magsite20 1,664 Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 (edited) After a lot of time and some half assed effort looking I finally got a K frame Smith again. I've had 4 / (5) K frames before this (13,14, (forgot about a model 15 I had for about a month), 17, and a 66) and have long regretted not keeping at least one. What I got is a model 66-4 with a 4 inch barrel and a round butt. Always wanted a round butt one but all my earlier ones were square butts, seems in the old days only the snub nose guns had the round ones and I never got anything with less than a 4 inch barrel. Attached is a picture of the same gun down to the grips but this ones not mine (me and my wife's camera are having some technical problems). 1994 gun came with the factory box and paperwork and had been shot 45 times prior to me getting it. I got the 55 shells left of the 2 boxes of shells the prior owner bought with the gun. He said it didn't shoot "right", problem was the rear sight was all the way down and to the right so it did shoot "right", way to the right and low. Little sight adjustment and everything's fine. Paid $400.00 and a happy camper. Already had a holster for it left over from my old model 13 from many moons ago. Holster is an old early Bill Rogers one I'd saved being left handed once you find one you like you save them just in case you get another gun. I'm not crazy about the look of the grips but they actually feel pretty good in the hand so don't know if I replace them or not yet. Holster not my LH one but one like it. Edited December 14, 2013 by the 4th Doctor 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NM0 586 Posted December 13, 2013 Report Share Posted December 13, 2013 Congrats on the beautiful revolver. Great deal on price too. Got to love those old 66's. Enjoy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
NM0 586 Posted December 14, 2013 Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 Are those pachmayr grips? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted December 14, 2013 Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 Hard to choose between a 66-6 and a 66-4. Either way you have about the most shootable revolver out there. You've got my jealousy. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sdustin 578 Posted December 14, 2013 Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 38 right? ive been carrying a 386 xl hunter its a 30oz 7 shot 357 with a 6" barrel i love it its my first smith and will not be my last i want an n frame 44 mag with a 2.5" barrel next Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Arik 565 Posted December 14, 2013 Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 (edited) 38 right? ive been carrying a 386 xl hunter its a 30oz 7 shot 357 with a 6" barrel i love it its my first smith and will not be my last i want an n frame 44 mag with a 2.5" barrel next No its a 357. Its the stainless version of the model 19, which is blued. I have the same one only my is a 66-2 circa mid 70s. Was a police gun. $350. For me this will make it my 3rd S&W revolver, 2nd K frame and 2nd 357. The other one is a model 13-2 (early 80s) heavy barrel, also a used police gun but from outside the US. The 3rd is a model 36 snub 38spl and also from around 80-81, just before they stopped with the P&R barrels. Model 13 I dont have pics of the model 36 Edited December 14, 2013 by Arik Quote Link to post Share on other sites
magsite20 1,664 Posted December 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 Are those pachmayr grips? looked around and found they are Uncle Mike's Boot Grip, they're not bad and it's been years since I've used a DA revolver so nothing is set in stone for what feels right or wrong yet. On the 14 I used for the longest in matches I had some wood ones like in the photo that now seem kind of big for a possible carry gun. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
magsite20 1,664 Posted December 14, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 14, 2013 a couple of photos to compare size with my 1911 and 357 SA Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sdustin 578 Posted December 16, 2013 Report Share Posted December 16, 2013 Nice. The good thing about 6 shot wheel guns is the safariland speedloader. I wish safariland made 7 shot speed loaders. Those are much better than hks in my opinion. @ the 4th doctor-do you carry it? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sobrenegade 795 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 I bought a 66-1 last year at the fall gun show only it is a six inch model. It had quite a few scratches and seemed a little tight. When I took it apart that night it was all gunked up with what looked like dried blood, inside the grip and trigger housing. After pulling the side plate I found more. A little peroxide on the stuff and it bubbled like crazy and I still think it was blood. On the bottom left side of the grip frame was etched KCPD. Not sure if it was a police gun or not, but will probably have S&W do a provenance on it. Since it is newer, Roy should be able to come up with recent history on it. The next day I happened onto a Ruger Bisley Vaquero also in .357 and it turned out to be one excellent weekend. Yours looks to be in great shape. Big difference between the "K" frame and the "N". This one seems to fit nicely and my Model 29 is a bit healthier. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
