First revolver questions?

T

TestedTwice

New member
So I am picking up my very first revolver this week! I purchased a six-inch Smith and Wesson 686 and am quite excited! Since this is my first revolver, I had a few questions that I can't find by doing a Google search (likely because I don't know how to word them in six words or less for a search engine). These questions may or may not be stupid and pointless, but are still things I wonder. Haha.

1. Say I close the cylinder on my gun, but need to rotate it to lock in in place. Will it hurt any of the parts if I rotate the cylinder the opposite way it's supposed to go?

2. Say I cock the hammer, but want to lower it without dry-firing my gun. I'm perfectly fine with dry-firing my centerfire firearms, but I still want to know what I can and can't do. Will it cause any damage to my firearm if I brace the hammer with my thumb, pull the trigger to release the hammer, release the trigger, and let the hammer fall against the.... transfer bar? Hammer block? Or should I gently ride the hammer forward?

3. This question pertains specifically to Smith and Wesson revolvers and their silly internal locks. I know this may have been answered several times on this forum, but I have heard that Smith and Wesson may have corrected this with a stronger spring and I'm not sure what that time frame for that may be. Has anybody with a relatively new Smith revolver ever had an issue with the lock engaging by itself while shooting? I'm a little concerned about this.

I appreciate any answers to these questions, and apologize for any eye-rolling you may do. Lol.
 
1. Same answer
2. Same answer
3. Have had a 629 Mountain Gun in 44Mag for several years. Have never used the lock and never had a problem with the lock engaging
 
2. Say I cock the hammer, but want to lower it without dry-firing my gun. I'm perfectly fine with dry-firing my centerfire firearms, but I still want to know what I can and can't do. Will it cause any damage to my firearm if I brace the hammer with my thumb, pull the trigger to release the hammer, release the trigger, and let the hammer fall against the.... transfer bar? Hammer block? Or should I gently ride the hammer forward?
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Howdy

Hammer Block. A Transfer Bar transfers energy from the hammer to a frame mounted firing pin. Smith and Wesson does not use transfer bars, Ruger does. Your 686 has a hammer block in it.

Actually, the hammer block only comes into play if something inside breaks. It is a redundant safety mechanism. When you pull the trigger to fire a modern S&W revolver, the hammer slams against the frame. If you allow the trigger to move forward and allow the hammer to fall, the bottom portion of the hammer will slam down on top of the raised portion of the rebound slide. This is the rebounding feature of a modern S&W revolver. It's fine for what it was designed for, wedging the hammer back away from the frame. But I am a bit leery of allowing the hammer to slam down onto it.

Take a look at how narrow the section of the hammer is where it rests against the bump on top of the rebound slide. I don't like the idea of allowing the hammer to slam down onto that. That thin section of the hammer is its weakest point.

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I am going to suggest you learn to carefully lower the hammer. I have been shooting revolvers for many years, and it never even occurred to me to allow the hammer to fall against the frame. Some of my Smiths are so old they do not have a hammer block in them. So there would be a big problem if I allowed the hammer to fall. Others are old enough that they have a different style of hammer block in them. Your 686 will have the modern hammer block in it that S&W has been installing ever since 1944.

I respectfully suggest you make extra sure it is unloaded, and learn to carefully lower the hammer. That's why there is deep knurling on the hammer, so you can control the hammer both to cock it and to lower it. Practice it a bit. Make sure your hands are dry and not sweaty. It is not a difficult skill to acquire.

Plus, if you ever buy a used Smith, some clown may have removed the hammer block, thinking it would make the trigger smoother.

Learn to lower the hammer.
 
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When lowering the hammer I find it easiest to use your left hand to support the gun and use the right hand to both pull the trigger and drop the hammer.

Using your right hand to pull the trigger and left hand to drop the hammer seems like it would work just as well in theory, but it doesn't.

Assuming the gun is unloaded and you double checked the cylinder for rounds it's perfectly safe to just dry fire it.

