Colt Detective Special? S&W 36LS?

[ChuckB]

Hi there. I'm considering either a NIB Smith & Wesson 36LS or a used Colt D-Special. The prices are similar. The Lady Smith has a 5-shot cylinder, while the Colt holds six- although if carried, it would only be loaded with five. The Colt is nickle-plated. Its condition is absolutely excellent. The lock-up is solid, and the finish is great (if you like shiny guns; I'm not crazy about them). I'm mostly unfamiliar with the Colt snubbies, so a little help determining the pros and cons of each would be appreciated. Thanks.

Chuck

 

[Gewehr98]

Why would you load the 6-shot Colt with only 5 rounds?

You load 5 rounds into an older Colt Single Action Army revolver, and lower the hammer on the empty chamber, because there's a chance that a solid blow on the hammer will result in an unintended discharge.

But the little Colt Detective's Special doesn't have that problem, and is every bit as safe to carry with a full cylinder as the larger Colt and S&W double-action revolvers.

So why short-change yourself one round in a defensive revolver?

 

[ChuckB]

I wasn't aware of that. I figured that, with a hammer-mounted firing pin, a sharp blow might make a hole in my leg. What does the Colt have that prevents this from happening?

Chuck

 

[SouthpawShootr]

The hammer mounted firing pin doesn't make a bit of difference. Colt and S&W each marketed guns (S&W until quite recently) with hammer mounted firing pins. Each design has a mechanism (some kind of block that prevents forward movement of the hammer & therefore fining pin) that prevents the firing pin from going forward unless the trigger was pulled all the way to the rear. S&W switched to a transfer bar (I don't know why, almost certainly cost cutting) gradually removing the hammer mounted firing pin.

 

[ChuckB]

Didn't know that. Thanks for the info.

Chuck

 

[lager1829]

Back to your question

I recently got a Colt DS. Very solid and well balanced. Shoots Great! Very pleased with it. I have a SW 642 - lightweight and easy to carry but no fun to shoot. I carry the Colt unless I need to do pocket carry or can dress to carry the full-sized 1911

 

[9mmepiphany]

the colt carries one more round, uses K-frame speedloaders, is more accurate (function of rifling twist) and is easier to manage when using the DA trigger pull (longer)

the smith is smaller and a bit lighter

your choice: do you need more accuracy and firepower or a more compact gun.

 

[DHart]

Personally I like my Detective Specials more than my M36 or M60... but the 642 is better for pocket carry, the 640 is better for power and pulling from a concealment holster...

that said, I still love the DS! (Just bought my fifth one... I like them that well!) There's just something about the Dick Special that's really "special". You may need to wind up with more than one gun!

Nice thing about the Detectives compared to the lite weights is the all steel construction makes them solid, less bucking and snorting with +P ammo than the liteweights, quicker follow up shots, and they tend to be much more accurate than the little Smiths. And they feel great in the hand. You get six shots with a frame size nearly identical to a 5-shot S&W J-frame. The Detective Special ruled the roost for many decades... a tried and true classic with a very smooth double action pull. That said, I also like my Smiths (nearly two dozen of them) as well.... lots of cool guns to choose from.

If you can deal with the larger size K-frame Smith... the Model 13 or 65 is top of the class and you get .357 power... these ruled the small .357 carry gun roost for decadeswith the FBI and a heck of a lot of law enforcement agencies. The 3" barrel gives you a full length ejector rod for easy extraction and a slightly longer sighting radius, as well as a little more barrel length for power development in the barrel. These are easy to carry concealed as well.

 

[Krag]

Instead of a DS I picked up a used 2" S&W Model 12. Six rounds, super light and with much better handling characteristics. Colt DA trigger pulls are lousy.

 

[ChuckB]

Gee. DHart: "very smooth double action pull"; Krag: "Colt DA pulls are lousy". Well, now that's been cleared up for me!

Chuck

 

[DHart]

Pick up ten different revolvers and you'll get ten different actions. Even among my Smiths, every one has a different feel, some better than others, but I still like them all. Colt Detective Spl double action pulls have a totally different feel than S&W's, as does Ruger. Some prefer one, some prefer the other, some don't like any of them, some, like me, like them both, but need to adjust for the differences. I find the stacking DA pull on my DS's give me a very stable muzzle at the moment of hammer fall - making me much more accurate than I am with the similarly sized J-frames. But as you know, different strokes for different folks. I find the trigger pulls to have a very different feel, but I have no problem adjusting to the triggers on my Ruger GP's, SP, Colt DS, or Smiths... they're all different and give a different feel. The Detective Special doesn't need me as a defender, they've been an extremely popular revolver for many, many, many decades! But as with anything, some will like them, some won't. Just as some like Mercedes but not BMW, some like BMW but not Mercedes.... just variances in personal preferences, that's all. Neither is better than the other, they're just different.