S&W Model 638. Anybody have one?

[MarineTech]

Been starting to get the itch to replace my back-up gun. My Bersa Thunder .380 is a decent little auto, good accuracy, and very reliable. I just want to replace it with a .38SPL.

I've looked at several S&Ws, the Ruger SP101, and several Charter 2000 revolvers, and I have to say that I really like the S&W 638 the best. (No I won't consider Taurus. Had 2 and they were both crap) The shrouded hammer and short bantam grips REALLY did it for me. This thing slips in and out of my pocket like it was on rails.

So, does anybody have experience with them? Any pros or cons? I'm interested about thoughts on the guns itself, not about how some folks think the company sold us out. I think it's great if you have an issue with S&W, I don't, so please stick to the topic.

Thanks.

 

[MR.G]

Have two of them. One has been carried and shot a lot, the other is nib.
The one I use had a terrable trigger pull out of the box. Also had a very large barrel to cylinder gap, and the barrel was not cut correctly. The factory replaced the barrel, and at my request, made the b/c gap about .004". I polished the internals, and installed reduced power Wolf springs, which corrected the trigger pull problem. The finish wears off the barrel and cylinder very easily. I polished them to a high shine stainless. In short, it is a great gun. I carry it daily, over all the other guns that I own, and it is accurate and reliable. I bought a second 638, which is still new in the box, for when this one finally wears out. Get one, you won't regret it.

 

[Tamara]

Mine's a nickel Model 38 as opposed to a 638, but pretty much same-same. It's a nice gun, although if used for pocket carry you can get some alarmingly big dust bunnies in the slotted out area of the hump.

Still have it, but stopped toting it in favor of my 442. Being able to fire a snubby single-action just isn't high on my list of priorities anymore.

 

[Kentucky Rifle]

Yep...

It's on my hip right now stuffed with RBCD's. It's nice to see someone else who appreciates the 638. Weighs only 15 ounces and, though I've got a nice Ostrich skin holster coming, it's in a Fobus Kydex paddle right now. Very comfortable. Nice choice.

KR

 

[Mordoc]

I have a 38 and a 642. They replaced my P-32 for casual carry. I use the 642 for pocket carry and the 38 for holster carry. If you're new to airweights be prepared to practice a bit but recoil isn't bad. My recoil scale puts a 640 in 357 as bad! I was never happy with the P-32 but the airweights I trust and they are easy to carry. Accuracy is fine and neither needed any work out of the box. I carry both with Federal 125 gr. Nyclad but need to find a replacement. I use speed strips for extra ammo.

 

[BlackJack]

I like the Bodyguard style quite a bit and carried a Model 38 (blued version) for quite a while but never was completely comfortable with it for shooting (kind of important). Actually it was a little too light, so I switched to a Model 49--the blued steel version, which I found much more controllable and still not too heavy for regular carry. It's a great little carry gun. The only thing I would suggest is shoot the airweight before you buy one to be sure it's comfortable and controllable. You'll have to shoot quite a bit to develop proficiency with a snub or to maintain it if you already have it.

 

[MarineTech]

Thanks to everybody that's chimed in.

The one I use had a terrable trigger pull out of the box. Also had a very large barrel to cylinder gap, and the barrel was not cut correctly.

Mr. G - I did notice that the trigger was a bit on the hefty side and stacked a bit before the release. I'm planning on sending the gun to the Performance Center to have some action work done on it after I've broken it in a bit.

The only thing I would suggest is shoot the airweight before you buy one to be sure it's comfortable and controllable. You'll have to shoot quite a bit to develop proficiency with a snub or to maintain it if you already have it.

Blackjack, thanks for the thoughts. I've carried and shot lightwight .38 snubs before in Scandium and Titanium. I just moved away from them because they weren't as "handy" as some other guns. I've had no problems with recoil on .38 +p. .357 Magnum out of a light frame in a snub is a bit more than I care to use though. I've got a nice gouge in the side of my thumb from firing a full bore .357Mag out of a S&W Lady Smith. That's just too much "fun" for me.