The life of a 442

My S&W Model 642 (similar to the 442) has somewhere between 4,000 and 5,000 rounds through it thus far, roughly 1/4 of that being +P. The center pin hole in the frame is starting to oval (egg) in shape, making the lock up a bit sloppy. However, it's still in time (not perfect but serviceable) and shoots fine.
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The pin hole has egged out to the point that the back end of the cylinder is actually smacking off the bottom of the frame during the recoil impulse. Since it's now 'headspaceing' off the frame in this spot, I don't think the hole will continue to egg out in the frame beyond what has already occurred.
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I am going to assume my theory is correct and keep on shooting it without worry... I have not observed any noticeable wear beyond what my pictures show in the few times I fired the gun since taking these pictures.
 
Ethan Verity said:
My S&W Model 642 (similar to the 442) has somewhere between 4,000 and 5,000 rounds through it thus far, roughly 1/4 of that being +P. The center pin hole in the frame is starting to oval (egg) in shape, making the lock up a bit sloppy. However, it's still in time (not perfect but serviceable) and shoots fine.
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The pin hole has egged out to the point that the back end of the cylinder is actually smacking off the bottom of the frame during the recoil impulse. Since it's now 'headspaceing' off the frame in this spot, I don't think the hole will continue to egg out in the frame beyond what has already occurred.
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I am going to assume my theory is correct and keep on shooting it without worry... I have not observed any noticeable wear beyond what my pictures show in the few times I fired the gun since taking these pictures.
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That’s excellent durability from that little guy! Now buy a second and regulate that one for training.
 
Pat Riot said:
I am thinking of getting another ankle holster so I can carry the 442 in my pocket and my 36 on my ankle.
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I have also been considering another J frame. Maybe a 642.
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The good news is that there are plenty of good leather quality ankle holsters available used on Ebay. They were very common for the hammered revolvers. Not so much for the hammerless they get newer and pricey.
 
I ordered a DeSantis Apache ankle holster yesterday that will accommodate my 442 or my 36. It arrives next Tuesday. :D
 
My mistake was that I traded in my 642 for a used 442. I paid $100. I should have kept the 642 for practice and paid the full $390 for the 442. Oh well. Live and learn, some more of these are bound to come around here and there. As for a backup in case mine is confiscated after a SD event, well a replacement gun might well be the least of my concerns considering the likelihood of of having to defend myself (I do have USCCA coverage) here is screaming liberal Wayne County [Detroit and burbs] MI. Anyway, if I do get my 442 confiscated, I can carry my Charter Arms Bulldog .45 Colt. Just have to leave my shirt out to cover the butt sticking out the pocket slit of my pants. One thing for sure the CA will be a lot easier to draw since the 442 sits way down in the pocket, barely showing at the pocket slit.
 
Blkhrt13 said:
In a thread in the reloading forum I explained I am wanting to start with 38 special. One of the points that came up was that I want to build a good serviceable load for practicing with my 442. A point made is that smith and Wesson says they are plus p rated for the life of the gun. So on that note how many rounds has your 442 lasted? Have you run it with many plus p? Anyone worn one out? I admit other that running 15 rounds of commercial ammo through it to make sure it went bang I have them cleaned and carried it. Any one worn one out shooting it?
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(642, actually. "Same diff.") No idea how many rounds. My handloads, which is most of what gets shot through it, are slightly into +P. Firing pin bushing picked up a crack, 3 or 4 years into ownership. S&W replaced the frame. It's tighter than any other snub I have.

For that gun, I would not even worry about wearing it out. By the time you (in theory) do wear it out, you've gotten your money's worth out of it.
 
I have a 642 with somewhere around 400 rounds of +p through it. Mostly Golden Saber and Gold Dot short barrel. No end shake, or additional lateral play, or rotational play. I have no idea how much standard pressure I have through this one in particular.

I have already switched to standard pressure Critical Defense and might even step down to wadcutters to save my thumb joint.
 
I bought my first 642 when they started advertising the 642-1 model was then rated for a steady diet of +P. It was my first Airweight, as all my J's had been steel up to that point. I started out by burning through a few cases of factory +P ammunition to acclimate myself to the lightweight snub. I continued to use +P ammunition for my usual quals and drills. That 642 became my usual 'range beater' revolver, as well as my frequent off-duty weapon.

