357 Revolver with 8 Round Capacity and Rails

I owned the Redhawk 8-shot 357 which I bought to avoid the S&W lock.

Compared to a S&W I found it to be too big, too heavy, and the trigger pull — even with a trigger job done to it — to not be as good as a S&W.

All of the above though are things inherent in the systems, which should be noted.

I sold the Ruger and if I were in need of an 8-shot .357 today I would buy an S&W and remove the lock.

- Stan

stanley_white said:

I owned the Redhawk 8-shot 357 which I bought to avoid the S&W lock.

Compared to a S&W I found it to be too big, too heavy, and the trigger pull — even with a trigger job done to it — to not be as good as a S&W.

All of the above though are things inherent in the systems, which should be noted.

I sold the Ruger and if I were in need of an 8-shot .357 today I would buy an S&W and remove the lock.

- Stan

Click to expand...

Thank you. I have decided to buy the Ruger Redhawk 5050 .45 Colt / .45 ACP and if I like it then get the 5059 8 shot .357. If the 5050 is too heavy in regards to what I want in a .357 I may consider the S&W. Maybe....

I am still mad at S&W on another issue but I won’t go into it here and deflect from this thread.

How was that round butt grip?

Pat Riot said:

Thank you. I have decided to buy the Ruger Redhawk 5050 .45 Colt / .45 ACP and if I like it then get the 5059 8 shot .357. If the 5050 is too heavy in regards to what I want in a .357 I may consider the S&W. Maybe....

I am still mad at S&W on another issue but I won’t go into it here and deflect from this thread.

How was that round butt grip?

Click to expand...

I wonder if the 5050 will balance better / feel more nimble than the 8-shot 357 due to having less steel in the cylinder and barrel?

Hmm...

I found the round butt grip to be too small but I love large grips. I bought a pair of grips Eagle Grips which, while huge, worked well for me.

-Stan

Liquid Metal said:

Stanley, I know this maybe apples to oranges but how is it compared to a GP100?

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The only GP100 I ever owned was a 3" barreled version with a fixed sight which was a lot smaller / lighter weight than the Redhawk.

One thing to note is that the Redhawk has more meat in the handle than the GP100 or Super Redhawk do.

As such, the GP100 and Super Redhawk will likely be more muzzle heavy, on average, than a Redhawk.

Also, the Redhawk has a single spring which makes trigger jobs more difficult for some folks than on the GP100 and Super Redhawk which I understand are more like Smith and Wesson with a hammer spring and trigger return spring.

All of the above needs to be looked at as "inherent to the design" meaning that these design features are present and have to be accepted.

The Ruger Super GP100 looks like it has the stick handle of the GP100 (light) and the top part of the Redhawk (heavy) which makes me think those cool cuts in the barrel and the cylinder were more for balance than for increasing the shooter's ability to swing the muzzle from target to target.

Having done the battle in my mind for years between Ruger and S&W I am now liking Ruger for single action revolvers and S&W for double action revolvers.

I hope that helps.

-Stan

This video is likely of interest if you value the idea that if a product survives in X environment it will do well with me because I will use it less.



-Stan

Liquid Metal said:

I think the only thing difference between a 627 and the 327 (trr8) is the frame material right?

627 is made for durability while the 327 is made for light weight carrying?

Click to expand...

I don't know.

-Stan

Liquid Metal said:

I think the only thing difference between a 627 and the 327 (trr8) is the frame material right?

627 is made for durability while the 327 is made for light weight carrying?

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They are both N-frames and thus the same basic size revolvers. There are also a fair number of differences, Yes in short the 627 will be a bit more robust gun using a stainless steel frame and one piece stainless steel barrel. The 327 using a special aluminum (scandium alloyed aluminum) for the frame. It also has a two piece barrel comprised of an aluminum outer sleeve with a stainless steel barrel liner. The 627 uses a stainless steel cylinder. The 327 TRR8 also use a stainless steel cylinder though there are versions of the 327 that use a titanium cylinder.

Liquid Metal said:

Thanks for the details.

In the video that Stanley posted, most of those folks are using the model 627 and can be mounted with a sight.

Would you know the differences between these three 627?

http://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-model-627-v-comp
http://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-pro-series-model-627
http://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-model-627-1

http://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-model-627-0

Click to expand...

Other than barrel length/configuration not much.

The Pro model might still have a forged hammer/trigger as apposed to the MIM hammer/trigger common in most new N-frames but I am not 100% sure on that with current offerings. Personally I would rather have the MIM parts but in practice it makes very little difference. Forge parts are perceived as better by many and 20 years ago they probably were better than MIM but with current MIM technology most will never see a difference.

THe V-comp obviously has a compensator on it. Makes the gun a bit louder for the shooter but also help control muzzle rise during recoil. The compensator is removable.

The unfluted cylinder on the snubby being another obvious difference. Personally I dislike unfluted cylinders, if you are an aggressive double action shooter an unfluted cylinder will make for a slightly heavier double action trigger pull and be slightly harder on the cylinder stop and stop notches. Again only if your an aggressive double action shooter, such as an ICORE or USPSA competitor.

Liquid Metal said:

Strange that the Pro Series
http://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-pro-series-model-627

costs $300 less than this one

http://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/performance-center-model-627-1

It is hard for me to compare the differences in my phone but will look at it on my computer tonight.

Click to expand...

The second one (more expensive one) is supposed to get a better action job from the Performance Shop than the pro-series. It also comes with two grips, the wood one shown and a rubber one similar to the other 627. Personally I don't think the Performance Shops action jobs are worth the cost, but I am far from a trigger snob, but YMMV. The longer 5-inch barrel on the other hand is a bigger value to me. My own personal 627 is a 5-inch gun though I don't think it was a performance center gun. I bought it used.

Liquid Metal said:

Can you share where you got your quick loader with moon clips? That entire belt?

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The moonclip server is a North Mountain moonclip holder

http://4wheelguns.com/Moon Clip Holder.html

They do a couple different sizes both in the number and length of posts. They also do a version that protect the moonclips better for more general carry. The rig I am using in my USPSA rig and thus does not need much protection.

http://4wheelguns.com/IDPA.html

They only make this version with a single post but it will protect your moonclips better for more general carry.

The holster is an old, no longer made, plastic holster from Blade-Tech. The belt is a generic over belt (lines with the loop side of velcro) I picked up somewhere. I use a standard Bianchi liner belt (hook side out) with it.

The Performance Center one you linked to earlier was a 5-inch gun. The Pro version is 4-inch the Performance Center one is the 5-inch. (SKU: 170210)