Which 66 (No Dash) is the better gun?

[Cirrus]

Hey everyone, a close family member recently passed away and I was asked if I wanted to buy some of his guns. He had two 4" 66 (no dash) guns and since I already have a 2.5" (no dash), I thought a 4" would make a nice addition to my collection. Unfortunately, neither of the 4" guns appear to be all original and there appears to be some issues or discrepancies with each one, so I'm not entirely sure which would be the better choice. Neither gun appears to have been fired much at all. There's zero flame cutting on the underside of the top strap and forcing cones both look great. I'll be getting a "family discount" so price really isn't a factor. And I certainly would not be reselling once I decide which one to purchase, I'm just confused about which one I should buy.

The first one is an early all-stainless rear sight version, SN 4K564XX. I has some wear marks in front of the cylinder on both sides and then on the right side has some scratches on the side plate. It has also been ported on top of the barrel at some point, but no idea where it was done or how long ago.







The second one is also an early all-stainless rear sight, SN 4K562XX. The blade of the rear sight appears to have been swapped with a black one with a white outlined notch and also looks like it was dropped and hit a corner, so I don't believe that's original. And the front sight has a red ramp insert that also does not appear to be original. The insert is more pink that red and translucent like a piece of fiber optic. It's not a solid color like red or orange that's normally seen on revolvers. This gun is in better cosmetic condition, but the trigger also appears slightly different than other gun. It's not as flat on the sides and appears to be contoured and polished more.

 

[old bear]

Buy both and shoot the them. That is what they were made for.

 

[Jim Watson]

First gun looks like real Magnaporting which is a reputable outfit.
Looks like its trigger has been rounded off a bit, Magnaport also does action work. See below.

Second gun has had the trigger rounded off for double action comfort.
I would wonder about what might have been done to the action inside. Check for push-off of an overly lightened SA, check for misfires from an overly reduced mainspring, check for sluggish trigger return from an overly reduced rebound spring.
The front sight insert looks ok, obviously needs a replacement rear sight blade.

 

[Cirrus]

Buy both and shoot the them. That is what they were made for.

I wish I could, but there's another family member that wants to buy the other one. They know I'm the "gun guy" so they're letting me have first pick between the two and they're going to buy the other one.

 

[Cirrus]

First gun looks like real Magnaporting which is a reputable outfit.
Looks like its trigger has been rounded off a bit, Magnaport also does action work. See below.

Second gun has had the trigger rounded off for double action comfort.
I would wonder about what might have been done to the action inside. Check for push-off of an overly lightened SA, check for misfires from an overly reduced mainspring, check for sluggish trigger return from an overly reduced rebound spring.
The front sight insert looks ok, obviously needs a replacement rear sight blade.

First one trigger breaks at 3.5lbs SA every time.
Second one trigger breaks at 2lbs SA exactly every time.

The second one is actually a earlier serial number. Was it common for this model to have different front sights (solid front sight and ramp notch cut front sight).

 

[Engine49guy]

Id swap rear site units and take the one without the porting.
Id be surprised (shocked) if that red ramp shipped from the factory,
Many complained about the early 66 ss on ss sites.
Btw neither of those stocks sets are factory, some sorta Thailand knock offs.
Any other SW revolvers besides those two that are on the table that you can choose or thats it ?

 

[Rock185]

Aftermarket, Thai?, stocks on both. Polished triggers. FWIW, I sent my "2K" model 66 in for overhaul in '80; most everything except frame and side plate, to include the barrel, was replaced. It came back from S&W with a red ramp front sight, so perhaps on a 4K gun the RR is factory? Not being able to examine breech face, possible forcing cone erosion, B/C gap, end play, etc., don't know which I'd pick...