Your take on a "no M" 681

[Jim NNN]

Saw some "no M" 681's on the market. My understanding is that this means they haven't been sent in for a recall that was issued way back when. What's your take on this? Will it cost money to have S&W make the modification since the buyer will not be the original owner?

Also, if S&W does repair under warranty, how are you guys shipping guns? UPS only does next day air for handguns, which is horribly expensive. Is Fed Ex better?

Can a competent gunsmith do the recall repair? Thanks.

 

[H Richard]

If it hasn't been repaired, it may not need it. Not all 686/586/581/681's needed it. Shoot a few 125 gr +P's through it and see if the primers back out in the center like a little nipple, which in turn cause drag and tend to lock up the gun. If so you can contact S&W and they will send you a pre-paid UPS label and fix it for free and return it. If it does not cause you any problems don't bother to send it in.

 

[Smith357]

The recall work is still being done and is absolutely free, S&W sends a call tag, does the work, and ships it back all at no charge. The general consensus is, unless you actually have a lockup issue or are planning to use the gun as a mainline defense tool then don't bother sending it back.

 

[g8rb8]

The recall work is still being done and is absolutely free, S&W sends a call tag, does the work, and ships it back all at no charge. The general consensus is, unless you actually have a lockup issue or are planning to use the gun as a mainline defense tool then don't bother sending it back.

I agree. If you're just going to plink with it then you could not worry about it. If you're going to be more serious with it then send it back to S&W. One of the guys I regularly shoot with has a 586 no dash without the "M" and he's had no problems with primers binding the cylinder even when shooting .357 magnum. Supposedly the most likely ammo to cause the problem was Federal .357 magnum ammo. Supposedly the problem was not common. The theory, as best I remember, was the primers were soft in those Federal .357 magnum cartridges.

 

[mojave30cal]

If it is not broken, don't fix it. It might be worth more to a
collector down the road.

 

[SmithMarine]

I had it done to my 586 and 686 both no-dash. I did have lockup problems and the 586 was my duty weapon in the early 80's. You cannot reliably check for a problem by "shooting a few 125 gr. 357s through it". Ammo varies. Some are hotter than others, some brand primers are softer than others. There are various bullet weights. There is NO collector value in an unmodified gun. The mod is totally FREE. So don't do it - but when something goes bump in the night, will you totally trust your family's life to it?

 

[S&WIowegan]

I bought a NIB Model 581 nickel-plated gun in 2005. The gun had no bushing in the breech-face for the FP to come through to the primer. S&W sent me a mail label and fixed it free of charge.

 

[mojave30cal]

About 5 years ago I sent a 681 back to the factory for the free modification. They confiscated the gun because it had two
different serial #'s on it; one on the butt frame, and one in the
crane area. The gun had a set of rubber grips on it covering
the serial number on the butt. Everyone who handled the gun
just used the serial number in the crane area.

Who ever was doing the serial numbers back in 1980 trans-
posed the last two numbers. They did send me a "new"
686 with a 6 inch barrel as a replacement. I wonder what they
did with the gun I sent in??

 

[OKFC05]

My 686 locked up like crazy with Federal 158gr .357 ammo, so sending it in was obviously needed. They replaced the hammer nose and bushing free of charge, and paid shipping both ways. That was 30 years ago, and it has been trouble free ever since.

 

[Jim NNN]

These are Australian police surplus guns. I'm wondering if they were fixed in house rather than sent all the way back to Massachusetts?

 

[Belgian686]

I bought a used 581 no dash a few weeks ago here in Belgium - serial number dates it to 1981. It was a police trade in, and it has the 'M' stamp

This makes me wonder : did someone sent it back to the US and return to Belgium, just for the recall ?? That would be expensive, and loads of paperwork. Or was the gun 'updated' before they sent it over ?

Does anyone know about which date the recall was first requested ?

Thanks - B686

 

[SmithMarine]

These are Australian police surplus guns. I'm wondering if they were fixed in house rather than sent all the way back to Massachusetts?

S&W has approved dealers who are authorized to do the Mod and I suspect they have a service center in Australia. My mods were actually done by Cherry's in Ohio and they were stamped with the M.

 

[inverness]

Australian police used 'K' frames only, such as M10, M13. M64 & M65. Some undercover officers, detectives etc. carried 'K' and 'J' frames such as M10, M12, M60 & M36. I have never heard of Aussie cops with 'L' frames.

That's correct 'SmithMarine' we have a S&W authorised distributor/armourer/warranty centre here in Australia

 

[jessc706]

I picked up a 681 a couple of weeks ago and contacted S&W about no "M" via email. I included the serial number. They sent me a reply back saying my gun was safe to shoot magnums.

 

[loeman]

I have two no Ms. One is a 681 no dash and the other is a 686 no dash. Both perform superbly with .357 magnums from several different manufacturers. I don't intend to send either of them back.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

I got one as a fee. it didn't carry up on two charge holes so I sent it back for the modification and asked them while they had it to fix that. They did at no charge and sent me back in essence a brand new tight as a tick gun.

I'm down wit dat!