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Decisions 627 4" v. 5"


Squirrel45

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Hi Guys, 

 

Forgive some of the sentimental stuff here... here is the story. When our first child was born 4 years ago I bought a 625 and a Chipmunk for my daughter. We are blessed to have a second child on the way, due at the end of August. I already plan to buy the little one a Chipmunk as well. I would like to buy another S&W to commemorate the birth, currently looking at a 627 4" or 5"? The main use for this revo would be for Steel Challenge, Optic Sight Revo (OSR)with most likely a full size CMore . What do you guys think? 

 

I appreciate your thoughts 

 

Squirrel 

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I have both and shoot both in SC with a dot sight.

 

You can move the four inch 627 faster because it is lighter and its balance is more towards the hands than the five inch model.

 

Downside is that the four inch model is lighter so will show more movement when pulling the trigger.  Have to use a much stronger grip.

 

So, if you like the notion of being able to move the revolver faster, and have a really strong grip, the four inch model is for you.

 

If you want a revolver that is heavier so dampens movement when pulling the trigger, the five inch one is for you.

 

GG

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Good pick on the C-More... You will have your choice on module size + they are bright.. Most/some? shooters like the dot as low as possible (direct mount to plate)... For no good reason I always liked a 5" over a shorter barrel?... I recently held a world class shooter's pistol in my hand AND I was surprised he had 3m dot instead of a 6m dot and was happy with it.. 1st. place is always their goal....

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15 minutes ago, mikeAZ said:

Good pick on the C-More... You will have your choice on module size + they are bright.. Most/some? shooters like the dot as low as possible (direct mount to plate)... For no good reason I always liked a 5" over a shorter barrel?... I recently held a world class shooter's pistol in my hand AND I was surprised he had 3m dot instead of a 6m dot and was happy with it.. 1st. place is always their goal....

I was going to run a Alchin mount, and yes 3moa seems very small to me. Currently im running 8's and 12's on my RF's  and PCC 🥴

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24 minutes ago, gargoil66 said:

I have both and shoot both in SC with a dot sight.

 

You can move the four inch 627 faster because it is lighter and its balance is more towards the hands than the five inch model.

 

Downside is that the four inch model is lighter so will show more movement when pulling the trigger.  Have to use a much stronger grip.

 

So, if you like the notion of being able to move the revolver faster, and have a really strong grip, the four inch model is for you.

 

If you want a revolver that is heavier so dampens movement when pulling the trigger, the five inch one is for you.

 

GG

Odd you mention weight, I was originally thinking a TR8 or TRR but a friend of mine said it was to light for him. Hence why I was thinking the 627 route.

 

thanks for the input 

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12 hours ago, Squirrel45 said:

Odd you mention weight, I was originally thinking a TR8 or TRR but a friend of mine said it was to light for him. Hence why I was thinking the 627 route.

 

thanks for the input 

I also have a TRR-8 and yes, it is too light.  I also have a V Comp and it is too heavy.  Found the five inch 627 PC to be fast but heavy enough to be controlled.  Found the four inch 627 Pro to be faster but once again, needed more grip to keep steady when pulling the  trigger.

 

I will shoot the five inch 627 as a primary and use the four inch as a back up for SC.

 

GG

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I have the 5" 627 PC and the 4" 627 Pro.  

At the last A3 Steel Challenge Steel Challenge Champs I shot ISR with the 5", duh.  And the 4" with a Dot.

I've played with both with and without the Dot and see no difference between the two, except price.  The 4" will be $200 cheaper yet I've been able to get the same low Action Weight on both.

So as long as you use a Dot, I'd recommend basing your choice on availability and price.  You won't go wrong with either.

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5 hours ago, pskys2 said:

I have the 5" 627 PC and the 4" 627 Pro.  

At the last A3 Steel Challenge Steel Challenge Champs I shot ISR with the 5", duh.  And the 4" with a Dot.

