I have gun lust and want a .22 pistol. I have liked what I see in the model 617. Does anyone have an opinion of them that they would share? Also, I like the .22 magnum, I think it is the model 648. Does anyone have an opinion on the .22 magnum in general, and specifically the S & W model 648 that they would share? What about barrel length, too?
Does anyone have a S & W model 617 or 648?
- Thread starter dentodoc
- Start date
Shooter 973
New member
S&W 617!!!
I have a 4 inch 617 with the ten shot cylinder. It also has the target sights and target trigger. It is an amazingly accurate handgun. Shoots as good as a rifle for me! I bought it as a companion piece for a couple of 686's I own. It is great! I also use it when shooting bowling pins (heads are cut of and shot with 22's) seems to do a fine job. I did put a touch of blaze orange paint on the front sight , old eyes ya know.
It is also the most expensive 22 I've ever owned,,,,,,,,
I have a 4 inch 617 with the ten shot cylinder. It also has the target sights and target trigger. It is an amazingly accurate handgun. Shoots as good as a rifle for me! I bought it as a companion piece for a couple of 686's I own. It is great! I also use it when shooting bowling pins (heads are cut of and shot with 22's) seems to do a fine job. I did put a touch of blaze orange paint on the front sight , old eyes ya know.
It is also the most expensive 22 I've ever owned,,,,,,,,Geoff Timm
New member
I have to put in my vote for the 317 Kit gun. http://www.firearms.smith-wesson.com/store/index.php3?cat=293595&item=831378&sw_activeTab=1
It's smaller, compact, can be had with many different grips and tends to be carried when a larger revolver, would be left home because of size and weight.
Geoff Timm
Who misses the compact lightweight .22s
It's smaller, compact, can be had with many different grips and tends to be carried when a larger revolver, would be left home because of size and weight.
Geoff Timm
Who misses the compact lightweight .22s
I bought a new 617 (4”, 10 shot) about 14 months ago. Without a doubt this is the best gun investment I’ve made in the last 40 years or so. Considering that during this time period a small boat load of firearms has passed through my collection, this is high praise.
So far I’ve put over 9,000 rounds (99.999% double action) through this gun without a problem. The action is as fine as any I have ever experienced and it is a shooter. It is unbelievably easy to shoot rapid double-action sub 1”, 10 round groups at 7 yard and on a good day ½” groups are common.
The 617 goes with me on every range trip regardless of what else I am shooting and always eats 300 or more rounds. To say that I am very happy with my 617 would be a gross understatement
JAC
So far I’ve put over 9,000 rounds (99.999% double action) through this gun without a problem. The action is as fine as any I have ever experienced and it is a shooter. It is unbelievably easy to shoot rapid double-action sub 1”, 10 round groups at 7 yard and on a good day ½” groups are common.
The 617 goes with me on every range trip regardless of what else I am shooting and always eats 300 or more rounds. To say that I am very happy with my 617 would be a gross understatement
JAC
I have two 617's ( 4" 6 shot and 6" 10 shot). I also have a mod 48 ( 6", 6shot). All are tack driving accurate when I do my part. ( I also have several more mod 17's and " a few" other brand name 22lr /.22 mag pistols. Here are a few thoughts based on my experience.
1)IF you want a double action rimfire revolver, S&W arguably makes the best.
2) .22 mag chambering is "fun" but has it's drawbacks. First, ammo costs 2-5 times more than .22 lr ammo. Second, .22 mags in a handgun tend to loose allot of their energy advantage due to slower burning powders in short barrels. Third, These same burning charicteristics tend to get the revolvers dirty faster.
3) I find the 4" 617's and 6" 17's ballance best for "all round" work. The 6" 617 or 8 3/8" 17 are good for off /single hand shooting but are just a tad muzzle heavy.
