Hammer or not?

Z

ZVP

New member
The former owner of my Model 36 'Smith took the hammer spur off with a tool, Nice job and the No-Snag is great!
I'm right in the middle of deciding to have it replaced with a stocker.
S/A is so nice on the revolver and so much more accurate but the no-snag is so handy! You can also fire it withthe muzzle against a body for instance too. Would a hammer spur really affect things all that much?
I wonder what it'd cost to go back to "Stock"???
I like the looks of the revolver either way and the D/A pull isn't that bad.
Learning to shoot a small revolver D/A is very important ( and HARD to learn)!
I can't afford a Centinal oreven a 340 either.I won't buy anything but a Colt or Smith and Wesson either. I want good steel inside.
Tough choice...
ZVP
 
Keep it the way it is and learn to shoot it DA. I'd never advise cocking the hammer in a high-stress SD situation anyway.
 
Having a bobbed hammer I'd convert it to DAO and learn to shoot DAO.
I had a Ruger SP101 DAO with the factory spurless hammer and it can't be cocked for a SA shot which IMHO is a better idea.
 
It can be used in single action just the way it is.
As long as the hammer is exposed, the spur is a big help, but not necessary.
Pull the trigger just enough to get some space between the front of the hammer and the frame.
Then continue the hammer back with the thumb over and down the front a little.
It's not much more difficult than having a normal hammer.
Try it and see.
 
I agree on keeping the gun like it is and learning to use it primarily as DAO, but also learning to cock the hammer if necessary. The hammer is hard, but it is possible to get a hard file and cut grooves across the top of the hammer to allow easier cocking for SA.

When considering any "bobbed" hammer revolver for carry, test with the carry ammunition to be sure there are no misfires. Sometimes the removal of mass from the hammer, especially if the mainspring is also cut down, can result in misfires.

Jim
 
Pull the trigger just enough to get some space between the front of the hammer and the frame.
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This sounds like an accidental discharge waiting to happen. All someone would have to do is bump into you while you do it.
 
Originally posted by Dragline45:

I have owned both, and personally I have never had the hammer get hung up even when drawing from a pocket.
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Same here, but I keep reading abut it on the internet, so it must be true.
 
If the gun is to be used as a SD weapon, leave it as it is. As any trained combat revolver shooter will tell you, only a drooling, blithering idiot would even consider thumb cocking a revolver in a SD situation. This, of course, excepts single action revolvers.
The popularity of the 442 & 642 etc., pretty much sums up the answer.
 
jasmith85 said:
Pull the trigger just enough to get some space between the front of the hammer and the frame.
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This sounds like an accidental discharge waiting to happen. All someone would have to do is bump into you while you do it.
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So long as your finger's not on the trigger, the hammer block will prevent a ND. Still, trying to cock a DAO revolver is a very bad idea, IMO. For one thing, a finger might be on the trigger while attempting to cock the hammer. For another, the SA notch on the hammer may very well have been removed, in which case the hammer will fall, bumped or not, as soon as it's released. It's best to just leave the hammer alone and shoot it DA.
 
This sounds like an accidental discharge waiting to happen.
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Oops, sorry.
I was naturally assuming that anyone trying it was competent with their equipment.
So, just for clarification, the trigger is only used to barely start the hammer on its way back, so the tip of the thumb can grasp the front of the hammer face.
As soon as the thumb grabs the hammer, take the cotton pickin' finger offen the danged trigger.
And don't let the hammer slip in the process and go forward, just like always.
Just like when cocking to single action with a normal hammer.
Which is why double action is faster and safer and single action is reserved for special occasions.
Better?
 
g.willikers said:
I was naturally assuming that anyone trying it was competent with their equipment.
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Stuff happens. Even competent shooters make mistakes now and then. It's best to avoid unnecessary situations where a single mistake can have such bad consequences.


g.willikers said:
single action is reserved for special occasions.
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Assuming we're still talking about a J-frame meant for concealed carry, I'm hard-pressed to come up with any such "special occasions". Assuming one is "competent with their equipment", of course. :cool:
 
Hand raised.
I can think of a couple of special occasions that would require single action action.
One can be due to stubborn primers.
Single action pulls the hammer further back against the mainspring than double action in lots of revolvers, and provides more hammer power.
Glad to have it some times.
The second occasion would be if needing a precision long shot, with no room for error.
Like if an assassin is hiding behind your mother-in-law, holding a knife to her throat, and she's the only one who knows the combination to the safe with all her diamond jewelry.
 
If a replacement hammer is available at a reasonable price, I would score it and keep it with the box and/or records you keep with it.

I would then leave the revolver as is and have the replacement part available in case it becomes a selling point if you or your heirs ever decide to part with it.
 
For that weapon an exposed hammer is a liability

Learn to shoot all your revolvers double action. Once you master trigger control you won't be giving anything up to thumbing the hammer back.
 
Well there's at least one stock S&W model sold that doesn't have a hammer spur on it but just a flush with the frame slightly raised hammer that you CAN pull back to shoot the thing single action along with shooting it double action. So g.willikers suggestion shouldn't be any more an accident waiting to happen then the stock Smith.

I don't think the SA would be much use in a self defense situation...I'm with the 'shoot it double action' crowd there but there are certainly times when the single action option is handy...like when you have to take $10 off somebody at the range that says a snub nose can't hit anything at 25 yards.
 
Although there is nothing wrong with the spurless/DAO revolvers and I can see all the merits of choosing one over a spurred model...... To me, a revolver needs a spur. I don't know why, but when I see a picture of a spurless/DAO revolver, it just looks wrong. Both of my revolvers have spurs.. one is a range gun , the other my daily carry. Never ran into any problems involving the spur on my carry piece.

I vote get the spurred hammer and try it out.. if it doesn't work out for you, just pop the bobbed hammer, you already have, back on.
 
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