I've played with both with and without the Dot and see no difference between the two, except price.  The 4" will be $200 cheaper yet I've been able to get the same low Action Weight on both.

So as long as you use a Dot, I'd recommend basing your choice on availability and price.  You won't go wrong with either.

thank you, Im kinda leaning towards the 4" myself. They seem to be touch more common, a light one but still better then the 5

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isnt steel challenge all 5 targets ?  Would I be disadvantaged with a 7 shot 686 pro ? I mean we can all use an excuse for a new gun, but no pins in my new locale but does seem to be 1 steel match

 

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1 hour ago, Joe4d said:

isnt steel challenge all 5 targets ?  Would I be disadvantaged with a 7 shot 686 pro ? I mean we can all use an excuse for a new gun, but no pins in my new locale but does seem to be 1 steel match

 

J4D:

 

Yes, five targets.  

 

For SC, seven shots is better than six but not as good as eight.  

 

GG

 

 

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1 hour ago, Joe4d said:

isnt steel challenge all 5 targets ?  Would I be disadvantaged with a 7 shot 686 pro ? I mean we can all use an excuse for a new gun, but no pins in my new locale but does seem to be 1 steel match

 

I looked at a 686 plus as well. However if you look at all the 'Pros' who shoot SC youll see them running some kinda 8 shot. 929, 627, 327 variants. More is always better :)

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thanks guys,, kinda like pins though I recon,, if you are shooting 8 times, your run is probably screwed anyways,,, but it can save a match having that extra shot..
At the time I wanted an 8 shot,, but they were made of unobtanium,,, I mean gone for months,, so I bought the 7 shot... At the time, I was more concerned with a ranch carry gun that wasnt super heavy that could roll a coyote from a tractor. ,, wanted that scadmium 8 shot but couldnt find one, the steel 7 shot L frame pro wasnt much heavier.. Was only later I started pin shooting.. Still to date is my favorite handgun.

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8 shots in steel is a much better choice than 7. 50% more spares.
 

And the difference between an 8 shot gun and a 7 shot gun in SC is a significant amount of time- unless you’re going so slow you shoot clean- which is also a loss. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

My apology if someone already mentioned this and I missed it ... but ... My 5 inch locks up with a ball detent in the frame ... and the 4 inch locks up on the ejector rod tip.

My 5 inch uses a DX/Classic type front sight (slides into a spring loaded shoe) ... and the 4 inch uses a pin on sight.

 

If you are only going to be doing steel challenge (with an optic) then neither will be a worry ... you won't be doing (on clock) reloads or snap in front sight changes. 

 

 

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20 hours ago, pete627 said:

My apology if someone already mentioned this and I missed it ... but ... My 5 inch locks up with a ball detent in the frame ... and the 4 inch locks up on the ejector rod tip.

My 5 inch uses a DX/Classic type front sight (slides into a spring loaded shoe) ... and the 4 inch uses a pin on sight.

 

If you are only going to be doing steel challenge (with an optic) then neither will be a worry ... you won't be doing (on clock) reloads or snap in front sight changes. 

 

 

Thanks, yes this would mostly be for SC. With some light icore dabbling. I only shoot about 6 or 7 a year 

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  • 1 month later...
On 6/30/2022 at 10:47 AM, pete627 said:

My apology if someone already mentioned this and I missed it ... but ... My 5 inch locks up with a ball detent in the frame ... and the 4 inch locks up on the ejector rod tip.

 

 

 

 

 

Excuse my ignorance. What is the preferred setup here and why? 

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11 hours ago, dansedgli said:

 

Excuse my ignorance. What is the preferred setup here and why? 

The theory is the bolt lock at the end of the ejector rod (like the 4" Pro) is a drag on the cylinder, while a crane lock (like the 5" PC) imparts no drag. 

That allows a lighter rebound as rebound is dependent upon the spring overcoming all resistance.

Some even go so far as to remove the Cylinder Latch Spring Assembly, to minimize the pressure from the Cylinder Latch on the Cylinder rotation .  JM even talks about it in his Revolver Action Job DVD.