My 2 cents worth of advice FWIW,,
IF you want a accurate gun for range work , get the 617/17 in .22 LR. It will get MUCH more use because of the cost difference in Ammo. The .22lr is also much more versitile as you can shoot anything from .22 shorts to stingers from it. The .22 mag chambering has a slight edge if you plan to hunt allot with it. ( My 22LR revolvers go to the range nearly every trip, the 22 mags, every 3-4.)
IF you do plan to hunt allot or just want more power, consider the 686 in 38/357. You can find used 686's cheaper than used 648/48's. Factory 38 ammo cost is about the same as 22 mag as well.
LAstly, Can't decide?. If the double action function isn't that important to you, consider a Ruger Single six. They come standard with both cylindirs and are about 30% cheaper than than a S&W. These are also lifetime/quality guns that are a joy to own and shoot.
Having said all that, I'll note that there were some older S&W 48's made that came with a .22 mag AND .22 lr cylinder. They are not cheap but they are out there. Accuracy with the .22 lr is going to suffer (slightly) due to the difference in bore diamiter.
hth
1)IF you want a double action rimfire revolver, S&W arguably makes the best.
2) .22 mag chambering is "fun" but has it's drawbacks. First, ammo costs 2-5 times more than .22 lr ammo. Second, .22 mags in a handgun tend to loose allot of their energy advantage due to slower burning powders in short barrels. Third, These same burning charicteristics tend to get the revolvers dirty faster.
3) I find the 4" 617's and 6" 17's ballance best for "all round" work. The 6" 617 or 8 3/8" 17 are good for off /single hand shooting but are just a tad muzzle heavy.
My 2 cents worth of advice FWIW,,
IF you want a accurate gun for range work , get the 617/17 in .22 LR. It will get MUCH more use because of the cost difference in Ammo. The .22lr is also much more versitile as you can shoot anything from .22 shorts to stingers from it. The .22 mag chambering has a slight edge if you plan to hunt allot with it. ( My 22LR revolvers go to the range nearly every trip, the 22 mags, every 3-4.)
IF you do plan to hunt allot or just want more power, consider the 686 in 38/357. You can find used 686's cheaper than used 648/48's. Factory 38 ammo cost is about the same as 22 mag as well.
LAstly, Can't decide?. If the double action function isn't that important to you, consider a Ruger Single six. They come standard with both cylindirs and are about 30% cheaper than than a S&W. These are also lifetime/quality guns that are a joy to own and shoot.
Having said all that, I'll note that there were some older S&W 48's made that came with a .22 mag AND .22 lr cylinder. They are not cheap but they are out there. Accuracy with the .22 lr is going to suffer (slightly) due to the difference in bore diamiter.
hth
You'll never regret a 17 or 617
The great thing about .22s is that the ammo is so cheap you can talk yourself into high end launchers, and because you can afford to shoot it a lot, you'll constantly remind yourself how smart you were to make the investment. That's why you don't find a lot of them on the used market; they change hands at the owner's death.
Consequently, buy the BEST .22 revolver and auto you can afford. The revolver is a 4" or 6" 17 or 617.
The great thing about .22s is that the ammo is so cheap you can talk yourself into high end launchers, and because you can afford to shoot it a lot, you'll constantly remind yourself how smart you were to make the investment. That's why you don't find a lot of them on the used market; they change hands at the owner's death.
Consequently, buy the BEST .22 revolver and auto you can afford. The revolver is a 4" or 6" 17 or 617.
Just as a note that not all 617's are great, mine was a total piece of junk.
Rotten D/A trigger, light hammer stike made it impossible to run a full cylinder without a misfire or 2 or 3 or 4. The only ammunition that fired reliably was Americn Eagle,,,and the gun itself wasn't fond if the American Eagle in terms of accuracy.
When I did mange to get it to fire, it was accurate for the first few rounds. Then the rough bore caused it to lead up, and the bullets would start to tumble.
