, but a 686?
If they make that many guns they could at least afford a few more employees to look them over better.

 

[smoothshooter]

Sounds like Taurus.

I believe Taurus puts out a better product than Smith does, and has for several years.
This is coming from an S&W guy.

 

[uncleted327]

The point is a slighty offset barrel will not have an effect on its performance. I've seen plenty of older Smith's that aren't perfect either. You're not buying a collector's item. It's a gun that's meant to be used. I'm tired of these posts that nitpick every single tiny thing and make a mole hill into a mountain. Smith's aren't any worse than any other companies offerings and are better than most, despite people trying to make it sound otherwise.

 

[357 shooter]

I sure wouldn't pay for a new car where the body panels didn't like up flush and straight even though it does not affect the drivability of the car. Too much willingness to accept shoddiness in manufacturing.

But I imagine there are still a lot more pleased new Smith buyers than unhappy ones.

 

[Endshake]

Unfortunately, this is the state of manufacturing in this country. It isn't unique to S&W. Once a company becomes publicly traded, it's philosophy of operation becomes predictable.
Many say that these firearms are "tools", so that level of quality doesn't matter, as long as it "works". Strangely enough, when these companies built their reputations, I dare say these guns were more important as tools than they are now. And yet the quality was there. There were many gun companies back then that didn't exhibit the quality of the Smiths, Colts, and Winchesters. They are simply gone and forgotten.
Maybe it's a coincidence that the days of such products were also the days of the United States becoming a world power and a country of greatness unlike any other.
Welcome to the age of mediocrity.

 

[cometpx4]

New S&W Revolvers

Ok, let's not nit pick. How about the last 2 new revolvers i bought wouldn't ignite the primers on ever other cylinder ? Not "hard" primers, any primers. And it wasn't the strain screw being loose.
How about sights falling out on $1200 guns ?
How about the cylinder out of time and blow back into shooters face ?
How about barrel/frame gaps i could slide a credit card thru ?
Their new stuff is assembled like ****, with good materials but to the point that it often,not always affects function
Just facts

 

[bob finger]

I'll post a contrary view. My recent purchase of a now discontinued 625-8 (probably one of the last ones made?) is flawless. I have zero complaints. It is more accurate than I can shoot and has been 100% dependable. That is more than I can say for myself. Maybe I was just lucky. bob

 

[cometpx4]

New S&W Revolvers

Bob, like I said, not every revolver will have issues. Some will be ok. But 20 years ago, even 10 years ago I am pretty sure that Smith revolvers actually went off when the shooter pulled the trigger. You definitely got lucky

 

[BLUEDOT37]

A 627PC on hand was straight as any of my vintage pistols, the 69 2.75" i ordered same time also looked great and came home as intended.

FWIW, the two-piece barrel revolvers (like your M69) have largely been immune to the canted sight/barrel issue due to the fact that their shrouds (& front sights) are indexed to the frame and not subject to under/over clocking that's too often found on the one-piece barrels.

I agree though, in this day & age, there's no reason why S&W shouldn't have an apparatus to connect to a revolver, as they tighten a barrel to the frame, that reads out the degree of cant from true vertical.

Doesn't seem like rocket science.

.

 

[shocker]

I sure wouldn't pay for a new car where the body panels didn't like up flush and straight even though it does not affect the drivability of the car. Too much willingness to accept shoddiness in manufacturing.

But I imagine there are still a lot more pleased new Smith buyers than unhappy ones.

Interesting that the most valuable car company in the world by far, has a terrible reputation for quality. Buyers don't care, they love the technology and the service centers will eventually fix the defects.

 

[wvs&w]

I bought a new 686-6 6" a couple weeks ago, I could find no issues with it other than the trigger, I replaced the factory trigger with a Wolf spring kit that took care of the problem. I am very happy with the gun, but if my barrel was not centered or a cosmetic issue that's not acceptable, you work harder now for your money and you should get a good product for what you spend your hard earned dollars on. I learned many years ago whatever you doing, put out your best!

 

[cmj8591]

I think it's important to remember that this is a forum on the internet. People who come here to post are not doing so to tell us that they just bought a gun and it was unremarkable and had no issues. I think that the posts are skewed towards problems and don't really reflect the whole picture. I can only go by my experience and it seems to be different than a lot of the posters here. I spend a lot of time skulking gun shops and I tend to look at everything. The S&W's that I have been handling, for the most part, are not displaying these defects, that if you look at in the context of this forum, are appearing on just about every gun that leaves the factory. That certainly doesn't apply to the 3 new Smiths that I have purchased over the last year and a half or so. Those guns have no defects that I can see and function perfectly. To be fair, the two Sig's and one Glock that I have bought over the same time frame are also problem free. Of course if I go to the Sig forum and read the posts there you would think I wasted my money and bought a couple of pieces of junk. (The Glock is a piece of junk but it's supposed to be and it shoots great!) Same house, different address. People come here lots of time to resolve problems and report a problem so it seems that there are noting but problems. It is important to keep it all in context and trust your own experiences.

 

[raygixxer89]

The point is a slighty offset barrel will not have an effect on its performance. I've seen plenty of older Smith's that aren't perfect either. You're not buying a collector's item. It's a gun that's meant to be used. I'm tired of these posts that nitpick every single tiny thing and make a mole hill into a mountain. Smith's aren't any worse than any other companies offerings and are better than most, despite people trying to make it sound otherwise.

But the older Smiths were much better.

 

[MP-5]

But the older Smiths were much better.

 

[slabside2]

Yep another post again and I'm glad it is posted. When we get complacent and start excepting the bad that gets through without any complaining it'll never stop sneaking through or at least slow down.

 

[ImDrRich]

So, there are small variations in mass produced items, none of which affect the function. Shrug.
S&W will make more than 2 million guns this fiscal year, or about 6000 a day. Think about it.

What I think about, and what concerns me is, how many of the 6000 will have defects worthy of fixing before the new owners even shoot them.