Is it valid?

I have a 627 PC with no Cylinder Latch Spring Assembly and I've lightened it down to 4 1/2 lbs with no short strokes or failure to fires since February (been to USPSA Rev Nats, USPSA SC A3 Champs, ICORE MW Regional, Kansas Free State and averaging 3 local matches a month, quite a few rounds).

My backup is a 627 Pro with the same set up, but of course it has the bolt lock at the end of the ejector rod, it runs 4 1/4 lbs.  Only shot it in matches where I could use Optics, like the A3 SC Champs and at that time upped the hammer fall to 40 ounces and action weight was then equal to the PC since I haven't shot it enough to be confident in a 36 ounce hammer fall, and for practice.  But have had no issues with it either.

I have a 625 PC that had a double detent added to the crane so I could take out the Bolt Lock and I've run it both ways.  It did make a bit of difference in how light I could go on the action (have it at a 40 ounce hammer fall and 4 3/4 lb action).  

The question I've had is does it affect accuracy?  My 627 PC & Pro (with a Dot) give the same 2" to 2 1/2" groups at 25 yards.  The 625 PC sees more of a difference between loads than I've seen between the 2 different locking systems.

Now to answer your question, some run a very light action such as I do now, others like a more robust rebound and accept a heavier action of around 6 lbs.  I've been beat by both and have beat both.  So IMHO if you have an action of 6 lbs or less, no matter how you get there, with a rebound that you never short stroke and sets off all of the primers you use (note at 6 lbs or less you will probably be limited to Fed Primers) your platform isn't going to hold you back.

Finding primers to practice with will.

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Thanks for that. Very helpful! 

 

I had a 38 super 627 about 5 years ago and am looking at getting another revolver to shoot icore regionals because they are local and to do something different. In Australia.  

 

I don't have federal primers anymore though and probably won't be able to get any. I only have winchester and S&B. 

 

I want to shoot limited or open but the guns are thin on the ground at the moment. Plenty of 686's around though. 

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19 hours ago, dansedgli said:

Thanks for that. Very helpful! 

 

I had a 38 super 627 about 5 years ago and am looking at getting another revolver to shoot icore regionals because they are local and to do something different. In Australia.  

 

I don't have federal primers anymore though and probably won't be able to get any. I only have winchester and S&B. 

 

I want to shoot limited or open but the guns are thin on the ground at the moment. Plenty of 686's around though. 

I've had good luck with WW SPP's at 40 ounces of Hammer Fall.  The S&B I've not used so you might have to try 48 ounce Hammer Fall.

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Three years ago I installed a 6" pencil barrel on my 627 for steel challenge, my load was a 105 graing bullet at 900fps, I imediatly started shooting faster SC times and thought I had the ultimate gun. then one of my shooting buddies asked about the 986, my comments were, why would you buy one, in my opinion they are a waste or money. A few weeks later he showed up at our local match with his new 986 and loaded a very short 9mm round with VV320 powder and a 90 grain bullet, his times dropped dramatically, after refusing to shoot it a few times I finally shot it and ordered one the next day. At our next match I was shooting the stages even faster than I had with the pencil barrel 627. the 986 starts, transitions and stops quicker than any revolver I have except for my 617 with a lightened 4" barrel and it feels great in my hands.

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19 hours ago, Squirrel45 said:

Well after much thought here she is...

 

Also got a stainless Cricket for our newborn 😎

 

IMG_20220828_163006626-min.jpg

Looks fast already! 

Like those grips, Rosewood? 

Trying a pair of Hogue Wood Big Butts (Coco Bolo?), I like trimming the left tang (those empties don't see anything on the way out) and the nose of the BB to fit my hand.  Then I add skate board tape to the sides, yea I pretty much take a thing of beauty and ugly it all up!  But, like me, I want it built for purpose not pretty.

But the whole works look very nice.

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