azazel1024
Member
- Joined
- Feb 20, 2023
- Messages
- 30
- Reaction score
- 15
Apologies I didn't stop in here earlier and say hello. I missed the introduction forum. I am an unwitting new member from the Mid-Atlantic, Maryland to be exact.
I'll be frank, I never expected to be an S&W owner. Nothing they've ever made has really tickled my pickle. Well, the old Victories held some interest to me, but I've never run across one in 38spc that I had an opportunity to buy that weren't in tragic condition. Always 38s&w and I am not interested in yet more calibers.
My neighbor and buddy new I was on the lookout for a 357. I mean, it takes the same dies I use for 38spc that I load for my Colt Official Police, ex-New Jersey State Police issued. It takes most of the same components and powder too. But it is like the scene from Lord of the Rings, "it comes in magnums?"
Anyway, I'd picked up a Dan Wesson 44 magnum 6" at my LGS late summer. It was unexpected. Unplanned. I was NOT going to own a 44 magnum. More handgun cartridge than I wanted. No big desire to handgun hunt. No real need for bear defense around here and a 45acp or 45 super is mostly plenty for the black bears here if one needs it. But my neighbor and buddy called me and the LGS had one with a Leupold scope in otherwise mint condition for $550. So I got in the car, skeptical as heck. Oh, yup, there she is. Would I like to look at it? No, but I will anyway. Opened the cylinder, closed it. Pointed it at the floor, cocked it and pulled the trigger. Then advanced it through all the chambers in SA and DA. Checked the barrel for condition and pushed my wallet across the countertop and asked for a 4473. I ordered 44 mag dies, brass and emailed my buddy asking to buy a spare box of MBC 240 coated SWCs from him all before getting in my car to drive home (we have to wait 7 days here on handguns) and got that all before I could get the gun back.
He didn't buy it, because earlier that day he'd seen a mint condition DW44 at a different LGS for $500 with 4" and 8" barrels and bought it. He didn't "need" two and thought of me (he is helpful like that, though maybe not helpful with my marriage).
Well, again, I'd been looking for a 357, not a 44. But between that and I picked up a Howa mini in 223 for BF, I wasn't looking real hard because my wife wasn't too happy about how many guns I'd bought recently (she hates guns).
Well, same old "buddy" called my two weeks ago. Same LGS has a rough S&W 29-2 8 3/8" nickel plated for $400. Very smooth action and trigger. But sat in the bottom of a box in some hoarder's house for a couple of decades and it had corroded through the platting in a couple of spots, badly on the top strap (deep, but not so deep to be remotely a concern about frame strength, but a solid 1/16" deep on the left corner of the strap maybe 1/8" long in two spots).
"you've gotta come look at it. Its rough, but seems shootable. Target hammer and trigger, very smooth. Its the kind of gun you'll feel no shame about leaving in a glove box or bumping around the country and treating rough because its a bit ugly, but it'll shoot wonderful".
So I told my wife. She was not happy. Muy mucho pissed once I told her I bought it. But I showed up at the LGS. Yeah, not as rough as I thought it was going to be. Even smoother than my Dan Wesson on the trigger and action. I handed over the cash without a second thought. I didn't want a Smith and Wesson. They've never appealed to me. I like Rugers (though I don't own one). Though I admit I don't like the aesthetics of the Rugers. I really love Colts. It is stupid, but I don't like that you push the cylinder latch forward to release it.
But when I was in the shop messing with it, it occurred to me I jumped on that Dan Wesson and I HATE that forward cylinder release on the Dan Wesson. Really the only thing I actively dislike about the Dan Wessons. And I was keeping my eyes out for a Dan Wesson 357. Well, why was I heaping so much hate on the S&W's forward push release on the cylinder latch?
I also really didn't want an 8" revolver. 6 inch has always seemed like the perfect length (unless you have to conceal it). Long enough to squeeze a lot of velocity out of whatever you are shooting, long enough to get a nice sight radius, short enough to no be a real PITA if you want to carry it in a (OWB) Holster. But oh man, the balance on that 29-2 in the shop was so nice. The weight wasn't bad at all (being now used to the brick that a Dan Wesson 44 is).
So I snapped it up. I didn't need to buy an extra thing for it. I had the dies. I had mag brass already as I've collected some range brass, plus same buddy sold me a bunch of 38spc and 357 brass he picked up cheap as part of a deal on a lot of other brass and bullets from someone who didn't want a parcel it out (plus I got some .30-06 brass as part of the deal) for less than half retail. I had bullets, powder, and mag primers already.
Turns out the yoke screw hole is stripped, so it is back at S&W now to see if they can repair it, or if I need to look to repair it myself at some point. But oh man, it shoots at least as nice or nicer than it feels in the hand.
I am still, if my wife doesn't castrate me, on the lookout for a 357 Dan Wesson, but I think I might be on the lookout for another 29 (maybe a 29-2) someday. But maybe a nice copy this time. Possibly a 6", but I won't say no to another 8 3/8" copy.
Oh, I also never wanted a nickel finish pimp gun, but I really like it!
So here I am, an S&W convert. Not sure if or when I'll ever own another S&W, but I certainly won't say no and someday when I am in the market for another revolver, I am going to do a lot more research on Smiths in case I need another S&W 357 or an S&W 44 mag.
