The new S&W 1917 45ACP report

[bearhitman]

Just wanted to give a little report on the S&W 1917 S&W 45acp,i finally got ahold of one and highly recommend them,mine shoots to POI at 20yrds easy with federal 230 ball and is a breeze to load and unload with the moon clips,i like everything about the little unit and the recoil is very mild,its forsure one of the most "fun to shoot"guns i have ever shot and the action is smooth as glass..

 

[stevieboy]

It's also a pretty cool looking gun. Two questions: what's the finish on yours, and are you using the factory grips? The ones on the 1917 appear to be kind of small and I've wondered whether a change would be in order.

Just as an aside, I have a 625JM. I hated the JM grips, the gun slid around in my hand as if I were holding a banana peel. I tried Hogue rubbers, but my fingers simply don't match up with the finger grooves on those grips. Finally, I received a set from forum member Kurac. Problem solved!!

 

[bearhitman]

I would change the grips onthat JM myself,that jm grip is not my cup of tea,,,,my 1917 is the dark blue model,the grips are fine and i like them very much,, but yes they are not very big,,,i have nothing but praise for the gun and have been wanting one since they came out,ireally think the lanyard is cool too...thanks

 

[Dale53]

First of all, the .45 ACP is one of my favorite revolver cartridges. I have two 625's with Red Dots on them both. Vision problems make iron sight shooting difficult for me.

At any rate, I thoroughly enjoy shooting the .45 ACP. In the revolver, no bending over and losing a percentage of brass every time you shoot it.

.45 ACP is an excellent cartridge to cast bullets and reload for, also. When the lead you have scrounged is pretty much free, and the brass can be shot MANY times without failure, really your only serious cost to shoot is the price of primers and powder. I can run 400-500 match loads an hour from my Dillon 550B's for a cost under $2.00 per box. That is hard to beat, and I LOVE those big holes in the targets;

This is the 4" 625-8 Jerry Miculek Special with Simmons Red Dot sight:

This is what they will do at 25 yards (standing):

And this is just SOME of the ammo that can be shot in a .45 aCP revolver - 200 gr RN Hollow point in Auto Rim Cases:

This is a 255 gr Keith bullet in Auto Rim cases:

Just find a good load that shoots to the sights in your fixed sighted revolver and you are "good to go".

FWIW
Dale53

 

[bearhitman]

Awsome shooting Dale!Also those grips on the JM are just perfect,those reloads look cool too..are they gas checked/what speed r they cooking?Nice outfit.. thanks for shareing!

 

[moxie]

Neat. BTW, never heard of an N frame referred to as a "little unit" before. LOL.

 

[Dennis The B]

It's also a pretty cool looking gun...

Just as an aside, I have a 625JM. I hated the JM grips, the gun slid around in my hand as if I were holding a banana peel. I tried Hogue rubbers, but my fingers simply don't match up with the finger grooves on those grips. Finally, I received a set from forum member Kurac. Problem solved!!

100% agreement to both statements.

I own a new Model 22 with the "older service stocks" on it. They're horrible for any amount of shooting. Same with the JM stocks on my 625JM, except they felt like holding the barrel-end of a Louisville Slugger.

I replaced both stocks with Hogue neoprenes. Hogue must've gotten my hand pattern while I slept. They fit me perfectly. Ugly, but functional.

 

[PALADIN85020]

.45 ACP revolvers are quite versatile, and most are plenty accurate. My favorite is this 625-2 model of 1988, with a 5-inch barrel. It has an action job by Nelson Ford, and I've equipped it with a red ramp front sight and round-to-square Ahrends retro classic stocks. It's one of the smoothest and most accurate revolvers I own. Note the overtravel screw at the rear of the trigger, installed by Nelson Ford as part of his action job. No perceptible overtravel at all.

 

[Dale53]

Bearhitman;
Thanks for the kind words.

The grips are Pachmayr Decelerators. I have large hands and the covered back strap works very well for me.

The 200 gr bullets are pushed by 7.5 grs of Unique for just over 1000 fps.

The 255 gr Keith bullets are pushed by 7.0 grs of Unique for just over 900 fps.

Neither bullet is gas checked. Gas checks are not needed at this speed (in fact, I seldom use gas checked bullets - even in my magnums).

Dale53

 

[W7FA]

I also recently purchased a S&W model 22 of 1917, factory new in blue steel from Gallery of Guns/Gun Genie. I paid $824.00 for it. I believe they have the best prices, as you find local gun shops through them offering discounts. GofG has two model 22 of 1917 revolvers available, right now. I highly recommend them, as shipping is cheap and you can use master card/VISA. Plus, they offer a lifetime replacement guarantee!

 

[CCV]

What brand bullet is that 200 grain RN HP?

 

[Dale53]

I cast that bullet with my Mihec two cavity Cramer style hollow point bullet mould. Here is a picture of a similar mould for a .44 Keith hollow point bullet:

These moulds have captive hollow point pins, so they do not lose their heat. I can cast 15 lbs of finished bullets in less than an hour and a half. These are SUPERB bullet moulds that were obtained through the Group Buys on the Cast Boolit Forum. Apparently, Mihec made some extra moulds over the Group Buy and have them for sale at his web site:

Mp-molds - Cast bullet molds

There will only be a few extras, so if you are interested, order NOW!

Dale53