SMith and Wesson model 66-1 vs colt king cobra

[Black Knight]

I have 2 Pythons and my wife took my 2.5" 66-2 for her gun. While I love my Pythons, Colt has stopped servicing them. I don't know if that is true for the King Cobra but it would not surprise me. There is nothing wrong with a 66 as long as the proper ammo is used. There are stories of the forcing cones cracking on the blue K-frame 357 Magnums, but I have not heard of any stainless steel ones cracking. Just use heavy weight (145 gr. - 158 gr.) magnum ammo or any .38 Special load in it and it should last a lifetime. BTW my personal carry gun is either a 4" S&W 686-1, 3" S&W 65-3, or a Beretta 92F.

 

[iPac]

I would take the 66, and I am sure most on here realize I am a Colt guy.

Reasons for the 66?

It has the old S&W action, and although not my favorite, I prefer it to the KC's action with sintered/cast parts and coil springs.

The price, being the 66 is better gun for the money. $1456 for a regular King Cobra is over-priced for me. Regular STS ones have really dropped. Factory bright is now rare due to aftermarket scheming. If a genuine BSTS KC in package, then over $2K. People buy fake ones from L.A.A. on GB all the time with prices approaching $2700 sometimes. I have trouble selling a legit one for significantly less. So go figure on prices.

 

[Rpg]

I traded my Python for a Colt Gold Cup in the late '70's and never regretted it.

The larger Cobra never struck me as particularly desireable: too big to carry.

I'm not a fan of the stainless Smiths, so I'd pass on both these revolvers.

Now a nice 19 or 27 or even a 28 would get my attention.

Different strokes.

 

[Justus1213]

I have 2 Pythons and my wife took my 2.5" 66-2 for her gun. While I love my Pythons, Colt has stopped servicing them. I don't know if that is true for the King Cobra but it would not surprise me. There is nothing wrong with a 66 as long as the proper ammo is used. There are stories of the forcing cones cracking on the blue K-frame 357 Magnums, but I have not heard of any stainless steel ones cracking. Just use heavy weight (145 gr. - 158 gr.) magnum ammo or any .38 Special load in it and it should last a lifetime. BTW my personal carry gun is either a 4" S&W 686-1, 3" S&W 65-3, or a Beretta 92F.

Couldn't one argue that if you have to worry about ammo then it's too much of hassle to get. but I say there's just something about the 19 and the 66 especially since one of my favorite franchises are lethal weapon (haven't seen the tv show yet) but Danny glover rocked a model 19 blued with those rubber grips and ever since then I love my 19 even if it is a snubbie I wouldn't mind a blues 19 or 66 stainless or ss

 

[diggler1833]

Having a few representative models of each (27-2 vs. Python, 66-1 vs King Cobra, 19-4 and 28-2 vs. Trooper MkIII, 29-2 vs. Anaconda) I can say this about them as I did do a lot of comparing:

I like the S&W DA trigger better, and find the Smith just a little easier to smooth out. SA is a wash as I see/feel no real difference. The air gap between the front on rear sights on my Colts is a little less, which makes ME more precise when shooting them. Others may experience differently.

 

[Justus1213]

I'm gonna stick with the smiths easier to find and more reasonable money wise as well. I'd love to get a colt and who knows one day I may but for now the classic smith and wessons are where it's at for me

 

[apollo99]

Don't feel like you're settling with a 66-1 4". it's a great revolver on it's own merits. If a Colt falls into your lap for a good price, by all means buy it. You can probably sell it pretty quickly and make some money after you shoot it a while and realize you like the 66-1 better. I have S&W and Colt, not knocking Colt, but when I go shooting I grab the Smiths.

 

[Black Knight]

Justus1213 the main thing to remember about the ammo is too stay away from the 110 - 125 gr. Magnum loads. I have read several articles about how those can cause damage to the forcing cones. The .38 Special ammo is not powerful enough to cause damage to the forcing cones. Does that mean you can not use the 110 - 125 gr. Magnums in it? No, but do so sparingly. It seems the constant use of them is detrimental. At home all my K-frames currently have .38 Special +P ammo and my L and N frame S&W and Colt have the 125 Gr. SJHP Magnum load. They use different speed loaders so getting them mixed up is not much of a problem.

 

[Justus1213]

Okay I see what you're saying plus with magnum ammo always going up in price it seems like .38 special seems like the better option and since I already only use that in my model 19 anyway