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6.5" 625 Enhanced Revolver


Randy Lee

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Hello All,

I just wanted to get a show of hands of forum members who would be interested in the 625 Titanium cylinder with 6.5" barrel if it were made available.

The project is beginning to take shape, and a list of my personal design parameters has been sent to the proper recipients. I believe there is a very good chance that the concept will be made real. I do not know if Smith will implement any or all of my design recommendations, or if it will simply be a 6.5" 625 with a Ti cylinder.

I suppose my question is this: Would you fellow competition revolver shooters trust me to build a near state-of-the-art revolver designed and intended for USPSA/IPSC competition? More important to Smith, would you buy it?

Since the wheel has been set in motion, I would just like to keep the momentum going. I know that some of the people at Smith are watching what is going on in these posts so please let your voices be heard.

Thanks,

Randy

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Randy,

Yes, assuming they price it so that us normal folks can buy them.

I've "wasted" a fair amount on Performance Center guns that were little or no better than the stock offering. They still needed chamfered, honed, different sights, and of course, a trigger job.

Dave

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I would be interested in one as well. The only concern I would have would be the Ti cylinder. My brother has a 646 with the Ti cylinder and he can't get the rounds out of the cylinder after firing.

I'm with Dave on the price as well. I have 4 PC revolvers in the safe, 2 625 and 2 627. I paid big bucks for all of them, and they all went to the smith for another couple of hundred $ worth of work. Would be cheaper just to but a 25-2 and send it in to have the work done on it.

All said and done if they build it I would probably buy at least one.

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I have 3 25-2's two that were bought in the last couple of months. If the new gun is a least the same workmanship as the old ones I would buy one. The weight and balance of the 25-2 cannot be beat. Is the new design one with a cut down cylinder?

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I have 3 25-2's two that were bought in the last couple of months. If the new gun is a least the same workmanship as the old ones I would buy one.  The weight and balance of the 25-2 cannot be beat. Is the new design one with a cut down cylinder?

Shoot, I 'd be happy if they just brough back the 25-2 - a 6-1/2" version for youse guys :) and a four inch for me.
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I would buy another gun since I'm in need of a backup gun anyway.

That said, my 625-8 cost ~$550.00 new two years ago. With everything done to it so far I'm probably still shy of $1000.00. So this offering will have to be priced as a working gun, not a safe queen.

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:D I had one of my 625s converted to a 6 1/2" barrel last year and love it, I like the way it balances, points and handles full power loads. To be able to purchase a similar gun with a Ti cylinder would be great; sign me up. While there are certianly a few 25-2s still available, it almost seems like sacrilege to convert one to a competition gun.
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seems like sacrilege to convert one to a competition gun.

Ever since Jim Clark recommended to S&W that they put a heavy barrel on the Model of 1950 for the bullseye shooters, the 25-2 always has been, and always shall be, a competition gun!

(Seems a shame to put 'em away in a dark safe if you ask me!) :)

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If I could, I'd have the PC set it up to fire Federal factory ammo- 230 gr. match.

6.5-7lb pull max. with the box stating "designed for competition use only". This trigger pull weight is easily obtainable using what parts are available from Smith.

Pretty much all of the revolvers I've seen from the Performance Center have trigger pulls equivalent to S&W's standard production line. The semi auto's which I've seen such as the 952, 945 or some of the new Koenig specials have decent trigger pulls. My feeling is that it is time the same consideration is applied towards their competition revolvers.

Some (but not all) of the features I've requested:

- Dovetail front sight ramp with .300x.060x 60degree cut

- LPA adjustable target rear sight

- Ti cylinder(fluted)

- Serrated hard chromed forged trigger(narrow) and hammer

- 6.5" full underlug barrel with 1" of underlug removed at the muzzle end

I selected the front sight dovetail dimensions because there are more aftermarket fiber optic, Tritium, patridge style front sights for the consumer to choose from. It is the same dovetail dimension found on STI/SV's. I've seen too many instances where the factory interchangeable sights pop out at the worst time. Also, the ramp length dimensions vary from model to model so aftermarket purchased front sights hang over the back or front of the sight ramp. Functionally ok, but not so cosmetically appealing.

The LPA adjustable sight assembly presents a better rear sight leaf profile closer to a Bo-Mar with better range of elevation control.

Ti cylinder offers some weight reduction, but the primary benefit is in longevity of the cylinder and it's associated parts for competition use. As in my other topic posts, the trigger pull quality is also favorably affected by the lower mass. Since the 45ACP also operates at much lower chamber pressures than the .40 S&W, sticky extraction shouldn't be an issue.

The hard chromed trigger and hammer are pretty much Performance Center standard. The serrated trigger seems to be a popular request with many of my customers. When running a competition trigger pull(less than 8 lbs.), the serrations help with fingertip control and immediate finger location off the draw. Might as well include it in the features so that you won't need to purchase one later and pay to have it fitted.

6.5" barrel will definitely help soak up some of the recoil harshness of 165+ PF rounds, aid in sight recovery as well as longer sight radius.

The other recommendations I've made and will make to the powers that be involve minor engineering changes which will improve accuracy and increase service life of the gun. Some of the improvements Smith can adopt for their regular production guns and reduce the number of warranty returns.

Since the average revolver sold probably won't see more than 600 rounds in it's lifetime, there probably isn't a whole lot of incentive for Smith to change . But for the competition shooter, 600 rounds can be shot in a few practice sessions. I'd like Smith to at least hear me out and design Performance Center revolvers using a higher round count model . They don't use the 600 round figure as their design basis, but current trends in their production gun internals point towards cost reduction through the use of MIM parts. "Acceptable" wear characteristics as opposed to "built for life" mindset.

I'm going to try to balance long life and consumer satisfaction with marginal cost increase for the factory.

Randy

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