S&W 317-1 Kit Gun

[XLMiguel]

So I had this $10 'Rewards' certificate for Galyans and figured I'd treat myself to a new sweatshirt or something, but first I figured I'd just go look at the guns. I know the Dick's has bought Galyan's and is getting out of the handgun bidness (dumb, really dumb!) , and I figured things would be pretty picked over, but you know how it is, I had to go look.

Well, low and behold, they're very well stocked. It turns out that they're shipping handguns from all the other stores to the Fairlakes store for liquidation, everything is $30-50 off, and they expect to be selling handguns well into next year

At anyrate, they had a 3' .22 AirLite Kit Gun in the case. It's an older model without the fiber optic front sight, weighs all of 10 oz.s, had a nice trigger, so after a thorough inspection, I decided to give it a new home, $339 OTD!

I took it to the NRA range this morning and put a couple hundred rounds thru (50 each Rem. Viper, Win SuperX, CCI MiniMag, PMC Zapper), and I'm a happy guy. The gun is very light, so it's a little hard to hold steady, but overall, it's pretty accurate for a shorty. The recoil was negligible, and though the DA trigger was a bit heavy, it broke cleanly (Iwill get it slicked up a bit), the SA trigger was sweet. The Rem., Win., and PMC stuff all ejected easily, though the CCI was a bit stiff going in and coming out. Though I'm more of a auto-loader guy, I found that if I take my time, I can shoot it pretty well, and since it's a .22, I can afford to practice It's a fun little plinker, and I bet we can stoke it up with Velocitors and it'll find its way into momma's nightstand drawer.!

 

[Onmilo]

I sure like mine.
$339.00 is an excellent buy, congrats.

 

[XLMiguel]

Thanks. Mine has the longer 'combat' grips, I'm thinking aobut a nice set of Hogue's in some sort of wood after a trigger job.

 

[DR]

Mine has become my favorite "stop by the range on the way to work" gun. It doesn't take too many shots before the cylinder needs a good cleaning. I don't know if that's because the cylinder's aluminum or just a little tight. And it doesn't weigh down my briefcase the way my 686 does. ;-)

What kind of rear sight does yours have? Mine has the fiber optic front, which I'm ok with, and a V-notch rear. I'd prefer a standard Partridge sight so it would make finding a square notch easier if the older models have them.

 

[XLMiguel]

DR -
Mine has the square notch rear sight, seems to work pretty well. It shoots to POA with the Remington and Winchester, a little high with the CCI, based on my limited sample/1st time out. Mine was fine for the first 100 or so rnds, then started to bind up a little. I couldn't tell if it was hot or just dirty, but I did wipe it down with a little CLP and set it down for a few minutes ( I also had my P-22 along) and everything was fine. FWIW, upon eyeballing the cylinder/forcing cone gap, I could barely see light, looked pretty tight.

All'n'all, I like it, it's a neat little gun. I think a trigger job and some nice furniture is in order

 

[Wayne D]

You got a good deal. I have a 2" and I'll buy a 3" if I can find one. They shoot good and don't have the sticky extraction problems of the 34s and 63s.

 

[Griff]

Congratulations on a good buy!
I've been looking at these as future "Farm Guns" for me and Her Royal Wifeliness, but keep reading that some folks are having trouble with the finish being fragile or whatnot. Does CLP Breakfree and a toothbrush mess 'em up?

Also, are there any good full-flap holsters available for these? If nobody's making them, guess we could pick up a couple of inexpensive Uncle Mikes and get to work with the sewing machine.

Thanks,
and Happy Thanksgiving, everybody

 

[Tacoma]

I would have grabbed that one myself. Price was great, 3" barrel even better. Finding one without that ugly optic sight, priceless.

 

[Wayne D]

Also, are there any good full-flap holsters available for these?

Have you ever looked the the "Safepacker" from "The Wilderness"?

www.thewilderness.com

 

[omega5]

I had one for about 3 months. Traded for a Ruger Mark II MK10. The 317 is so light and the Hi-Viz sight is so large, it's hard to shoot accurately. I'm talking squirrel hunting accuracy. That was my only problem with it though. Nothing mechanical or quality related.

 

[Griff]

Safepacker looks like a good idea; might be worth some checkin' into. Thanks for the link.

The sights do look a bit hinky from here, but in our hands might be a different story. Nice idea, though.
Light weight is probably not so much of a problem for us. It'd be great to have something there if you need it (well inside of 15 yard ranges, like chasing B'rer Rabbit outa the spinach patch) but out of the way, especially for "during the chores" carry convenience.

It's good to hear that most are happy with the quality, though. I suppose maybe a few lemons could always get out on Monday morning or Friday afternoon.

Thanks, guys