[pennywhistler]

I just got a model 66 stainless steel .357 Smith that was an old police gun. It has the firing pin on the hammer. All my other revolvers use a transfer bar. I am thinking of keeping it in the car. Should I only load 5, and keep an empty under the hammer?

[REAPER4206969]

All six!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6e6cxYKUEA

[earlthegoat2]

Im not exactly sure of the design or safety differences of transfer bar vs. firing pin on the hammer. Either is OK to load 6 though. I have both and they are virtually the same.

[Pistol Toter]

Load 6. Actually, with the hammer back look down inside the gun and you will see a stamped piece that rises and falls depending on if you ride the trigger while uncocking the gun. That piece rides on a pin located on the rebound slide and is called the hammer block. While it is not a transfer bar it will interupt or prevent the hammer from making it's full travel. The piece is supposed to be there if not you should have one installed. That part was introduced in about 1942 or 1943, (if my memory serves me correctly) when a revolver was dropped and the hammer seat and rebound seat were not properly in spec. As a rule, all modern double action revolver can be safely be carried with 6 rounds. There are exceptions as the one just mentioned.

[3446]

Load 6, thats how I carry my 65. I think the "empty chamber" came from the old days with SA revolvers.

[jad0110]

First off, welcome to THR!

Second, all six is perfectly safe. On guns with the firing pin in the frame, the safety mechanism is called a "transfer bar". I think on guns with the firing pin on the hammer it functions as a "hammer block", but I can't recall at the moment.

Third, the rule here is that when you get a sweet new gun, especially a fine Model 66, you gotta post pics! :D

Just be sure to limit 357 Magnum ammo to bullet weights in the mid 140 grain range and higher and your 66 should last a lifetime plus.

Also, there are fellas here that can tell you the year of manufacture if you post all but the last 3 digits of the S/N, which is located on either the butt of the gun or on the frame behind the cylinder crane/arm (visible when the cylinder is opened). It should start with the letter "K".

[Jim K]

"On guns with the firing pin in the frame, the safety mechanism is called a "transfer bar"."

Nope. S&W has never used a transfer bar. Whether the firing pin is in the hammer or in the frame, S&W's use a hammer block.

Jim