Model 66 2.75 inch

what are you looking to know about them?

I've got a pair of older M19 snubs that I've had great service from. I like the size, weight, power and capacity for a CCW.

The newer 66's are stronger and have full length ejector rods which are all nice features the older snubs lacked.

Have a new one here, but have not fired it yet.
It ain't your grandpa's 66.
Denis

Fit & finish well done.
Practically no forcing cone, there have been reports of bullet shaving & particulates blasting back to faces.
2-piece barrel.
Front sight insert darker than older models, black rear sight without white outline.
Sorta slick synthetic grips.
Trigger pulls clean, at least on this sample.

Frame & cylinder both slightly longer than original 66s.
Denis

Trigger's passable.
The sights I do not like, they don't work well for my eyes.

I showed my old 66 snub & the new one to my wif & she says the older ones "jump out at you, the new ones don't".

Those plastic inserts can be changed for a brighter color or tritium inserts if one desires.

Same with the rear sights. You want the goal posts? Look to midway, they've got them.

Factory grips I typically plan on ditching or modifying. Either with Arhends, or old school magnas and a T grip.

All those things are fairly minor and easily rectified. The "guts" of the new 66's are good to go. They have beefier forcing cones than their predecessors which was their Achille's heel.

I'm sure it's not a commonly agreed upon point, but the triggers on the new (post lock) guns are just as good as the older ones once broken in to the same point. After I put a few thousand rounds through my 686-6 and 629-8's they felt VERY similar to my 19-3 and 19-5's.

My 64-5 and 686-0 are just completely phenomial ~9lbs DA pulls but they're better than I typically hope for out of a stock trigger and aren't to be expected. Most S&W's will end up in the mid-to-low 10lbs range after being broken in.

There are obviously numerous aftermarket sight options, I'm just laying out how the gun comes.
The older 66 had no need to spend additional money on sights after buying the gun.
Denis

One thing I don't like about the older M66's is that I couldn't change the front sights. I don't like the Red ramp sights on the old or new, but I can change the ones on my dash eight without recourse to a gunsmith.
I am one of the owners of the new M66 snubs, and also one of the ones experiencing "something" spitting back into my face. Not much blood, just one drop above my left eye. Good thing, since I am on blood thinners.
I emailed S&W describing the problem, and they sent me shipping authorization within an hour. They have acknowledged receiving the revolver, and will let me know. Been 2 weeks since I shipped FedX.
The revolver shot as well as I can tell, and I really like it, otherwise. I have a Lobo Gun Leather Original Pancake holster due soon, probably before I get my gun back. I use Ahrends finger grove boot grips that have been on about 4 different K and L frames now.
Hope this is the last, but if the new M66 doesn't work out, I plan to get a 2.5 inch M686. A quarter inch shorter and an ounce heavier than the 66. The 2.75 inch barrel of the -8 is just right for a CCW weapon, in my opinion. It will share duty with my M640 Pro for CC.

Best,
Rick

DPris said:

There are obviously numerous aftermarket sight options, I'm just laying out how the gun comes.
The older 66 had no need to spend additional money on sights after buying the gun.
Denis

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My -3 & -5 M19's came with flat black serrated front sights milled into the barrel. It would be a very large PITA to have them changed to even a red ramp front sight, much less anything fancier.

They also came with plain blacked out rears. So as far as I'm concerned a pinned front sight is a vast improvement.

My older M-19 2.5" was a workhorse for me for a while. I carried it for years in a Bianchi shoulder rig. All I added were Pachmayr compac grips, and two speedloaders. I stoked it with Win 110 gr JHP's because that was what we were issued in that caliber.

I didn't shoot it as well as my longer-barrelled revolvers, but I was able to keep it where I needed it a qual time.

The only real issues are the Iwo Jima-quality flame thrown out of the muzzle in low light, and the snappy recoil with magnum loads. Other than that, a great firearm indeed!

"...Trigger's passable..." Needs a trigger job just like any new firearm. Needs Pachmayr grips too.