IMO the lock is ugly but you rarely, if ever, hear of any actual problems with the lock. There are 1,000 times more posts out there with people discussing how terrible the lock is as there are posts about an actual failure. You're just as likely (or unlikely in this case) to experience any other random failure on the gun as you are to experience a lock failure.
 
1 No

2 This is "decocking" a revolver. Since you will likely need sometime to decock a loaded gun, I suggest using the method in the manual for all decocking Put a finger between the hammer and the frame. With a thumb holding the hammer, pull the trigger. As soon as the hammer releases and moves forward a little, release the trigger and lower the hammer. Releasing the trigger this way causes the trigger bar to rise as the hammer and trigger go forward. This won't harm the revolver and won't allow the gun to fire.

3 Internal lock failures are very rare and mostly involve the smaller revolvers. Your big 686 should be no problem.
 
2 This is "decocking" a revolver. Since you will likely need sometime to decock a loaded gun, I suggest using the method in the manual for all decocking Put a finger between the hammer and the frame. With a thumb holding the hammer, pull the trigger. As soon as the hammer releases and moves forward a little, release the trigger and lower the hammer. Releasing the trigger this way causes the trigger bar to rise as the hammer and trigger go forward. This won't harm the revolver and won't allow the gun to fire.
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What is a Trigger Bar? There is no such thing in a S&W revolver. I suspect you meant to say Hammer Block.
 
When lowering the hammer I find it easiest to use your left hand to support the gun and use the right hand to both pull the trigger and drop the hammer.

Using your right hand to pull the trigger and left hand to drop the hammer seems like it would work just as well in theory, but it doesn't.
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Agree 100%, reddog81. Two hands are better than one when it comes to doing this procedure as safely as possible. Learning to do it with one hand is a good idea in the unlikely but possible event you have to.
 
TestedTwice, Real nice choice. A fine revolver that will give you a lifetime of service. Get yourself a couple hundred rounds of .38 and a box or two of .357's BE SAFE and go have fun! Enjoy, Pikie
 
#3. I have a pair of the new 627's ...one in a 2 5/8" and one in a 5" barrel....and they both have 4 -5,000 rds thru them, never had an issue with the internal frame lock. I think reports of issues with the locks are " internet exaggerations "...
 
Say I cock the hammer, but want to lower it without dry-firing my gun.
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Since my revolvers are older with hammer-mounted firing pins, I "decock" the hammer by pulling the hammer all the way back and while squeezing the trigger lowering it slowly - not an issue.
 
As DJ noted, your 686 has a hammer block, but it's designed to block the hammer from hitting the firing pin when your finger's off the trigger. To safely decock, then, follow robert1804's advise and make sure your finger's off the trigger when lowering the hammer on a live round.

The Lock? Yawn. Don't sweat it. Shoot the batsnot out of your fine revolver - put your time and mental energy into gaining proficiency with it, and you'll be a far better shooter than most. :rolleyes:
 
I think reports of issues with the locks are " internet exaggerations "...
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The internet does not exaggerate...people exaggerate. Before the internet it was mostly done at gun clubs/ranges and in bars and deer camps. Don't blame the internet for what people do. B.S.'ers have been with us for way before there was any such thing as the internet.
 
Hold hammer back with right thumb. Slowly squeeze trigger with right index finger. Slowly and carefully lower hammer with thumb. That's it. I been doin it for 40 years. It ain't hard.
 
My 500 has a transfer bar trigger..??! however I digress pull the hammer back, pull the trigger at the same time and lower the hammer with your thumb. Ironically it becomes second nature quickly.

Thewelshm
 
Thanks for putting my concerns at ease everyone. I take safety very seriously with my firearms; even having my trigger finger disciplined before I even had my first gun. I just don't know anything about revolvers because I have only owned semi-automatics. Lol. Your answers have solved all my questions and I greatly appreciate it. You guys are awesome, as usual!
 
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