I origninaly bought it as a cheap ammunition alternative to my 6" Model 19 .38/.357 square frame 6 shot. The 10 shot full underlugged round butt 617 felt so much different, that idea went out the window. I admit, mine was a "lemon" in many respects. Nothing so serious it couldn't be corrected though. The bore eventually smoothed out via being shot with enough plated rounds (American Eagle seems to have a nice heavy plating). For any serious shooting, a trigger job would have cured the bad trigger (the S/A trigger was very good) The full underlug would take some getting used to, but it wasn't an impossibility. The light strikes were either a light spring, or possibly a burr somewhere. Either way, that was also fixable.
In the end, I just asked myself how much I liked the gun. I didn't like it $400's worth. I didn't even like it $335's worth. I was offered $335 for it on a trade, and parted with it on the spot.
A couple years later, I picked up a pair of square frame, 6 shot, no underlug older Model 17's for $350 each. I still have those, and will have at least one of them as long as I'm around. The older 17 was (is) a more perfect fit for me.
Rotten D/A trigger, light hammer stike made it impossible to run a full cylinder without a misfire or 2 or 3 or 4. The only ammunition that fired reliably was Americn Eagle,,,and the gun itself wasn't fond if the American Eagle in terms of accuracy.
When I did mange to get it to fire, it was accurate for the first few rounds. Then the rough bore caused it to lead up, and the bullets would start to tumble.
I origninaly bought it as a cheap ammunition alternative to my 6" Model 19 .38/.357 square frame 6 shot. The 10 shot full underlugged round butt 617 felt so much different, that idea went out the window. I admit, mine was a "lemon" in many respects. Nothing so serious it couldn't be corrected though. The bore eventually smoothed out via being shot with enough plated rounds (American Eagle seems to have a nice heavy plating). For any serious shooting, a trigger job would have cured the bad trigger (the S/A trigger was very good) The full underlug would take some getting used to, but it wasn't an impossibility. The light strikes were either a light spring, or possibly a burr somewhere. Either way, that was also fixable.
In the end, I just asked myself how much I liked the gun. I didn't like it $400's worth. I didn't even like it $335's worth. I was offered $335 for it on a trade, and parted with it on the spot.
A couple years later, I picked up a pair of square frame, 6 shot, no underlug older Model 17's for $350 each. I still have those, and will have at least one of them as long as I'm around. The older 17 was (is) a more perfect fit for me.
Unbeliveably Accurate Gun ...
Dentodoc -
See if you can find one of the older K-22's. I have a 1957 "pre-model 17" that is so accurate that sometimes I can't believe it! (It certainly shoots better than I do.)
You can find good examples of these if you look around and keep your ear to the ground in your local gun owners/sellers/traders community.
The gun is fun to shoot, accurate, and worth looking (and waiting) for.
- DIR
Dentodoc -
See if you can find one of the older K-22's. I have a 1957 "pre-model 17" that is so accurate that sometimes I can't believe it! (It certainly shoots better than I do.)
You can find good examples of these if you look around and keep your ear to the ground in your local gun owners/sellers/traders community.
The gun is fun to shoot, accurate, and worth looking (and waiting) for.
- DIR
aussie bob
New member
G'day Tacoma,
I also have a Model 48 in 4". For many years I had problems with it getting full of unburnt powder causing stopages in the indexing.
I changed to CCI Mini Mags and my problems have never returned. They are very fast buring and seem to use all of the powder. They are also tack accurate.
Cheers from down under
Aussie Bob
I also have a Model 48 in 4". For many years I had problems with it getting full of unburnt powder causing stopages in the indexing.
I changed to CCI Mini Mags and my problems have never returned. They are very fast buring and seem to use all of the powder. They are also tack accurate.
Cheers from down under
Aussie Bob
Mine is a six shot. Got it several years ago just as the MIM parts were coming in. I've had no problems with those. I used it for some fairly consentrated double action practice . After mounting the scope i used it to test a number of loads. The pictured 25 yard group is the best yet but cci mini mags, stingers and velocitors have been close enough that any difference could be a fluke. The 50 yard bench group is fairly typical.
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