Smith and Wesson 986 vs Moon Clips

D

dale.gribble

Inactive
So, I just picked up a 986. Other than having lots of gouges on the swing arm (check out my other thread about the gouges), I am happy with it.

I Was told by the dealer that I can use either moon clips or just load loose rounds. When I try to use the ejector, it will not catch any of the rims of the casings. All the rounds just sit in the cylinder, while the ejector moves freely. Is this normal, or do I have a faulty gun?
 
Not familiar with the 986 but I think that's typical of moon clip guns. Extractor pushes the clip, not the cases themselves as they have no rim. If firing loose you would have to push out with a dowel, pencil, or the like.
 
Moonclips aren't a cool thing. They are a necessity when shooting rimless calibers. Nothing wrong with the gun. Slimjim X2. God Bless
 
For use without moon clips you need to find Federal 9mm rimmed cases or make your own from S&W 38 cases.
 
moon clips

I remember seeing whole and half moon clips before for sale somewhere, I would think half would be nicer for carry.

If you were loading loose rounds and didnt want to bother with moon clips for extraction on the range I would probably make a DIY rig with several dowels secured to a little circle of wood so you could punch out all the cases in one go from the front of the cylinder. I've thought about making one for an NAA mini revolver, never got around to it.
 
The 986 was designed as a race gun, as I understand it. Moonclips act as speed loaders and ensure positive ejection. You can shoot without the clips. You just need to pick out the empties.

The 986 was designed for a rather specific market. The action was beefed up to shoot fast and take a pounding.

I'm not sure you are that market given your last couple of posts.

Are you planning to use it as a race gun?
 
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i shoot the hell out of mine and it is dead accurate....it is designed for moon clip use and i suggest you use them..
 
The 986 is not really a race gun. Carry gun more like (for a wheel gun, anyway). That's the 929 you are talking about.

You can still fire 9mm out of it, but you'd have to eject by pushing a dowel up the cylinder, instead of the ejector. The cylinder is cut for the taper of a 9mm case, so they will sit in there; it's just the ejector won't push them out because that's made for the rim of the moonclips.

Do not fret! TK Customs sells moonclips for $4, and they are the same that come with a 986 from S&W. Look carefully at your moonclips, they'll be marked with "TK": http://www.tkcustom.com/cart/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=42&cat=9mm

What's with the hate on moonclips... they are totally cool. Be happy! You have a great gun chambered in an affordable caliber. Smells like good shootin' times for you, in my opinion.

I love my 986 and have 22 moonclips for it. At the price of $4 when compared to $30-$40 per for 1911 9mm magazines, I'd say there's nothing to complain about. You can get 7-10 moonclips for the same price as just one 1911 mag. If you bend or lose one, so what?
 
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The 986 is not really a race gun. Carry gun more like (for a wheel gun, anyway). That's the 929 you are talking about.
Click to expand...

I stand corrected. Thanks for the info!

I honestly believe that the marketing department of Smith and Wesson fire up a crack pipe full of "Blue Sky" and then start naming models of guns.
 
No different from any other "Mad Men" (and women)"

How many ways can the auto paint folks say "blue"? Or how about the million names for "red" in women's lipstick?

Jim
 
http://www.mooncliptool.com/

http://www.mooncliptool.com/ is another place to get moonclips for the 986. They are equivalent to the original moonclip from S&W that came with the gun, and cost only $14 for 8. The moonclip tool is great, too. When I go out to shoot, I load up a dozen or so in advance, more than I intend to fire. They make reloading very fast and convenient.
 
The Smith names make sense to me: 686 is the .38/.357 L/K framed gun line, so the 986 is the K/L framed 7-shot (just as some 686's are 7-shot).

The 929 is analogous to to N-framed 629's. Guns of that series/frame can also be 8-shot as 929's are 8-shot large framed revolvers. Never mind that the 8-shot ones are X27's not X29's. Fine maybe it doesn't make that much sense. But at least the X27's and X29's are all on the same N-frame as the 929's.

They just wanted the "9" out front, unlike the .45 ACP revolver names which put the "5" in .45 at the end? As in 325's and 625's.

At least the 686/986 analogy holds some water...
 
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