I finally picked up a second 642-1 when the company released that initial production run of new 642-1's, made cleaning out and using their old stock of unserialized -1 frames (before the -1 model became a regular catalog model again). I liked my 642-1 so much that I thought I'd get another one, and I thought it might be handy to be able to divide the frequent range use between a couple of them. :)

I then ordered a M&P 340 when the first production run was being released (I ordered mine from the factory, as a LE purchase). I figured the increased strength of the Scandium-alloyed aluminum frame might be an even better option for frequent range work using +P. I ran a few hundred Magnum loads through it, but that was more brutal than using +P, so I standardized on using/carrying +P. Then, of course, I ordered a second M&P 340 once they released a No-Lock model (that was my excuse :D).

Nowadays I spread out my range use between the pairs of 642's and M&P 340's ... and, now that I've retired from serving as an instructor I'm not shooting as often, so I imagine that will help extend the service life of the J's even more. Besides, I still have my other J's. (More than half a dozen of them.) I tend to like the J's. :)
 
I can tell you my LCRx can take a lot more +P loads than I can! I'll readily admit I'm not man enough to do high volume +P shooting out of a snub.
 
Since 11/2014 I have carried and have been shooting an S&W® M&P BODYGUARD™ 38 Special. I load it with 148gr wadcutters and my reloads are Hornady® Critical Defense® 110gr FTX standard pressure #90310. Both shoot well in my gun and don't beat up my almost 73-year-old wrist and hands. It has had two boxes (50 rounds) +P Hornady® Critical Defense® 110gr #90111 through it and that was enough! No more +P for this old Soldier.

YMMV...








=
 
Buy a Smith 640 and stop worrying about +P.

Yes, it's nearly twice the price of a 442/642, but its trigger is better (than even the Performance Center guns), it's not alloy, and the extra 8 (or so) ounces soaks up +P FAR better than the alloy frames, the barrel is slightly longer, and with a Lyman Packmayr Diamond Pro Grip...it's the perfect recoil handling combination. (Highly recommend the grip even on the alloy frames :))

It still doesn't make .357 Magnum fun...but it does make .38+P an non issue.
 
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Jack19 said:
Buy a Smith 640 and stop worrying about +P.

Yes, it's nearly twice the price of a 442/642, but its trigger is better (than even the Performance Center guns), it's not alloy, and the extra 8 (or so) ounces soaks up +P FAR better than the alloy frames, the barrel is slightly longer, and with a Lyman Packmayr Diamond Pro Grip...it's the perfect recoil handling combination. (Highly recommend the grip even on the alloy frames :))

It still doesn't make .357 Magnum fun...but it does make .38+P an non issue.
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Maybe I should reconsider the used 640 at my local gun shop. They are asking about $650 for it. This weekend they are running all sales tax free so would save $39 and if I offer $575 they just might take it. I only have bought 4 guns there this year so they like me. :)
 
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148gr wadcutters achieve about 800 fps out of a 2" snub and penetrate 20". This is what I load my 442 with for CCW and practice. No need for +P because a wadcutter doesn't expand, and the wadcutter cuts a full, caliber size hole in tissues just like it does on paper.
 
I have a 442, I've had it for quite some time now (10 years?, not sure). I know I will never wear it out. It is definitely not a fun gun to shoot. Even light target loads are quite noticeable, non-+P defensive rounds are no fun, and I'd rather shoot full .357mag out of a steel framed J-frame than .38+P out of my 442. So, it is not shot much regardless of the ammo, I no longer even carry it with +P (in a defensive situation, I want faster shot recovery and follow up shots than +P would give me).

I really didn't like it for years. So much so that I "replaced" it 3-4 years ago with a Taurus 856UL. The extra 1.3oz and better grips is enough that it is tolerable to practice with, and I can do a cylinder or two of +P without complaint. I planned to get rid of it, but never got around to it (the resale isn't that high on them so I wasn't in a hurry). Now that I finally have a MD carry permit (thank you Bruen), and I'm not only carrying one or two days a month when out of state (on a non-resident permit), I can appreciate the 442 for what they were made for. While it won't replace my SIG P365s (yes, plural), it does get carried a lot. None of my other guns are nearly as comfortable to carry as this rounded, lightweight revolver without an exposed hammer. None.

So, long-winded response to say this is a carry often, shoot occasionally gun. Used as intended, it will not likely wear out any time soon.
 
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