S&W 642 Opinions and Mods

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Siggy-06

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I seem to be on a wheelgun binge lately. My current CCW has been a M&P shield for the past year as most of my revolvers are a lil heavy to conceal carry all day. After picking up my Super Blackhawk from my lgs, I decided to put another revolver on layaway. I looked at the Ruger LCR and the S&W 638, but decided on a 642 instead. Its 5 oz. lighter than my Shield and could ride in a pocket holster comfortably as well. It seems to have a pretty big following in the handgun world.

Anyone out there own one, and what are you opinions of shooting and carrying it long term? Should I get a trigger job or just replace the springs? Any info is appreciated.
 
Got a 642-2 in 2004 or 05. After a getting comfortable with it period it has become one of my regular carry guns. I did think about doing a spring replacement when I first got it but never did. The trigger is heavier than I normal like in a revolver but after shooting it a while I saw that it was giving me consistently good patterns at SD ranges with SD loads so I decided to leave is as is. I did changed the grips because I found what it came with were to me just plain uncomfortable to shoot with. I only pocket carry it and always in a pocket holster and find it good for an all day carry and I mean from time I dress to time I go to bed all day carry. I do have several pocket holsters for it, they all keep it in the same position but I found to do so I needed to find or make holsters that fit the pocket to do so. The holster that works for dress slacks allows the pistol to move around in others. (Photo example, nylon one dress the leather works in jeans.) So 642 not my only carry gun but the one most often carried when not going where capacity may be a concern.
 

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Thanks for the input sgms. I was thinking of a Desantis Nemesis or maybe a remora for iwb. Who makes that nice leather one in your second pic?
 
I carry a 642 on a regular basis in my right front pocket in a holster. As a mechanic in Georgia, I often get a bit sweaty in the summer. When this would happen, the factory rubber grips would try to stick in my pocket and made drawing difficult. I changed to some wood grips from Altamont and this fixed the problem, though the factory grips were more comfortable to shoot.

I do have other carry guns, a G26 and a S&W model 60, but the 642 is with me even when I carry another firearm because it is so easy to carry concealed.
 
I have a 642-1. The -1 does not have the lock on it. S&W makes both the -2 (lock) and -1 (no lock).

For pocket carry, check out the Mika pocket holster. Works great.

The only mod I did to mine was to take off the side plate and put some oil in there. It was pretty dry. My trigger pull is 12 lbs and I like it that way. It's a belly gun. Don't try to make it into a target gun.
 
Siggy-06 the leather holster in the picture was done by a friend of mine and myself. He works in a leather shop so we went in after hours and used the shops equipment and made ourselves several holsters for our "toys". We kinda copied a holster he already had minus the thumb break and belt loops and used heavier leather.
 
My 642 is my church gun, meaning it gets pocket carried when I'm all dressed up. I use a nylon Uncle Mike's holster, it still wears the factory rubber but I have taken the sideplate off and taken a fine stone to a few parts. Even though the springs are factory, smoothing everything up helped immensely. I might still throw in 8 pound springs, I think that'll make my 642 just about perfect.
 
I had one and sold it. I never really liked it much, but I think that had a lot do with not being a big fan of wheel guns.

I did get my money back out of it even after over paying to start with (I sold it like 7 years after I bought it during the last guns are being outlawed scare). So it is a solid gun that I figure didn't really cost me much (time value of money = the little use for 7 years).
 
I carry the no lock 442. Somthing about this Gun has always made it my favorite Pocket Gun. I shot a couple weeks ago and was happy with the accuracy. At 21 feet I had nice groups in paper plate targets. I always carry Two Snubs. The heavy Snubs are in the waist. I sometime carry the LCR357 in my pocket but that little 442 will always be the favorite.
 
i have the 640 and 642 but elect to carry the 642 because to the weight. I changed out the springs to Ampex and took out the internal lock.

When carrying the gun I feel very comfortable with the weight and protection.
 
I've been carrying a 642 for over a dozen years now. It's still stock and shoots far better than a snub revolver is supposed to. Although I also carry other guns, I regard the 642 as the one gun you can always have on you. Mine rides in a Mika pocket holster.
 
I have a pre-lock 642. I've had it now for quite some time and it's stock as a rock.

Never felt the need to replace anything on it. It's a great concealed-carry gun and is about as snag-free as you can get.
 
I have had a 642-1 for a little over a year. I got a 3x set up of Stoner holsters (IWB, OWB and pocket) the week after I got it. It is my primary all day CCW lately in the OWB set up.

Great gun for what it is intended to be. 50 round sessions with +P ammo will wear on you. Regular loads for practice and learning trigger control are perfectly fine IMO.

Only two issues I have had are:
1. quickly determining the stock grips do not allow dependable use of an HKS#36 speedloader. Get speed strips.
2. as noted earlier, the gun is dry as a desert from the factory. Easy enough to apply your own lube, if you know what you are doing in removing the side plate.
 
I had a 642 for awhile. I liked it pretty well for cc. There is always the point that a dao snub nose is harder to shoot accurately than most other guns, but with plenty of practice that can be overcome as long as one has realistic expectations. The thing I could not get past was the fact that the finish on my 642 was flaking off after only a few months. I traded it away because I couldn't live with the looks of it and I didn't want to bother sending it back to the factory. This is why I don't buy the hype about S&W finish being so much better than Taurus. I guess S&W can't make a $400 gun with a good finish either. $.02
 
I carried one IWB for a long time, but moved on to something else and sold it. To be honest, I never did enjoy practicing with it. My wife and daughters absolutely hated the thing.
 
Siggy06 said:
Anyone out there own one, and what are you opinions of shooting and carrying it long term? Should I get a trigger job or just replace the springs? Any info is appreciated.
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My 642 got a trigger job when I first bought it. I've installed a Crimson Trace laser grip. Been carrying it for 6 years now and I'm very pleased with it.
 
For close to 3 years I carried a couple different J frames. A 3" Model 60 in .357 and a pre-magnum 640 in .38 special. The thing about J frames I have found is they require a good deal of practice to become proficient with. I recommend installing a slightly lighter rebound spring, which will bring down the pull weight without sacrificing reliable ignition. Don't go too low on the rebound spring or it will slow down the reset and you can experience short stroking in rapid fire. A trigger job with some light stoning and polishing can also go a long way in smoothing out the trigger. I have strayed away from the snub revolver as I found that I shoot similar sized auto's a whole lot better than my old J frames, and the added capacity and easy of reloading of them is another added benefit.
 
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