used versus new

[Bezoar]

its hard to swallow the price of a brand new smith adn wesson.
but when you see the used one in person, at what everyone here says is the actual correct price for it, YOU GET SUSPICIOUS because its priced for half of what ive been seeing for years online, in the same condition.

the only thing i know is that if its over 50 years, sw will not work on it. if they do they MIGHT be willing to refinish it. and in the field of sw guns, only a sw refinish is considered ok. only turnbull and two others i can think of arent going to get you lynched at the next gunshow.

i can design guns, but im leery of working on something that old that cant be sent back to the factory for an oops.

 

[Cee Zee]

I have a S&W 629 made in 1990 and it is a very nice revolver. The trigger is extremely nice on it. In SA mode the pull is probably about 8 oz. or so. And it hasn't been worked on. The DA pull is certainly stiffer but it should be obviously. Even so it can be shot accurately even from DA mode and in SA it's close to being the best shooting handgun I ever picked up. It shoots minute of gallon jug at 175 yards with a simple side rest (steady the gun against the side of a post or something). That's pretty good IMO. And it has no lock or any of the other things people don't like about the newer models.

 

[jad0110]

i can design guns, but im leery of working on something that old that cant be sent back to the factory for an oops.

In most parts of the country, there are plenty of competent gunsmiths capable of repairing a S&W. For example, Matt Almeda (a THR member, though I've not seen him post lately) is 3.5 hrs from my house, and he is one of the best around.

I certainly don't take my 1995 Yukon to the steelership for service. They probably don't even know what Throttle Body Injection is. I take it to a trusted mechanic 3 minutes from my house that his a heck of a lot more skilled and trustworthy than a typical dealer tech, no offense to any dealer techs that may be on this forum.

I own both newer and older Smiths. I love them all, but in the end I prefer the older ones. Just be sure to follow the revolver checkout process, even when buying new. Another point to add to the inspection procedure is to look for signs of bulging in each chamber (looks like a dimple or a "door ding" in the metal see below picture) using a flashlight. Bring a flash light, feeler gauges and a boresnake dampened with your favorite cleaner when you go shopping. If the barrel and chamber are dirty enough to possibly obscure defects, offer to clean the gun.

I will say that the newer Smiths probably have overall superior metallurgy in their frames. That may be a consideration if you plan to fire thousands of Magnum HE rounds through your gun. The lockup on my 686-6+ (2007) is bank vault tight, and the cylinder opens and closes with a satisfying "snick".

OTH, of my 13 S&W revolvers that 686 has only an "acceptable" DA trigger at best. And it has the lock. It doesn't bother me too much, but I'd rather it wasn't there at all. I just feel like I get more for my money buying used. Of my 23 or so handguns, only 4 or 5 were bought new.

Old guns and old cars aren't the same. For the record, my most frequently carried and trusted gun is a S&W Model 19 that is nearly 50 years old.


But here is a picture of that buldged chamber I was talking about. A possible double charge by the prior owner caused the chamber to swell into the weakest point of the cylinder, the spot adjacent of the cylinder stop notch. See chamber at the 3 o'clock position. That ding right there causes very sticky case extraction on that chamber. Matt Almeda replaced the cylinder, cost me about $150. I'm still glad I have that gun though, a 2" Model 15. They don't make them anymore. And it doesn't dissuade me from buying used a bit.

 

[Old Fuff]

... of my 13 S&W revolvers that 686 has only an "acceptable" DA trigger at best]

I am led to wonder if any of those 13 Smith & Wesson's were made during or before 1946. Up to that point S&W revolvers had what was called a "long action."

These usually had what many believe was the smoothest (but not necessarily the lightest) double action trigger pull ever offered in a production revolver. When you find one it generally need to be disassembled and thoroughly cleaned, and then substitute a regular post World War Two mainspring. Earlier mainsprings were heavier because of less sensitive primers.

Needless to say, if anyone has fooled with the lockwork all bets are off.

 

[WVfishguy]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who does not like new Smiths. My wife and I have one new Smith (complete with "Hillary Hole") and 20+ old ones. Even our other favorites are older guns: Her Colt Python was made in 1968, my Dan Wesson in 1979.
New Smith & Wessons seem cheesy; barrel sleeves, cheap-looking grips, lock holes in the frame etc.

 

[ljnowell]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who does not like new Smiths. My wife and I have one new Smith (complete with "Hillary Hole") and 20+ old ones. Even our other favorites are older guns: Her Colt Python was made in 1968, my Dan Wesson in 1979.
New Smith & Wessons seem cheesy; barrel sleeves, cheap-looking grips, lock holes in the frame etc.

My daily carry is a 637 Airweight with the lock. It is by no means as good as an older j frame. However, I removed the lock mechanism, changed rebound spring, and basically did my normal bullseye gun trigger job, short of touching the mainspring. It sets off any primer and has a much better trigger than it used to have.

 

[evan price]

I rarely look at new guns. They don't interest me. Modern manufacturing methods make them shouting appliances, not heirlooms. I like well kept used guns with honest finish wear and good mechanicals. The sweet spot is $200 to $500. I don't want safe queens because I like to shoot, if the value of a gun is its unfired condition it's not right for me.
Long action s&w's are just nicely made. Pinned barrels and diamond grips, yummy.