Are todays S&W 686s still a good quality gun?

[rec999allis]

Are toadys 686s a quality gun? I just bought one yesterday and I hope it will be a reliable and long lasting gun. So I'd like to know from anyone who bought one in the last year do you enjoy it? And how would you compare it to ruger and taurus? I bought a 686p with a six inch barrel.

 

[115grfmj]

good on ya mate!!

Probably the best double action revolver manufactured today. You won't regret it

 

[jad0110]

I also recently purchased a 4" 686P NIB. As I've said in other posts, good quality used revolvers are hard to come by in my area, so I have to ignore the unsightly birth mark just above the cylinder release .

I have only put 127 rounds through mine, including 27 rounds of American Eagle .357 Mag 158 grain high velocity. This gun is a significantly more accurate than my Taurus 66 6" was! The trigger is a little stiff, but it is new and it is already starting to smooth out nicely. I think I'm going to really enjoy it a lot. The finishing was a little inconsistent on mine (like a lot of new Smiths), so I used a little Flitz on a soft rag to polish it up a little, then I used some 0000 Steel Wool to take a bit of the shine off and it looks fantastic!

Enjoy your new purchase! Though I admit that this is likely to be my last NIB purchase, as I think I've worked up the nerve to buy something used online, without seeing or handling it.

BTW... Smith, Ruger, and Taurus all make fine guns, though Taurus does seem to have a few more lemons. And there customer service really, really stinks.

To each his own.

 

[MCgunner]

I'd not hesitate to buy a revolver from Taurus, Smith and Wesson, or Ruger. The 686 I've fired is accurate, trigger is decent DA, but no better than my Taurus 66. The single action is crisp. It belongs to a shooting buddy. It is a high quality firearm for sure and the fit and finish are flawless.

 

[Stainz]

My 5" half-lug 686+, a 'Stocking Dealer Exclusive', was bought new nearly two years ago. It was $30 less than a new 4" 686+, and it came as I had fixed up my 6" 66-6, with Ahrends square conversion f.g. cocobolo stocks and a HiViz sight. The 66 was bought new, on closeout, 9/03. Both it and my 5" 686+ came in excellent shape, both mechanically and cosmetically. I have since bought new a 625JM and a 4" and 6" 629, all similarly in excellent shape. They will one day be in my grandsons' hands... and they can decide, if they want, to use those 'locks'... the keys will still be in the boxes. New S&W's are fine firearms - and an excellent value. Yankee made - by a Yankee owned company (That's not easy to admit here in Alabama...).

Stainz

 

[Confederate]

Still a Winner!

I know when Smith & Wesson first produced the 686/586 revolvers, they concentrated on making them their best production pistol. The way they did this was that they really watched their tolerances. Many who owned Colt Pythons said they were getting equal accuracy out of the 686s and sales soared. I had a wonderfully accurate 4-incher and stupidly got rid of, but I've still got a 6-inch.

As for now, I don't know whether QC has been continued to the point it was then. From what I hear from other shooters, it's still the most accurate .357 currently made. It's not as beautiful as it once was, but it's still a winner.