One other perk I'll say after working on my Colt OP a reasonable amount, the S&Ws seem downright simple on the inside. DWs are maybe as simple or more so, but significantly more difficult to successfully get back together (the DWs).
I'll be frank, I never expected to be an S&W owner. Nothing they've ever made has really tickled my pickle. Well, the old Victories held some interest to me, but I've never run across one in 38spc that I had an opportunity to buy that weren't in tragic condition. Always 38s&w and I am not interested in yet more calibers.
My neighbor and buddy new I was on the lookout for a 357. I mean, it takes the same dies I use for 38spc that I load for my Colt Official Police, ex-New Jersey State Police issued. It takes most of the same components and powder too. But it is like the scene from Lord of the Rings, "it comes in magnums?"
Anyway, I'd picked up a Dan Wesson 44 magnum 6" at my LGS late summer. It was unexpected. Unplanned. I was NOT going to own a 44 magnum. More handgun cartridge than I wanted. No big desire to handgun hunt. No real need for bear defense around here and a 45acp or 45 super is mostly plenty for the black bears here if one needs it. But my neighbor and buddy called me and the LGS had one with a Leupold scope in otherwise mint condition for $550. So I got in the car, skeptical as heck. Oh, yup, there she is. Would I like to look at it? No, but I will anyway. Opened the cylinder, closed it. Pointed it at the floor, cocked it and pulled the trigger. Then advanced it through all the chambers in SA and DA. Checked the barrel for condition and pushed my wallet across the countertop and asked for a 4473. I ordered 44 mag dies, brass and emailed my buddy asking to buy a spare box of MBC 240 coated SWCs from him all before getting in my car to drive home (we have to wait 7 days here on handguns) and got that all before I could get the gun back.
He didn't buy it, because earlier that day he'd seen a mint condition DW44 at a different LGS for $500 with 4" and 8" barrels and bought it. He didn't "need" two and thought of me (he is helpful like that, though maybe not helpful with my marriage).
Well, again, I'd been looking for a 357, not a 44. But between that and I picked up a Howa mini in 223 for BF, I wasn't looking real hard because my wife wasn't too happy about how many guns I'd bought recently (she hates guns).
Well, same old "buddy" called my two weeks ago. Same LGS has a rough S&W 29-2 8 3/8" nickel plated for $400. Very smooth action and trigger. But sat in the bottom of a box in some hoarder's house for a couple of decades and it had corroded through the platting in a couple of spots, badly on the top strap (deep, but not so deep to be remotely a concern about frame strength, but a solid 1/16" deep on the left corner of the strap maybe 1/8" long in two spots).
"you've gotta come look at it. Its rough, but seems shootable. Target hammer and trigger, very smooth. Its the kind of gun you'll feel no shame about leaving in a glove box or bumping around the country and treating rough because its a bit ugly, but it'll shoot wonderful".
So I told my wife. She was not happy. Muy mucho pissed once I told her I bought it. But I showed up at the LGS. Yeah, not as rough as I thought it was going to be. Even smoother than my Dan Wesson on the trigger and action. I handed over the cash without a second thought. I didn't want a Smith and Wesson. They've never appealed to me. I like Rugers (though I don't own one). Though I admit I don't like the aesthetics of the Rugers. I really love Colts. It is stupid, but I don't like that you push the cylinder latch forward to release it.
But when I was in the shop messing with it, it occurred to me I jumped on that Dan Wesson and I HATE that forward cylinder release on the Dan Wesson. Really the only thing I actively dislike about the Dan Wessons. And I was keeping my eyes out for a Dan Wesson 357. Well, why was I heaping so much hate on the S&W's forward push release on the cylinder latch?
I also really didn't want an 8" revolver. 6 inch has always seemed like the perfect length (unless you have to conceal it). Long enough to squeeze a lot of velocity out of whatever you are shooting, long enough to get a nice sight radius, short enough to no be a real PITA if you want to carry it in a (OWB) Holster. But oh man, the balance on that 29-2 in the shop was so nice. The weight wasn't bad at all (being now used to the brick that a Dan Wesson 44 is).
So I snapped it up. I didn't need to buy an extra thing for it. I had the dies. I had mag brass already as I've collected some range brass, plus same buddy sold me a bunch of 38spc and 357 brass he picked up cheap as part of a deal on a lot of other brass and bullets from someone who didn't want a parcel it out (plus I got some .30-06 brass as part of the deal) for less than half retail. I had bullets, powder, and mag primers already.
Turns out the yoke screw hole is stripped, so it is back at S&W now to see if they can repair it, or if I need to look to repair it myself at some point. But oh man, it shoots at least as nice or nicer than it feels in the hand.
I am still, if my wife doesn't castrate me, on the lookout for a 357 Dan Wesson, but I think I might be on the lookout for another 29 (maybe a 29-2) someday. But maybe a nice copy this time. Possibly a 6", but I won't say no to another 8 3/8" copy.
Oh, I also never wanted a nickel finish pimp gun, but I really like it!
So here I am, an S&W convert. Not sure if or when I'll ever own another S&W, but I certainly won't say no and someday when I am in the market for another revolver, I am going to do a lot more research on Smiths in case I need another S&W 357 or an S&W 44 mag.
One other perk I'll say after working on my Colt OP a reasonable amount, the S&Ws seem downright simple on the inside. DWs are maybe as simple or more so, but significantly more difficult to successfully get back together (the DWs).
