Dan Wesson .357's

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L-Frame

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Hello,

I need some advice on Dan Wesson revolvers. Does anyone have any experience with their 357's? Are they quality or not. How do they compare to Smith's, Ruger, Taurus, ??? A local gunshop has one. Looks like a nice, clean, quality revolver but I have never owned or shot one. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Don't have any experience with the wheel gun but I own a Dan Wesson Marksman 45 that is top of the ranking in all aspects IMHO. If the wheel guns are Q.C.'d like my Marksman in quality then I would not hesitate to get one. I have been thinking about getting one .
 
As strong as any revolver and quite possibly the most accurate. Resale value sucks though. Triggers are good, but if you are used to a S&W the action seems strange (long). The older Monson models are the best of the bunch.
I've had DW's for over 15 years and they been very good to me. My M22 shoots circles around my M17-3.
 
Dan Wesson

I own a Dan wesson Patriot marksman and have played with one of their 22 revolvers and from what I experienced they are high quality and very reliable.
 
Dannies are good guns.

Kind of a "cult gun" but a great design. The best variants have user-removable barrels and you can order different lengths, or they came in packs with two to four tubes of varying lengths.

They also did some conventional barrel models. Not many though. Look at the muzzle, and if it's got a weird series of indentations, that's where a special wrench goes. In my mind, that's a good thing, and the company has been revived - they're servicing older models and providing parts such as the wrenches and extra barrels.

When you run the checkout on a DW with swappable barrels, if the cyinder gap is too narrow OR too tight, don't worry about it. Order a wrench from the company cheap and set it yourself as desired.

The cylinder release is weird - it's forward of the cylinder on the right side, a slide-switch you sweep down. Works good though.

If the gun feels right to you and passes a checkout, buy it. Most folks don't realize what gems they are and they go cheap, esp. when there's just one barrel.
 
Thanks guys. I really appreciate the advice. You've been alot of help.
 
I have several DW's a 15-2, a .357 Maximum, and a .445 Supermag. They are all excellent, reliable, quality firearms. All of these have the swappable barrels. It takes 5 minutes if that to change barrels.
 
Ya know, it's not like the cylinder release is all THAT difficult. Instead of using the right thumb, you just use the left thumb which is already right there anyway. You'll find that when your left hand middle fingers are on the cylinder, ready to push through, just crook that left thumb a bit and voila! The cylinder pops right open.
 
Actually I think the cylinder release is an excellent design. The stress is created where the crane meets the frame during cylinder rotation and firing. That is exactly where the DW locks up. A very simple and efficient design.
 
I used to own one of the original Dan Wesson's in .357. It was one of the most accurate revolvers that I have ever seen. It was as well built as the Smith's that I've owned.

Once you get used to the cylinder release, it is much quicker and easier to load the gun. The interchangeable barrels are great. One thing that most people over look is that you can set your own cylinder gap.

I have not tried out the "new" Dan Wesson's but they look good and I hear good things about them.

James
 
One more tidbit: the 15 was the smaller-frame 357 - they also built 357s on the platform designed for 44Mag...damned if I can remember the model number but a buddy of mine had a 15 so it stuck in my head.

The 15 is in many ways similar to the Ruger Security/Service series; in other words, it balances about like an S&W K-Frame 357 (19/66/etc) yet is stronger.

This is a good thing, as a certain jailbird might have once said.
 
I used to have a DW 15-2, traded it away a long time ago, regretted it ever since. Mine was accurate, reliable, and the switch barrel system really was nice. The new ones and those made in Monson, Mass. are the most desirable. Those made in Plamer, Mass. are a hit or miss proposition when it comes to quality.
 
hey fyi...

Once you get that barrel gap set LEAVE IT ALONE.

There is a tendency to take it apart (because you can) well... don't.

The DW revolvers are robust, if a little 'chunky' compared to Colts and SW's or even Rugers.

The bluing is a little wierd too.. some is almost purple as it fades, other is black.. on the same gun. Still, they work.
 
Just saw a nice Monson . . .

here in ABQ: they wanted $269, I think. It only had the 4" tube, but it was 95%+. Neat guns.

One of these days . . .
 
I recently bought a DW 715 with all four barrels at a gun show. Dealer was packing up to go home and grumbled about draging that &*##&* DW home again and if somebody offered him $350.00 for it he'd sell, it went home with me.
Shoots better than any of my 686's and trigger feels as good, maybe better than two S&W"s that I've had trigger work done on.
With 8" barrel it shoots about like a target .22, very little muzzle flip and dead on at 75 yds, which is just about the limit for my tired old eyes.
DW's are like potato chips, you can't stop with just one
 
If anyone's interested, a local dealer has (on consignment) a FIVE-barrel Dan Wesson .357. It comes with two grips (target and combat), tools, and barrels in 2½", 4", 6", 8", and 15" - the last is the longest revolver barrel I've ever seen! It's still in its original aluminum presentation case. The set is available (IIRC) for about $750. I'm not into Dan Wessons, but if anyone wants the set, PM or e-mail me and I'll put you in touch with my dealer.

(Price is probably negotiable, but not to any ridiculous extent...)
 
Preacherman,
If you could give me the gunshop info I would appreciate it. Thanks.
L-Frame
 
I've had my Dan Wesson 15-2 for almost 28 years now. I've no idea anymore just how many rounds have been throuh it, bit it's certainly more than 10K.

Granted, most of those have been relatvely mild reloads (158 gr. LSW over 6.0 grs Unique), but nothing has broken nor worn out.

The only maintenance besides cleaning has been to replace the springs once, and that wasn't absolutely necessary.

I did put a set of Millet sights on it, just for grins.

When they first came out, Skeeter Skelton loaned his test piece to a New Mexico compadre to get another opinion for his article.

When the ol' cowboy ran out of the ammo Skeeter gave him and brought it back, his comment was " She aint the purtiest thang I ever seen 'til you pull the trigger; then she gets bee-you-tiful!"

Pretty much sums it up
 
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