Marshall, thanks for the clarification. (No problem about "delay"; we're all busy here.
)
I like to press one point a bit more. You wrote:
The Ruger is a tank. I have no concerns about shooting whatever ammo I choose, or how many rounds of heavy stuff I put through them. Hunting ammo falls more along those lines than range ammo.
Hmmm. I'm certainly no expert with either of these guns. (Or with ANY gun for that matter; I'm still a student with all of them.
)
I'm prepared to be wrong on this.
But my sense, from all the reading I've done on these two specific guns during the last year and a half (and that's a BUNCH of reading, both on THR and off), is that the SW is
at least as capable of handling hot rounds as the Ruger. Forged v. cast and all that.
I'm NOT arguing that either is "superior" in some sense to the other. I have no clear evidence that's the case. It seems to me that "better" is more a matter of subjectivity, not objectivity, specifically how the gun fits and feels. I've not read any horror stories about consistent failures. Sure, a problem here, a problem there, but no
consistent and repeating problems that are common to one or the other.
The only issue that bothers me a little bit is the timing issue that's been mentioned at least once in this thread, and particularly the assertion (IIRC) that it is more common in 7-shot 686+ than either the 6-shot or the Ruger. That issue is high on my list to research more.
Comments welcome and appreciated; links to more in depth information even more so.
Thanks,
Nem