Originally
published in
Combat Magazine December 1999 Issue
Click on bordered
images to see larger size.
It's
OK to mention in public that you like
revolvers for cowboy shoots and hunting
applications, but if you happen to admit,
during an unguarded moment among supposedly
gun savvy people, that you think they may even
have some validity for self defense, the
reaction ranges from scorn ("I've been to
Gun site.
Twice.'), to pity ("Can't afford a real
gun, huh?").
Surprising
as it may be, there are still people who do
believe a revolver can get them through the
night. I won't go into the pros and cons
because you've probably already got your
mind made up,, and I'm not here to defend
revolvers. I will just say that a quality
revolver, loaded with appropriate ammunition
and in the hands of a competent operator,
really can get you through to the other side
of the fight, and then we'll move on.
Another
surprise to many, beside the fact that there
are people who actually still carry revolvers,
is the additional fact that there are also
companies who are quite happy to customize
them. And I mean customize, not just a trigger
job. The 1911 is not the only handgun that can
benefit from some tweaking here and there.
As an example of the forgoing, we're
going to take a look at Smith & Wesson's L
frame .357 Magnum seven shot Mountain Gun, and
see what can be done by a master gunsmith.
The
Gun
It's
sometimes hard to keep up with Smith &
Wesson and their new introductions. I gave
up trying years back when their autopistol
line exploded, and even current catalogs don't
give you the whole picture. Several of Smith
& Wesson's more interesting variations
don't appear as catalogued items, and the only
way to know what's really new is to call the
company periodically, talk to a knowledgeable
dealer, or read the magazines.
I
was not much impressed by the seven shot six
shooter race, which seemed kind of gimmicky,
until I saw a 686 L frame with the Mountain
Gun treatment. Standard full plugged L frames
tend to be on the heavier side, the Mountain
Gun concept uses the olderstyle tapered
barrel
to shave some weight for long carry periods,
and the combination of stainless steel, medium
frame, lighter barrel, respectable caliber,
and that seventh shot, all adds up to a
revolver with some potential as a serious
carry piece in those places without mountains.
So, I got one.
Basic Gun Details
Out
of the blue plastic S&W box, the 686,
Mountain Gun had a bright satin finish, a
four inch barrel and black rubber Hogue
Monogrips on the round butt. Sights were
conventional S&W micrometer rear with
front ramp, trigger and hammer were color
case hardened, and the ejector rod shroud was
the older three quarter style, which
didn't extend all the way to the muzzle as do
full plugged L frame , shrouds. The trigger
face was smooth and the trigger pull was
rough. In common with many of the current
upgraded S&W revolvers, the cylinder
thumblatch was the newer angled type, and the
firing pin was frame mounted. One feature I
liked immediately was the fact that the seven
chambers require the bolt notches on the
outside of the cylinder to be located between
chambers, not directly outside each chamber at
the thinnest part of the chamber wall as are
all Smith six shot revolvers.
I've
never heard of a Smith blowing up around a
factory cartridge, and it's more of an
imagined issue than a real one, but the
offset
notches are just sort of comforting. As
mentioned, the potential was there, but four
inch barrels are a bit long for concealed
carry, the action needed work for best
results, and the large Hogue grips gave a very
secure hold but were way too bulky for a
concealed carry gun, so it was obvious some
work needed to be done.
The
Gunmith
Bill Laughridge's company Cylinder & Slide, is well
known for the work they do on autopistols, but
you don't hear a lot about his wheelgun work.
When I mentioned that during a phone call, and
told him I wanted a carry gun, he agreed to
take on the project. After batting some
suggestions back and forth, the 686-5
was shipped off to Bill in Nebraska in its
unfired condition.
When it came back, it was a
different
gun.
The
barrel was cut to three inches, recrowned, and
a custom front sight was fabricated and
dovetailed into the barrel rib. The outside
front edge of the cylinder was beveled and the
rear of each chamber was slightly chamfered.
The trigger face was polished literally to a
mirror surface and the sharp edges at the
rear of the trigger were radiused. Bill's
people did their Carry Bevel job to smooth up
any rough edges outside, and their Carry
Action job to smooth up any rough edges
inside. As part of the carry package, the
trigger spur was removed, and the rear sight
blade corners were rounded off.