magsite20 1,664 Posted December 17, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 I had several safariland speedloaders and a shell tray and now I don't know if I'll ever find them, been a long time and several moves over the years. Not sure if this will be a CCW or not, while I love a wheel gun for defense at this point I'm not shooting it very well yet compared the 1911 again lot of year gone by and need some trigger time to see if I've got any DA revolver DNA left. I almost passed on this gun because in the past I'd shot a 6" a lot more but with the way I'm shooting lately I don't think a Buntline would make any difference. Blood on the gun, cool the previous owner like to work close. Nice gun with or with out blood. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sdustin 578 Posted December 17, 2013 Report Share Posted December 17, 2013 Good thing about a wheel gun ill bet even full of blood it would still fire. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sobrenegade 795 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 After it cleaned up and oiled, it was still just as smooth as new. Granted it wasn't Python smooth, but it was a tight lockup with no grit. I wonder if the blood came from someone being butt whipped with it after firing the last shot? I love older Smiths, they just have an appeal to me like an older excitable woman. Doc, I don't care how old I get my six shooters are my favorites. I love my 1911s and they are my carry pieces, but I will someday pack that 29 as my backup. I made a holster for it copied from the old style government shoulder issue. Fits good under a winter coat. Here's the grandpa of my Smiths. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
gunfun 3,931 Posted December 18, 2013 Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 Pretty much all of my guns get blood on them regularly. It's a rare trip to the range that I don't cut myself on something like a microwave some DB turned into a cheesegrater. The blood just means he doesn't clean his stuff when he gets home. On a more serious note: For the S&W guys who know their stuff. I am most familiar with 66-2 and -3. Other than collector's value for pinned barrels, is there any real difference between the dashes on this model? I know people always talk as though anything new is bad and old is good, but I've shot several 66s from 70s - 90s and all were excellent with no discernable differences in quality that I noticed. On the other hand, we bought a friend a wedding gun- a minty model 19 6" from the mid 60s that had a lot of little features that would mark it out as performance center (if they called it that then): wide trigger &hammer, hand checkered top strap, sites calibrated for target on top of picture, really fine bluing, and case hardened bits and bobs.... The new ones all had better triggers. So that makes me wonder if the rave reviews of older guns is just hype... What I've read and been told is that modern CNC (/mim) constuction gets consistent excellent results, but not as nice as the finest old examples. Wheras the older steel and milling methods gave some very fine guns, but not as consistently good results. Anyone have experience to confirm/deny this? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
magsite20 1,664 Posted December 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 18, 2013 While improved CNC machining has many benefits to the overall group as you noted some of the older guns that had more hand fitting seemed superior. Some of the other processes like polishing and bluing seem to have gotten to look more poorly done over the years. This isn’t just a S&W thing it speaks to firearm and most other manufacturing in general where reducing build cost and time have driven down some of the aspects of the product. It’s all function over form now days. I’ve never paid any thought to dash numbers or year groups in general and most of my gun buys were used guns. So have very little to go on other than what I see at stores or gun shows as to what new in the box looks like. I use to buy what I was going to shoot in matches or hunting not as a collector. My sister has a S&W 29 she bought for her husband about a month before he was killed in 1975 as a policeman in Anchorage. This gun is one of the best looking and fitted guns I’ve ever seen it was a -2 so maybe they did make them better back then. The Uberti SA 357 pictured is one of 2 I bought with consecutive serial numbers with the plan in the back of my head to strip the matte finish off and redo them for resale to a Cowboy Action shooter. I paid $500.00 for the 2 guns and at $250.00 per gun figured I couldn’t get hurt on the money regardless. Still reading up on how to best get that coating off and then how to try to get an authentic looking antique finish. Problem is even a poor factory job usually looks better than what I can do at home. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sobrenegade 795 Posted December 19, 2013 Report Share Posted December 19, 2013 I like the look of that matte finish on your SAA, but is it durable? Are the marks on the cylinder and top strap wear in the finish? For some reason the finishes other than blue or nickel and stainless, always seem to have a spot that just doesn't play well for the overall coating. I bought a Taurus Gaucho this weekend (probably a bad idea) and looked good for the lighting at the gun show, but when I stripped it, there it was along the front edge of the cylinder. Spots where it looked like the finish didn't take completely. Although there was no other areas that showed wear as you would expect from holster use. Could have been from too tight a holster but that is corrected when I build a new holster for it. A little cold blue and it should look better. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sdustin 578 Posted December 19, 2013 Report Share Posted December 19, 2013 All right I really want a 3" model 65with no lug. They look like the perfect carry gun. I just git the wife a 642 new one no lock and cut for moonclips. Im a smith and wesson fan boy after owning my first for a few months. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
magsite20 1,664 Posted December 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 27, 2013 (edited) bought myself some new grips for Christmas, haven't had a chance to shoot the gun with them on yet, but they feel real good. As usual not my gun but shows the grips. this is my gun Edited December 31, 2013 by the 4th Doctor 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sobrenegade 795 Posted December 31, 2013 Report Share Posted December 31, 2013 I bought the same grips for my 29 and they have such a secure feel to them. They are tight and just make it so much more controllable. They sure don't look like the wood Hogue, but do the job, you will like them. The wood Hogue are for aesthetics and I like the contrast. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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