encoreman Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 First of all this forum has helped me lots. Thanks to all who post to help us in need. I have been wanting a S&W 610 for awhile, I shoot a bottom feeding Para. I started with a wheelgun and I must admit, I shoot better when I don't have 19 rounds to "play" with. The gun I found is a 610-3 3 7/8" barrel in very good condition, I am unsure to how many rounds have been fired. I can get it for $525. What says you experts. I would prefer a 5" gun, but can't find one and if I did it would probably cost lots more. I would go to a 625, but I am already set for .40 and have lots of brass, just simpler for a simple minded person. Thanks upfront for all your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scooterj Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 Not a bad price and the 610 is no longer made. There's nothing wrong with the 4" guns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
encoreman Posted February 20, 2006 Author Share Posted February 20, 2006 Thanks Scooter, I couldn't get up with my gun nut buddy to pick his brain, use the word brain loosely!! I pretty much had made up my mind, but you kick yourself if you buy first and ask 2nd. See you at the Miss Classic, Mac Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dajarrel Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 Another plus for a 4" barrel is that you can use it for IDPA if you have a mind to. The 5" barrels aren't popular at this time FWIW dj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waltermitty Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 I like the 610 and if you want one you should get it. That's a good price if it is in good shape. HOWEVER, if IPSC/IDPA competition is your goal, you will not be as competetive with a 610 and it will cost you more to play when it comes time to buy moon clips and doo-dads related to the caliber. My last 625 (about October last year) cost $600.00 new. My wife bought it so I'll reserve comments on whether the price was fully negotiated or not. $75.00 more for a brand-new 625 in the barrel length of your choice may sound pricey, until you buy your first 100 moon clips and start doing reloads on the clock. Of course, you may want it for some oher reason.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10mmdave Posted February 20, 2006 Share Posted February 20, 2006 moonclips - http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/Pro...10mm+MOON+CLIPS 68 cents a piece from Brownells, the work well with Winchester 10mm brass, try a lot of different 40 brass to see how they fit. Good luck, hdgun357 and myself will be working on 10mm/40 loads in the coming mouths, for him a 5 inch 610, me a 6.5 inch. Rainer makes a semi-round nosed bullet as well as Berry's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeFoley Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 (edited) Ranch Products sold me moon clips for my 610 dirt cheap. If you buy 100 they are something like .50 each. I am certain that .40 brass is easier and cheaper to get than .45. The 625 is a nice gun, but the costs of moon clips and ammo are not cheaper from my experience. The 625 should have a more forgiving reload, which means less fumbles if you don't nail 'em. Most of the diehard revolver guys seem to shoot the 625, but the 610 is awesome in the right hands. Edited February 21, 2006 by fomeister Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hdgun Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 I do agree the 625 is a little easier to speed load, But with a little practice and the right shaped bullet you would be good to go. I am working on this as we speak, I just got a 610 a few weeks ago, I am having alot of fun learning this new toy. BTW I do have 2 625s. 4" and 5" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlamoShooter Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 (edited) I think a biger isue with the 610... is if it an older one = 1994-98? the ones made in the 2002- ? were cast parts my older revolver do not heat up like the new ones . I think the older steel is better than the new. and one thing with a 610 is the small primers = 45 uses the large ones . If you shoot a supper or 38 you will not have to change out the loader for larg and small primers. I just stock one size primer Edited February 21, 2006 by AlamoShooter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waltermitty Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 Ranch Products sold me moon clips for my 610 dirt cheap. If you buy 100 they are something like .50 each. I am certain that .40 brass is easier and cheaper to get than .45. The 625 is a nice gun, but the costs of moon clips and ammo are not cheaper from my experience.The 625 should have a more forgiving reload, which means less fumbles if you don't nail 'em. Most of the diehard revolver guys seem to shoot the 625, but the 610 is awesome in the right hands. If your price is correct, the .40 moon clips are twice as much, 625 45 ACP moons are $25.00 per 100 from Ranch products delivered. Those of us that shoot revo quite alot probably don't feel comfortable with less than a couple hundred moons, since it is not practical to recycle moons and see if somebody stepped on one; particularly during a big match. You may be able to buy/find once fired brass cheaper, but it's not going to make for very consistent fast reloads, particularly if they've been through a Glock or similar. Some brands of brass in mixed lots are so tight in the moons there will be no end to the grief. If you buy quality brass that will work well, like Starline, 45ACP is $96.20 per thousand while .40 S&W is $105.30 (per my handy Blue Press that's 9.5% higher) and I've never had a hard time finding either. Other items like replacement cylinders (with neat features like flutes and exotic materials like Ti) are available from more sources with more options. And since the 610 has been discontunued, how long will new parts be available? While generally, many parts that will work with 625 in 45 will work with a 610, some important components won't. To top it off, it can be hard to find a round nosed bullet in .40, while the RN bullet is a staple of the 45ACP from many, many competing sources. Price