Although we hadn't discussed it up front, a
ball bearing detent was installed in the upper
surface of the yoke, which mates with a small
milled recess in the underside of the frame
just below the barrel to provide a more
positive lockup. The factory mainspring and
trigger return spring were replaced with Wolfe
versions. Finally, the C&S logo was etched
on the crane, and the gun was beadblasted to
leave a matte gray exterior finish. Since the
beadblasting removed the etched brand and
caliber markings, the numbers "357"
were stamped on a small milled flat at the
bottom rear of the ejector rod shroud.
What
Work Was Done
Let's take a minute to look
at why the modifications were done.
Some
writers I respect greatly say they can conceal
a four inch barrel as easily as a shorter one,
and in a good IWB holster I have no doubt they
can. IWBs don't work for my body, though, and
I prefer the shorter tube. Three inch barrels
are the best compromise for those who want to
increase concealment without degrading muzzle
velocities any farther than absolutely
necessary. Three inchers also allow room for a
full-length ejector rod for better
extraction/ejection; usually anything less
means a shorter rod which won't punch empty
brass out quite as far. It's also a good idea
to keep the sight radius as long as possible.
Beveling the front edge of the cylinder can
aid in holstering the gun, it can reduce wear
and tear on the holster, and, although this
one wouldn't be used normally as a pocket gun,
a beveled cylinder is also much more
comfortable for rear pocket carry, if needed.
And, I just think it gives a revolver a more
finished appearance. Chamfering the rear
chamber mouths aids in smoother reloads.
The
mirror polish on the trigger face provides a
very comfortable surface under magnum recoil,
actually tends to resist rust more than a case
hardened surface, and allows the trigger
finger to smoothly acquire its firing
position. Rear edges are usually left fairly
sharp at the factory, and radiusing them
reduces the possibility of pinching.
There are fewer sharp edges in general on a
typical Smith & Wesson revolver than
you'll find on a typical production 1911, and
operating a revolver during normal loading or
malfunction clearance drills involves less
chance of drawing blood than similar
operations with an autopistol, but the Carry
Bevel package just eases wear during overall
handling. The Carry Action job addresses the
guts of the revolver, and there's a world of
difference in the before and after. Most quick
defensive shooting occurs at short distances,
most will be done out of the holster in a
double-action mode, and a smooth trigger pull
is a necessity for best results. While I would
prefer to cock the gun for longer shots,
there's no problem in hitting a standard
silhouette out to twenty-five yards with the
double-action trigger.
On that hammer spur, C&S removed only the
spur, to prevent snagging on clothing during a
draw, not the singleaction hammer notch, which
means the gun can still be cocked for
single-action firing. There are two ways to
cock a spurless hammer, one's bad and the
other's not real good in a hurry. The first,
with the revolver held in the basic firing
grip, involves starting the hammer back slowly
by pulling
the trigger just far enough to get what's left
of the hammer out to where it can be engaged
by the stronghand thumb, which pulls it back
to a fullcock position for single-action fire.
This looks easy in dry-fire and would appear
to be the best way to go, using the least
movement of both hands out of the firing grip;
but it's actually the one with the most
potential for an unintentional discharge under
stress if the trigger finger overloads on
adrenaline and the thumb doesn't catch the
hammer in time, or if the hammer slips. Trust
me on this (check's in the mail), it can
happen. It can also damn near sprain your
thumb when the gun bucks in recoil and the
rear of the frame just under the sight blade
smacks into it just after it oopsed on the
hammer. When this happens, by the way, among
other things you can count on the bullet not
going where you thought it was going to go,
and that means a probable adversary miss and a
possible innocent hit. A better way if you
really want to cock a spurless revolver is to
take the support hand clear off the gun,
slowly and carefully start the trigger pull
with the muzzle in a safe direction, catch the
hammer between the thumb and forefinger of the
off hand as soon as it's
back far enough to get a good grasp,
immediately release pressure on the trigger,
pull the hammer the rest of the way to
full-cock, resume your two-hand firing grip,
acquire the target, and fire. If you're
thinking this sounds a little slow during a
gunfight, you're right. I wouldn't recommend
either way for normal defensive use, I used
the second method for sighting in the revolver
and doing single-action accuracy tests at the
bench. Single-action pull, by the way, came
back from Nebraska at just over three pounds.
