S&W stainless finishes

[DC3-CVN-72]

rayman, no I did not change out the cyl. It came that way.

 

[jad0110]

Hi Jad0110,
Well, if you notice my 'newer' 640 above, the cylinder was a bit shinier than the frame. Now, even though I liked the toned down buff job, its currently at Smith’ being ‘bright polished’. In fact, I called today to add something else to the work order. If it comes out the way I expect, it will likely become more of a show-piece than any EDC.

Ah yes, I see what you mean now. About when was that 640 made? As I said, Smiths in the last couple of years seem to be much better in their finishing. Interestingly, I observed that Model 60s were nearly always the worst finished. The cylinder looked good, but as Confederate points out, the tiny scratches on the rest of the gun go in all different directions. What the?

Flitz is great, but the hammers and triggers of new S&W guns still detract from their looks.

I agree; I have no problem with MIM from a functional perspective (both my guns with MIM have been 100% reliable), but it just doesn't look as good. I would have preferred a used 686, but hadn't seen one for years. At the time I bought my 686 (late '06), it was only $75 more than a GP100 and since I preferred the "feel" of the 686, I paid the extra $75. The 7th shot of the 686Plus was a nice bonus.

Nowadays, you are right about the price difference. It is about $200 in my area as well. If I were buying new again, I wouldn't be able to justify that $200 premium even though I slightly prefer the 686.

Funny enough, 2 weeks after I bought my NIB 686, 3 used 4" examples (all pre-lock, pre-MIM) showed up at the same shop ($399 each)! Oh well.