difference for a *new* gun and ongoing costs aside, the real issue, as you note, comes up every reload. Sure, you can nail a good reload with a .40, (all of us nail good reloads) but they're not "good" all that often, even in the right hands. This is where you think about your decision to buy the 610 over the 625 most often. There are many reasons why the top gunners in the sport shoot a 45 revolver instead of a 10mm. There are also many reasons why you would buy a 610; because you want it is chief among them. However, I would stand you up against any revo shooter in your class shooting a 625 in 45 ACP and let you both race for ~100 rounds. Anybody that knows much about it knows who to put their money on. So again, if you want a 610, get it. If you have other considerations, like you've decided you will not reload the 45's and screw with the LP primers, well there you have it. But if you have any inkling that you're going to be serious about it, you'll wish you had a 625 in 45ACP. We haven't even touched on the physics of the ultra-light trigger pull. If you'd like to talk about Limited division, I'll switch sides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
encoreman Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 Walter, are you always so short and sweet with your answers? And here I was all set to buy the gun in the morning. Well I will give some others with a "positive" attitude towards 610's to put in the 2 cents. I have to ask this question to all you 625 fans. Now I understand that the holes in a 625 cylinder are larger than that of a 610, but aren't the .45acp bullets also larger than the .40S&W by the same margin. Go figure! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmoney Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 I also recommend choosing one of the .45 ACP wheelgun options. The folks I know who've used a 610 in USPSA Revo division always seem to have eventually gravitated to the .45. Consistent reload speed is so vital to success in our division..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spook Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 What fomeister said Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIX SHOT Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 I also recommend choosing one of the .45 ACP wheelgun options. The folks I know who've used a 610 in USPSA Revo division always seem to have eventually gravitated to the .45. Consistent reload speed is so vital to success in our division..... I'm one of those exceptions I guess when it comes to the 610 versus 625. I love my long sight radius 6 1/2" 610 and its always done its part in IPSC competition, although my showing at Area II last november wouldn't turn any heads! I've shot 2 really bad matches in my 3 years competing & that was one of them, but, it wasn't the guns fault. My reloads are very consistent with the 205 gr. RN that I make. You can buy them from Chey-Cast.com in Wyoming, great bullet! Talking to Jerry at Area II, he was very interested in trying a 610 with the 6 1/2" barrel, said they were much more accurate than the 625 and the added weight of the 610 is a plus in recoil control. A 4" 610 weighs more than a 5" 625, the 6 1/2" 610 really tames things down. He said the 625 was starting to wear on him a little. We had 7 revolver shooters at our last match, 6 of the 7 used the 610. I think we will have 9 revolvers this week at Logan, Utah. Who says no one shoots revolvers! Dick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waltermitty Posted February 21, 2006 Share Posted February 21, 2006 (edited) Walter, are you always so short and sweet with your answers? And here I was all set to buy the gun in the morning. Well I will give some others with a "positive" attitude towards 610's to put in the 2 cents. I have to ask this question to all you 625 fans. Now I understand that the holes in a 625 cylinder are larger than that of a 610, but aren't the .45acp bullets also larger than the .40S&W by the same margin. Go figure! Short and sweet? OK. Just one more and then I'll quit. It's not the size of the bullet that makes the difference, because, as you observe, the hole is cut to match the bullet. The difference is the amount of material between the holes in the cylinders. Since the cylinders themselves are the same size, the hole-you-must-hit to metal-you-must-miss ratio is more heavily weighted in your favor. Said another way, the metal between the holes is so much thinner it makes the task of balancing a full moon of bullets on the face of the cylinder quite difficult. If you're running and bouncing the gun at the same time, it's nearly impossible. If the .40 had been built on a "K" or "L" frame, it would be a different story. Howsat for figuring? Ok, now I'll put my happy "positive" hat on...WOW dude, you sure are lucky to find such a great deal on that 610! Why did you even ask if you should get it?!?!?! You should buy it right away. Edited February 21, 2006 by Waltermitty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
encoreman Posted February 21, 2006 Author Share Posted February 21, 2006 Walter That's much better now!! I was beginning to sweat the fact that I had talked my wife into the purchase and some of my wheelgun friends were trying to talk me out of it. FWIW. I do the USPSA thing for fun, believe me if I was doing it for a living, I couldn't afford a computer to be conversing with. Thanks for all the comments, even if "some" were not exactly what I was looking for!! Ya'll know how it is don't ya, I was looking for support. Kinda like I feel your pain Dude!! God Bless You all and I'll see ya at the Miss Classic in May. Oh and I will be ROing somewhere! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
encoreman Posted February 25, 2006 Author Share Posted February 25, 2006 Thanks for all replies, I bought the 610 this afternoon. I figured as I already reload for the .40 that I would start with this gun and as they still make the 625, I can get one later. See the devious way I think? Please don't tell the Missus, cause as long as I got her fooled, I got it made. See Ya'll later I got to get to reloading for my new wheeler!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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