DA pull is off my eight-pound scale, but not
by much.
The
ball bearing detent in the yoke provides a
third lockup point while the cylinder is
closed. Smith & Wesson originally included
a more elaborate third locking point in their
.44 Hand Ejector First Model large framed
revolvers of 1908 for tighter lockup and more
positive alignment of the cylinder, but the
third lock was discontinued after about 15,000
units were made because it increased
production costs above what the company
wanted to bear. The ball detent is a simple
way to provide this third lockup, and it does
aid in keeping the cylinder firmly in place at
the moment of ignition .
I
generally don't like the idea of reduced
weight springs in a serious handgun, and I
told Laughridge reliability was first and
foremost before the gun was ever shipped. He
swears by Wolfe springs, though, and I respect
his judgment. Combined with the internal
polishing done, the lighter Wolfe replacement
springs contributed to a trigger pull that
gets an "Mmmm!" when people try it.
I did have one misfire with a good primer
indent on a USA generic 110-grain .357 round
toward the end of the tests, but that was the
only glitch in over 200 rounds during the
session, and the same round fired on the
second try
.
The
matte gray beadblast was done to
reduce
some of the glare inherent with a stainless
revolver. I've had this done on a stainless
autopistol I own, and I'm starting to prefer
it as a finish on these bright guns. It'll
wear shiny at continual holster contact points
eventually, but it's far less reflective
overall in situations Where you don't want to
flash your presence. Or your gun.
The Grips
Good as they are, Hogue monogrips are
just too big for a concealed carry gun and had
to go. I have Uncle Mike's versions of Craig
Spegel designs in rubber on other revolvers,
and I've had an itch about his original wood
creations for some time now. The custom 686
seemed like the place to try a custom pair of
grips out, and when they arrived I was
absolutely delighted.
Craig offers cocobolo grips to fit
S&W revolvers in both round and square
buff configurations at $60 for standard grade
and $75 for better grade, and grips in both
grades of cocobolo to fit the Browning
Hi-Power, full-sized 1911s, and the Colt
Officer's Model at the same prices. (These
prices have changed, since the publication of
this article, please visit our online store HERE
for the latest prices.) He can also
produce autopistol grips in Kingwood, African
Blackwood, Madagascar Rosewood and Tulipwood,
if you can talk him into it. The pair he made
for my 686 was a smooth set of what he calls
"Boot Grips with a little extra on the
bottom", in a beautiful reddish brown
shade of oil-finished cocobolo. They fit both
the gun and my hand perfectly, with a slight
palm swell, one finger groove separator in
front, and a very graceful speedloader relief
on the left panel. The backstrap is bare, the
space just behind the triggerguard is filled
in for support, and Craig has so closely
matched the grain at the front and bottom of
the two panels that they almost provide a
mirror image of each other. Spegel wood grips
are prominent members of the Gotta See'Em
Club, and the photos don't do them justice. As
a special touch, he even plugs the off-side
screw hole with a perfectly fitted cocobolo
insert. First class all the way.
Shooting Impressions
Can a short-barreled .357 Magnum shoot? Yep.
With some effort, admittedly, but definitely,
yep.
I took along eleven commercial magnum loads
ranging from the generic USA 110 on up through
four 125s and one 150 to five 158s to see what
the Cylinder & Slide Mountain Gun
preferred. At the 25-yard range, firing
seven-shot strings from my indispensable
Outer's Pistol Perch, the 686 kept its best
groups under four inches in the magnum rounds
with the exception of the Gold Dots, which
usually do better for me. I also tried two .38
Special loads, both produced identical best
groups of 2 3/4 inches. Some .357s shoot
better with .38s, and two different weight .38
loads is a small sample to judge from, but
accuracy seemed about equal between the shorts
and the longs in this gun.
Many pros prefer a fixed sight on a carry gun,
but the S&W micrometer rear sight is a
rugged time-proven unit, and there's something
to be said for having the ability to dial in
precisely to a preferred load.
Best groups are shown in the chart. |