Fail to see what the references to the Model 19s have to do with the new 66.
Denis

I had two revolvers on my need list. A 3" Talo 686+ with unfluted cylinder and a Mod 66 2-3/4"

I got the 686+ and a few weeks later a co-worker got the Mod. 66 so last weekend I had a good side by side comparison.
MY impressions and I stress the word MY.
Both were perfect from the factory. Everything up to snuff in that department.
I felt little weight difference between the two even though the Mod 66 is listed as 5oz. lighter.
Both felt identical riding in the holster I was using.
The trigger on mine has some minor work done so I cannot give a fair evaluation but I assume both could be made equal.
I really see little in the difference with respect to frame size but obviously the barrel on the 66 was more compact.
My impression was the 686+ actually had better overall balance.
The 66 did not have a white outline on the rear sight. Not a deal breaker but a feature that I like.
I really prefer the brushed stainless over the satin finish on the 66. That may be just me but in my opinion the 686 is the clear winner here.
I was not in love with the black hammer, trigger, and cylinder release. Not a deal breaker as a gun is a tool to be used.
Both were natural pointers and shot equally well.

This evaluation is coming from a guy that until I found my buddy had the 66 incoming, was ready to buy one sight unseen on a popular auction site.
After the side by side looksee I decided my 686+ was everything the Mod 66 was and I closed my digital checkbook on my purchase of that gun.
This is not intended to be a bashing of the new 66. It is a fine firearm that will be fun to carry and own. In my opinion it was just not that much different than my 686+

"I felt little weight difference between the two even though the Mod 66 is listed as 5oz. lighter."

I think there may be a discrepancy with the weights here.
The S&W website shows the 66-8 with 2.75 inch barrel to weigh 33.5 oz, and the 686plus with 2.5 inch barrel to weigh 34.1 oz. This is a difference of only 0.6 oz. If I have not botched the numbers, this might be why you felt little weight difference between the two.
Part of the reason for the small difference is the 1/4 inch shorter barrel for the 686. Also, there are 7 holes drilled in the 686 Plus model cylinder. The difference with loaded guns would be a little more, due to the extra cartridge in the Plus model. For loaded guns this would be about 1.0 oz difference with my BB 158 gr FBI loads. The 66 would have a slight advantage with sight radius and velocity. The key word here is "slight"!
Whether or not the extra round of the 686 is an advantage is up to the opinion of the owner. I prefer the 6 shot over the 7, but if I just used the gun for possible combat, I would go with the 7, (or 8). But, this kind of reasoning usually leads to buying a Glock for carry!

Best,
Rick

Rick: My 686+ is a three inch gun.

I'm aware of the history of the Model 19 & the 66.
I had a 19 40 years ago & a 66 over 30 years ago.

My point is that the original question was asking for info on the new 66, and responses about how much people like their old 19s do nothing whatever to address the NEW 66.

It's the old "Anybody got the new 2017 Corvette?", followed by the usual thread drift with responses along the lines of "Sure do love my '68 Camaro!"
Nice to know, but useless to the original poster.


The 66-8 here does weigh just a hair under 33.5 ounces.
I don't have a comparable snub 686 to put on the scale.
The older 2.5 66 snub weighs 32.5 ounces, if you're interested.
Denis

Denis,

I was trying to offer insight towards the general form factor and point out some of the upgrades on the new models that might get overlooked.

While they're decades apart and are called different things, functionally they're close enough experience and insights about one will translate to the other.

While I appreciate keeping threads on track, you might be coming across a little heavy handed about it.

Just trying to say that commentary about old 19s has limited value in providing info on what the new 66 is & has.
And you weren't the only one referencing 19s.
Denis

DPris said:

Just trying to say that commentary about old 19s has limited value in providing info on what the new 66 is & has.

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I was just trying to point out that as good as the old ones are, the new ones are mo' better.

That's a matter for argument.
Denis

I have a new 4" 66-8 and it's not as luxurious as my older 66's, but it's a great shooting gun. I think the platform is solid.