Carmoney

Chris, I specifically asked them to email me a shipping label. They said they couldn't do anything with labels until next week when the "machine" is fixed. Which sounds like total bullcrap to me. So I asked if I shipped the gun in myself, would they reimburse me the cost of shipping, and they said no, I would need to wait for a label. Which sounded like even more bullcrap.

Update: I received a replacement trigger in a small padded envelope with no further response. Unfortunately, today I had to send Mr. Miele another letter: You may recall I wrote you last month regarding a grossly defective trigger that had been installed on a new 627-5 P.C. revolver that one of my customers won at the IRC. I appreciate the replacement part I received shortly thereafter. Yesterday I opened a brand new 627-4 .38 Super revolver (serial number CMUxxxx) that I recently received from Bangers USA, to find a very poor yoke/cylinder fit and an unacceptable degree of binding in the cylinder rotation. Upon further inspection, I found a 3/8" hairline crack in the yoke barrel, extending forward from the bearing end of the yoke. The crack extends all the way through the yoke barrel, and is visible from the inside. I contacted customer service and arranged for a shipping label to return the gun. I am disturbed by the lack of quality control that seems to be prevailing in the S&W Performance Center right now, and would appreciate any response you might be able to supply. On top of that, Customer Service was unable to send me a shipping label, because "the machine that makes the labels is down, and we're working on it, but it will be next week before you get a label." Fortunately, this is not a gun ordered for a customer, but an extra 627-4 I bought to obtain a slight break on shipping costs from Bangers, so this delay is more of an annoyance than a true problem. I'm pretty displeased with the so-called "Performance Center" right now. I'll let you all know if I receive a response from its director.

Cylinder Stop

Many people don't realize Cliff is a very skilled and dangerous combat operative.

Hell, I'm starting to think maybe I should buy a 4" 686!

It makes me kind of sick to my stomach to watch this kind of stuff. Way too little. Way too young.

You shouldn't have a problem finding holsters and stuff, Adam. The 8-shot revolvers are cut to work with both moonclips and loose rounds. I took a long time to finally get an 8-shooter, but now I have several of them and use them a bunch!

heh-heh!!

It would also be legal for USPSA Open Division as well, Craig. And it would not be competitive there, either! I would rather see a new revolver guy figure out which game he will playing the most, and pick the gun that is the best platform for that game. If that happens to be IDPA SSR, then a 4" 686 is the only way to fly. If it's ICORE/steel/pins, an 8-shot 627 would be just the ticket. If it's USPSA Revo, a 625 or 25-2 is a perfect choice. At least then he won't be constantly frustrated by trying to employ a choice that is sub-optimal. He'll give himself the chance to perform well, using appropriate equipment. Then, as funds allow, he can acquire the other guns needed to participate successfully in the other revolver shooting venues that are available. Or so it seems to me.

There's no question that a 4" 686 is a great choice for shooting SSR division in IDPA.....of course, SSR division had to be specifically created in order to make that type of gun competitive. For everything else, a 4" 686 is a compromise. It's not a great USPSA gun, it's not a great ICORE gun, it's not a great gun for steel matches....hell, it's not even all that great of a carry or home defense gun. For every other task other than SSR, there is a better choice available.

I would recommend getting an 8-shot 627 first. It will be great for pins and steel, and you can use it for USPSA and to play around with long-range stuff if you want. Then if you discover you enjoy shooting USPSA with the wheelgun (and I think you will!), you can eventually invest in a 625 or 25-2. With an 8-shot .357 and a 6-shot .45 ACP wheelgun in your stable, you will be truly well-equipped for competition revolver shooting.

Cliff's family doctor recently referred him to a female urologist. He saw her yesterday and she is gorgeous. She's beautiful and unbelievably sexy. She told Cliff that he had to stop masturbating. When Cliff asked her why, she said, "Because I'm trying to examine you..."

Happy Birthday Cliff! Current mortality statistics indicate the average white male life expectancy is about 78. Hope the second half of your life goes well!

The best value right now is Ron Mahovsky's Metalife.

I tried this today, just for kicks. The Short Colts in Hearthco moons dropped right in, but the brass definitely expanded, to the point that extraction was affected. Also, there must be a bit more headspace with the Short Colts, because I experienced 50% misfires in a 627-4 that is dead reliable with .38 Super ammo.

Yeah, I agree. Buy it.

I appreciate the advice!

Hey John, before you send your reamer back to Manson, try the sandpaper trick Warren described. I ran into the exact same trouble on a 617 this evening, so I chucked the reamer in my drill and after just a couple minutes of sanding the pilot it worked perfectly.

Is Kevin Klesser (High Plains Drifter) still around?

Bring lots of frickin' cash. It is Vegas.

You will shoot the full 18 stages. Good luck at your first Nats!

Happy B-Day, Pat!

I can't say I ever benched this gun, Dave, but my general experience has been that 625s are, as a group, far more accurate than 25-2s with lead bullets. With jacketed bullets, the difference in inherent accuracy is much more negligible between the two. But this gun seems to shoot quite well, and I figure the extra sight radius can't hurt. I've owned this 25-2 for awhile, but haven't used it until recently. The previous owner had installed a Ti cylinder, so I'm giving that a try also. I have been shooting the gun quite a bit to see if the Ti wheel would get sticky, as this had been reported and observed quite a lot several years ago--so far, it seems perfectly fine. The moons drop right in, and the empties drop right out, even when it's plenty dirty. On this particular gun, I don't see that the Ti cylinder offers any particular advantage or disadvantage, and I don't think you can feel the "torque" difference under match conditions. The original reason for using Ti was to avoid the peening problems some shooters reported, and that issue did not seem to affect the carbon steel blued guns anyway. Bottom line: It's a nice gun, it's a nice change of pace, but it feels about the same, and I think I shoot it about the same as I do my 625s. The biggest change is that I'm back using the CR Speed rig again, due to the longer barrel. But even that change is not going to have any huge impact on performance one way or the other.

When you're done for the day, just run a mag full of jacketed ammo through the gun, and the leading will be stripped right out of the bore. You'll read lots of internet folklore saying this practice is harmful. That stuff is written by little old hens who need something to cluck about. It won't hurt a thing, and is much less damaging to the barrel than the harsh and abrasive cleaning methods that are often recommended.

I'm not sure I'm getting any major improvement in my shooting, although I think I'm going to drop my powder charge a little after my normal USPSA load chronoed at 179 p.f. from the 6.5" barrel the other day! I think I might be able to benefit from a slightly softer load than I've been shooting for the past few years. There is no extra mass on these guns. The 25-2 barrel has only a half underlug, so it weighs no more than a 625 with full underlug (they feel about the same, to be honest). The 27-7 has the "skinny" factory barrel on it, which is quite light for its length.