Always wanted one of these ! !
- Thread starter Ben
- Start date
Gonna mount a scope on it?
I bet that with a 125 gr bullet and a case full of H110 you will be a huge hit at the indoor range. Flash and bang will get people's attention. Perfect to use in the lane next to the mall ninja shooting his AR at 10 yards.......
I bet that with a 125 gr bullet and a case full of H110 you will be a huge hit at the indoor range. Flash and bang will get people's attention. Perfect to use in the lane next to the mall ninja shooting his AR at 10 yards.......
Ha
It isn't very likely that any loads like that will ever be shot out of this revolver while I own it.
I'm headed to the range with this one with some 38 Specials and 3.0 grs. of Bullseye and a few of these ( Lyman 35863 ) , One lube ring with Ben's Red, then rolled in BLL :
It isn't very likely that any loads like that will ever be shot out of this revolver while I own it.
I'm headed to the range with this one with some 38 Specials and 3.0 grs. of Bullseye and a few of these ( Lyman 35863 ) , One lube ring with Ben's Red, then rolled in BLL :
35 shooter
Well-Known Member
That model is one my all time favorite "shorties". The grips and weight always seemed to fit my hands just right.
I'm not certain if I'll carry this one or not, I might ? ?
But.........It will be fun to shoot even if it is not my primary carry gun.
Ben
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smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
Good carry piece. Right size and don't have to worry about sweatin' on it. I could see carrying that with hollow pointed 38 spl. level loads in it.
Yes, about 5 grs. of Unique in a 38 Spec. case with the 358477 sized to .358 " would be very effective.
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
One of these days I may end up with a 357. I already have a couple of hundred cases and have never owned a 357. Although I think I may have to take care of my craving for a S&W model 57 first.
smokeywolf,
I always believed that back in the 1960's that police depts. missed out on a fantastic round with the 41 revolvers.
Those were the days of revolvers and a 4" Smith ( w/ adjustable sights ) in 41 Mag. with loads in the 900 fps range would have been a superior round compared to what was available to them at the time.
The word " Magnum " and over penetration scared most law enforcement agencies away from a fine round.
To prevent over penetration, S & W could have easily " short chambered " the cylinders to make a " .41 Special ", lock the load in for a 210 SWC at 850 - 900 fps. Remington would have been glad to produce the " .41 Special " ammo, knowing that they would have sold tons to all the agencies. Would have made a great law enforcement round and then officers could not chamber the 41 mag. round in the guns.
The 210 SWC would have been a good man stopper at 850 fps.
Ben
I always believed that back in the 1960's that police depts. missed out on a fantastic round with the 41 revolvers.
Those were the days of revolvers and a 4" Smith ( w/ adjustable sights ) in 41 Mag. with loads in the 900 fps range would have been a superior round compared to what was available to them at the time.
The word " Magnum " and over penetration scared most law enforcement agencies away from a fine round.
To prevent over penetration, S & W could have easily " short chambered " the cylinders to make a " .41 Special ", lock the load in for a 210 SWC at 850 - 900 fps. Remington would have been glad to produce the " .41 Special " ammo, knowing that they would have sold tons to all the agencies. Would have made a great law enforcement round and then officers could not chamber the 41 mag. round in the guns.
The 210 SWC would have been a good man stopper at 850 fps.
Ben
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KHornet
Well-Known Member
In 1961 I bought a used 4" bbl Colt 357, for 60.00, and it came with a Lawrence holster and 6 boxes of Factory Win 38 Wad cutter loads, and a cleaning kit. It is still my favorite carry gun. Wish I had bought that Python for 125.00 as well, but it was out of my price range at the time.
I have a 4" CS-1 Model 686 and have been VERY pleased with it. I had a Ruger Security Six 4" and there was nothing wrong with it. I just couldn't shoot it to my potential. I even had a gunsmith work on it. It was smooth as silk and shot well off the bench but I just could not shoot that revolver well. I had other revolvers and they worked extremely well for me. Finally, a friend talked me out of it and I replaced it with the 686. I took the 686 to the range and WOW! You wouldn't believe the difference on the target!
I think you'll be very happy with your new revolver. Here's mine:
I admit that my .357's are shot with .38's most of the time. I have worked extensively with "full" .357 loads in them but my everyday range days are filled with H&G #251 (148 gr. dbl. ended wadcutters) or H&G #50BB (148 gr. button nosed wadcutters). I subscribe to E.H. Harris' practices of somewhat heavier loads than what is often prescribed for wadcutters and the Ransom Rest has confirmed that practice.:
Here is the #50 BB wadcutter:
Here are the results, standing at 25 yards:
Here's some authoritative information on loading wadcutters from Ed Harris (former NRA Staffer and Development Engineer with Ruger):
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2011/11/ed-harris-revisiting-the-full-charge-wadcutter/
I use Ed's Full Charge Wadcutter for edible small game and they would do EXCELLENT work for various "varmints", too. When using for range work, 3.2 gs. of Bullseye works VERY well with either wadcutter. Lyman and Saeco both offer good designs of wadcutters, also (as Ben illustrates).
