Which S&W do you trust your life with: a home and on the street?

[M.Cunningham]

Pulls house and street duty.

 

[buckeyejake]

Model 60. House gun
Jake

 

[vahiker83]

When I leave the house...

My factory machine engraved 640-1. Bianchi speed strips.
Remington .38 Special Golden Saber 125 Grain +P Brass Hollow Point Ammo

 

[Smoke]

My factory machine engraved 640-1. Bianchi speed strips.
Remington .38 Special Golden Saber 125 Grain +P Brass Hollow Point Ammo

And an 8 dollar Uncle Mike's holster,

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

My EDC currently is a Smith & Wesson Model 13 with a three inch bull barrel and a round butt frame. It's carried in a Milt Sparks VM II. Reason I carry it is that I can just shoot it so damned well. It's loaded with 135 grain Gold Dot .38 Special "Short Barrel." I carry six extra rounds of it in a seven round speed strip in my pants pocket. At night, it's in the night stand by my bed.

 

[bhayles]

They're in the signature...the little one away from home and whichever is handiest if I ever need it at home.

 

[vito]

I went to the range the other day and decided it had been too long since I practiced with my primary home defense gun, a 4-inch Model 19 now loaded with 357mag ammo, and with a Crimson Trace laser. I almost forgot how well I can shoot this gun, and using the laser at 20 to 30 feet (about the maximum I could ever need inside my home) I can put several rounds in a very small area. I wish this gun were practical for carry since my 2-inch model 642 is hard for me to shoot accurately at anything over about 5 yards.

 

[Protected One]

I went to the range the other day and decided it had been too long since I practiced with my primary home defense gun, a 4-inch Model 19 now loaded with 357mag ammo, and with a Crimson Trace laser. I almost forgot how well I can shoot this gun, and using the laser at 20 to 30 feet (about the maximum I could ever need inside my home) I can put several rounds in a very small area. I wish this gun were practical for carry since my 2-inch model 642 is hard for me to shoot accurately at anything over about 5 yards.

Why wouldn't the model 19 be practical for carry?

 

[Kentucky Dave]

My legal writing professor in pre-law undergrad was an assistant county DA, who had been a DEA cop before that. He was a small gentleman who used to do undercover.

We were talking guns one night after class and when asked he told me undercover, he carried a snubby S&W .44 mag. Said he didn't want to ever shoot anyone, but if he did, he didn't want to shoot 'em more than once.

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

Why wouldn't the model 19 be practical for carry?

Exactly. I carry a three inch Model 13 IWB in a Milt Sparks VM II and a good 1.25" gun belt. Same difference, except for the sights. After about a week, the weight feels perfectly natural on your hip. It's well worth it, too, because I can shoot it worlds better than any J-Frame. I can shoot a J-Frame well enough, but the difference in shooting characteristics is like that between a BMW and a Toyota Corolla.

 

[petepeterson]

Exactly. I carry a three inch Model 13 IWB in a Milt Sparks VM II and a good 1.25" gun belt. Same difference, except for the sights. After about a week, the weight feels perfectly natural on your hip. It's well worth it, too, because I can shoot it worlds better than any J-Frame. I can shoot a J-Frame well enough, but the difference in shooting characteristics is like that between a BMW and a Toyota Corolla.

Or you could split the difference and try a 3" J-frame .357. Mine is substantially more accurate than a j-frame snub, and pretty controlable, as well.

 

[vito]

The model 19 with a 4-inch barrel just seemed too large to carry OWB (I find IWB too uncomfortable for even a 2-inch j-frame). But maybe with the right OWB holster I could carry my 19? What makes that especially appealing is that it would let me carry 357mag, something my model 640 is capable of but I find too difficult to use in that gun. Any holster suggestions?

 

[ahern25]

S&W 4506, 3913 and a 686.

 

[sipowicz]

I think shooting at a dog would mentally prepare me to shoot an attacking house cat But to be fair, I like dogs better than cats so shooting the cat probably won't cause me to freeze up.

 

[DevilDog72]

a S&W 19-4 snub. every where

 

[vito]

What do you load it with? I use 357mag in my 4-inch 19, but in my j-frame 640 the 357 is just too hard to handle, so I use 38+p Hornady Critical Defense. What about you?

 

[royal barnes]

A Smith 66 4" for the nightstand (it was my last duty revolver before we transitioned to semi's).
A 66 Performance Center Comped 3" for woods walking.
A Smith 640-1 with Hi-Viz front sight for daily carry.

 

[PJinSC]

Trust my life with S&W? You bet!

1) 9mm Shield in the living room. Primary go-to for EveryDay Carry (EDC).
2) 40S&W Shield in the car/truck when needed. Never leave it out there. Also for EDC.
3) S&W 386PD (7 shot Airlight snub) 357mag in the bedroom. Also my hiking/hunting/fishing carry.
4) S&W 57 41 mag or S&W 629 44 mag for when the bears are in the backyard or if need venison.
5) Couple other name brands stashed around, but that's my secret.

Practice as if your life depended on it. It will.

 

[KSDeputy]

S & W Model CS45.

 

[Squarebutt]

Usually a 1911 in the bedside lockbox and a Surefire flashlight close by. Out of the house it could be a J-frame, a 64 4" or a G...k 19, one of the few hi-cap guns that are legal in MA. Hardball in the .45 and Gold Dot +P in everything else.
I would not have shot the neighbor's dog. Not because I'm a softy who loves dogs, which I admit, but because I know two people who were murdered over a neighbor's dead dog. Long story short, a young family complained about a problem dog. Shortly thereafter, the dog was found dead, probably hit by a car, but the teenage owner snapped and killed two of them with a .22. Crazy, but it happened. Not on this forum, but on others I've seen threats to do the same to anyone who harms their dog. It's probably 99.9% internet bluster, but then . . .