Pulled the trigger - 686 Plus 3"

[scruffy]

Congrats! Bought one a few months ago and love it. Great shooting revolver. Smooth trigger, feels well balanced and the stock grips (which some find too small/thin) fit my hands perfectly. Your gonna love it. Should your wife need smaller grips that are comfortable and absorb recoil well, Pachmayer Compac Pros are the way to go.

 

[stevenstark711]

I have the 686 and they are fine guns, but why the 3" barrel as opposed to the 4"?

Why limit yourself to one or the other

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[thesmithiz]

Ok so took my wife and the new 686 to the range today, only had time to fire off 75 rounds (38s). This gun is sweet! My wife has never fired a gun before and after 3 wayward shots she got her grip comfort and shook the nerves, then almost every shot was center mass. My first shot was dead center and most of the rest were pretty much in a 4" group, 15ft. The rest of our errant shots were fewer but mainly dues to show and tell on trigger pull and grip and less on accuracy. Not surprisingly I feel a revolver addiction coming on. My only prior experience with revolvers was a few times with friends J frames.

 

[Boriqua]

I picked up the same gun on Monday and went right out to the range. Fired about 130 rds of 38+p and 21 rounds of rather warm .357. Sweet looking and handling gun. I also have the 3in Ruger and I really like that size. It just feels natural and fast.

The only thing I am struggling with is the grips which are so very cool looking but .. They really make speedloader use a bit of work.

In reality I dont anticipate needing a speedy reload in actual practice but its the only partial negative about the gun.

Other than that .. it feels like a bank vault and everything just clacks into place so nicely and .. damn its a fine looking gun!!

 

[Nick B]

Love my 3 inch 686 unfluted...

What rear sight is that ?

 

[AJR337]

It's a D&L Sports...

Smith and Wesson K, L, and N Frame Sights

 

[1lowlife]

I bought a used Talo 3" 686+ a few years ago.



I liked it so much I bought a new one and sent to S&W for a polish and trigger job.







One (with the Culina grips) is for me, to be handed/willed down to my son upon my demise.

The other goes to my future SIL whenever my daughter decides to marry..

 

[Mr.Harry]

Haven't had the cash for any new purchases, but definitely been wanting one of these myself. I was sure the 4" was what I wanted and would/will eventually purchase, until I started handling a 3" side by side with the 4". I understand why men of more means get them in a variety of lengths and don't think of it as redundant. For myself, it will be a 3". Congrats on the new piece.

 

[ultratec00]

My 3" 3-5-7 is phenomenal and one of my favorites. Shoots lights out and surprisingly shootable despite the short barrel length. Carries well and the action is typical Smith. A little polishing and spring kit does wonders.

I actually have two 3" 3-5-7s. The first was bought online before learning the lesson on barrel cant in late model Smiths. The two are mirror images in regard to smoothness and accuracy. The first has noticeable barrel cant that is not enough to warrant sending back to S&W and probably within the current "specs". The second was on sale at the LGS and perfect as far as timing and barrel cant. Both shoot the same loads accurately however I noticed the first required quite a bit more sight adjustment than the 2nd which I attribute to the barrel cant. Shorter barrels (I.e. shorter sight radius) tend to magnify such anomalies.

 

[Lou_the_welder]

So great to hear that so many have had good luck shooting theirs.
I was not so lucky. I absolutely cant shoot mine well to my liking. And I do not know what it is.
I shoot everything else very well, so I'm happy about that!
[emoji848]

 

[HamHands]

So great to hear that so many have had good luck shooting theirs.
I was not so lucky. I absolutely cant shoot mine well to my liking. And I do not know what it is.
I shoot everything else very well, so I'm happy about that!
[emoji848]

Same here so don't feel bad. "A man's got to know his limitations..." And I don't shoot .357 anything well. But I shoot the snot out of all the other Service calibers and one's that have a (4) in them really well. I've decided it's because I don't like muzzle flip of which .357 Mag and Sig gives me. It's the gentle or hard push back into the web of the hand that I excel at... .44 Mag is my baby. I know it sounds crazy but I shoot a .44mag or a .460 Rowland 10 times better than house grade .357Mag/Sig...

 

[M39B]

It's a great revolver that shoots well with a great trigger. I think you will like it. Be careful though. I purchased a 3" Talo a few years ago as my first revolver. I now also have a 4" model 13, a 4" model 65, and a 3" model 65. They all shoot great but seem to multiply.

 

[stevenstark711]

I bought a used Talo 3" 686+ a few years ago.



I liked it so much I bought a new one and sent to S&W for a polish and trigger job.







One (with the Culina grips) is for me, to be handed/willed down to my son upon my demise.

The other goes to my future SIL whenever my daughter decides to marry..

Very nice

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[HOUSTON RICK]

The Model 686 in its various configurations has to be the most popular revolver on this forum. For good reason. I wanted a Talo too, but became impatient.

 

[japolo]

I picked up a 3" Talo 686 plus this past Tuesday evening.

Dang doctors got in the way of me shooting it a until yesterday.

Initially I was a little surprised that 38 Special non-+P hurt my hand with the 686 ( have arthritis and am getting old). However later the mail came and I had my Pachmayr Diamond Pro grip on it and that changed to very pleasant shooting even with 357 Magnum 125 gr + P. Today I will shoot some 158 gr 38 Special and and some heavier 357 Magnum.

Very accurate gun.

I have a 627 4" Pro and a 4" 629.

Initially (several months ago) I was looking at the 2.5" 686 but switched to the 3" and I think it will carry ok, especially in the winter. I normally carry a semi-auto and sometimes with a 2.5" SP101 or a Kimber 2" K6s as a backup.

The 3" 686 fills a nich and, lol, Hickok likes them.

 

[SC_Mike]

As I understand, S&W made fewer 3" barrels than any other length, making them more unusual/collectible?

 

[HamHands]

As I understand, S&W made fewer 3" barrels than any other length, making them more unusual/collectible?

They carry so well for me and I suspect others too and that is why they are sought after. The sight radius of a 3" Revolver is almost perfect too. I can hit Silhouettes @ 100Yards with my 3" barreled Mountain Back Packer and AR500 18"x12" silhouette plates with my 3" M29... In fact, I regularly drive 2.5-3.0 Hours to Highlands, NC from Atlanta with a 3" barreled N frame on my side while driving my wife's Jeep Rubicon, comfortably! A lot of times I forget I have it on. I carry it up to Highlands because I find them the Perfect "Woods-Guns" and travel gun while driving/filling up gas, etc when on the road. A pair of 3" barreled N frames, one in .44Special on your side and a .44Mag in the console is a heck of a New York Reload and provides a lot of firepower while traveling!