FWIW
Dale53
I think you'll be very happy with your new revolver. Here's mine:
I admit that my .357's are shot with .38's most of the time. I have worked extensively with "full" .357 loads in them but my everyday range days are filled with H&G #251 (148 gr. dbl. ended wadcutters) or H&G #50BB (148 gr. button nosed wadcutters). I subscribe to E.H. Harris' practices of somewhat heavier loads than what is often prescribed for wadcutters and the Ransom Rest has confirmed that practice.:
Here is the #50 BB wadcutter:
Here are the results, standing at 25 yards:
Here's some authoritative information on loading wadcutters from Ed Harris (former NRA Staffer and Development Engineer with Ruger):
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2011/11/ed-harris-revisiting-the-full-charge-wadcutter/
I use Ed's Full Charge Wadcutter for edible small game and they would do EXCELLENT work for various "varmints", too. When using for range work, 3.2 gs. of Bullseye works VERY well with either wadcutter. Lyman and Saeco both offer good designs of wadcutters, also (as Ben illustrates).
FWIW
Dale53
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
Back in the mid '70s, I knew of a PD that issued 6 inch model 57s. They were loaded with 41 spl level loads. When I was doing bodyguard work I used to use their range to maintain my proficiency. That's when I got the itch to own one.
Going to try a few of these in my 686 , 2.5 " revolver.
Will keep recoil down.
Since I have adjustable sights, the weight may work in my favor.
I'm sizing to .3575 " and shooting these out of W-W , 38 Spec. Cases.
.360 " as they drop from the mould......Got to love those old IDEAL's.
Will keep recoil down.
Since I have adjustable sights, the weight may work in my favor.
I'm sizing to .3575 " and shooting these out of W-W , 38 Spec. Cases.
.360 " as they drop from the mould......Got to love those old IDEAL's.
Ben;
I think that you'l be very happy with that 686. Thanks for the kind words.
By the way, that truncated cone (Lyman 356402) will do VERY well in the 9mm (sized the appropriate amount for your particular 9mm). I shoot the similar Lee TC 125 gr. bullet in several different 9mm's (actually, I only have ONE 9mm but my brother has a couple and I cast his bullets).
As far as the 686 goes, I'll just keep on with my wadcutters in .38 Special cases but if you want a special purpose bullet, Mihec's 359640 is a dandy:
Of course, you can reverse the pins and cast a solid RF nose on the bullet, also. Interesting design and in it's varying design options should give a feller about anything he needs in a full house .357 Magnum cartridge.
Dale53
I think that you'l be very happy with that 686. Thanks for the kind words.
By the way, that truncated cone (Lyman 356402) will do VERY well in the 9mm (sized the appropriate amount for your particular 9mm). I shoot the similar Lee TC 125 gr. bullet in several different 9mm's (actually, I only have ONE 9mm but my brother has a couple and I cast his bullets).
As far as the 686 goes, I'll just keep on with my wadcutters in .38 Special cases but if you want a special purpose bullet, Mihec's 359640 is a dandy:
Of course, you can reverse the pins and cast a solid RF nose on the bullet, also. Interesting design and in it's varying design options should give a feller about anything he needs in a full house .357 Magnum cartridge.
Dale53
Ben, that mould Dale showed is a great bullet. It is the preferred bullet for my 357 Marlin and it also does great in my GP100. With a 2 cav I can cast a fair number pretty fast.
Loaded in 38 special cases with a healthy dose of Unique it would work really well.
Loaded in 38 special cases with a healthy dose of Unique it would work really well.
Ian
Notorious member
Smith & Wesson, 357 Magnum, 2.5 " barrel, Model 686, Stainless.
Very smooth double action and nice clean crisp single action trigger pull.
Cylinder lock up is VERY tight!
Today was the day to bring this one home !
Ben
My wife has one of those. Beautiful revolver but the only way either of us would have been able to hit a barn from the inside was to throw the revolver against the wall. It is tight, timed, in perfect condition, has .3575" cylinder throats and the famous S&W 9mm groove (.354" measured with a vee groove fixture) and we've shot four or five kinds of factory jacketed bullets through it and I've wasted several entire weekends working up both jacketed and cast loads for it. It remains "minute of bucket" at 10 yards, or a $650 paper weight depending on you you look at it. I will be VERY interested to see how yours does for you because I haven't been able to crack the code on this one.