I'm not really a revolver guy. I have a Taurus Raging Hunter 6.5" in 44mag & a 4.75", 5.5" and 7.5" SAA in .357. I'm wanting to pick up a NICE revolver and have been looking at the Colt's, Ruger Redhawk's, S&W 629's, 686's & 586's. I seem to be looking at the stainless ones but do really like the look of the blued ones that have the really nice blueing. I also am thinking I want one in the 4" to 6.5" range. I'm also wanting to stay with ammo I already have so .357 or 44mag. Also thinking DA/SA not SAO. I can add them later if need be but I'd want nice grips also. So pros/cons of what I've been eyeing and anything else I should be looking at?

Personally I'd stick with the S&W 686's or 629's with out without the lock.
I compared a Colt Python (older one) to a 686. The trigger, IMO, is much nicer on the 686's.
I like to add trigger kits to my Smiths for a better DA pull. The lock can be deleted if you want but they are fine if not.

If you want something super cool, strong, collectible, look at the old Dan Wesson revolvers. Find a nice pistol pac

My LGS has a very clean blued Dan Wesson .357 Pistol Pac on consignment. 2", 4", 6" and 8" barrels.

$1399 is too pricey for me right now but it's definitely a grail gun item for me and I say that as a staunch Smith and Wesson fan.

There is the small percentage of shooters who want/need something different but one of the best shooters for most all people is the S&W 686 with the 6"

Factory triggers are usually quite good but grab yourself a spring kit (less than $20) and you should have a super trigger which is really what you want in a double action revolver.

If you are going to try plate shoots and the like the "+" model will give you 7 shots .

Some folks get all wound up about the lock/no lock , to me it isn't worth the time / expense to hunt down a used no lock but make your choice.

Different folks will go different directions with the grips , factory wood , oversize smooth or checkered wood and rubber with/without finger bumps. The only way you will know is to actually shoot them all . I like the soft Houge grips.

A 4 or 5" will carry better but most everyone shoots the 6" better .

The 629 is a very nice gun but I recommend as something to grab after the basic 686 . The ability of the 357 chambering to run anything from super light 38spl target loads to full house spicey 357 loads just covers so much ground .

I used to do quite a few pistol classes and just about everyone shot the 686 6" better than any other center fire gun by a big margin.

7 years ago I purchased this S&W Model 686 Plus 7-shot 4.12" SS revolver. It was on sale for $679, plus came with a car safe. Current retail prices $900 & up. I haven't fired it a lot, but it carries very well in an old Uncle Mikes OWB nylon holster when I'm hunting or at the farm. I see S&W also offers this model in a 3" also. No complaints with it. Honestly not crazy about the grip, but no plans to replace it. Another consideration for you OP.....

What are you going to use it for?  Hunting, range toy, carry?

I prefer blue all the way. Don’t care at all for stainless. I would personally go for an older gun from back when the bluing was a more high quality process.

If you plan to run it hard, my choice would be an older S&W N frame ( model 27 in high polish, model 28 for the duller finish)
If you don’t plan to run full house magnums extensively then a model 19 ( while I never saw it and shot and owned several over the years, these do have a tendency to have issues after high round counts of magnums)

Never cared for the L frames

Llook at the S&W 640 Performance Center version J Frame
Link. Or S&W 640 I like this one a lot.


And look at the L frame 44 model 69 2.75 in Link Perfect if they made speed loaders… oops

Keep the rubber grips or Pachmayr grips if you use it

I'll just add that the lock is really not a huge cosmetic issue on the blued models. The lock hole is dark, the finish is dark. It helps hide the lock pretty well. It's alot more of an eyesore on the stainless models.

To me the Model 27 4" will always be the nicest looking revolver. Old or new.



Yeah it's kind of a huge boat anchor for a 6 shot .357. But that's why I love it.
I recently bought a new Model 36, and being the "new toy" it got all the attention. Shooting it, handling it, dryfiring it at bad guys on the TV . The 27 got sidelined for a bit. Then one day I remembered it and went to pick it up. After handling a J-frame for a couple weeks, that 27 felt like a piece of artillery in my hand. Instantly fell in love with it all over again.

I'll break it up by caliber.

For 357 magnum, my two favorite double actions are the Ruger GP100 and the S&W model 27. There's nothing wrong with the 686, but the model 27 is classic. I never could warm up to a full lug barrel, and the model 27 is the original magnum before magnum was cool.

A lot of people will talk about the S&W triggers, and they are good, but in my experience they are not better out of the box than a Ruger GP100. There are some differences. The S&W uses a wide flat trigger where the Ruger uses a narrow rounded trigger. Both work fine for me. The single action pulls are good in either gun, and good gunsmiths can make either model extremely good. The S&W seems to have a slightly shorter double action pull, both models can be very smooth.

Both are very tough revolvers that will hold up to a long life of full power 357 magnum. Both have plenty long cylinders that will fit any reasonable bullet. Both have the same 1:18.75" twist rate, which works fine for most bullets. The only downside is if you wanted to shoot 220+ grain bullets, a 1:16 works better. Most people are shooting 158-200 grain bullets, which work great in these.

My preference is for the 5" Lipsey special half lug GP100, or the model 27 with 4", 5", or 6" half lug. I love a blued half lug.


When looking at 44 magnum I really like the Ruger Redhawk. It, and the super redhawk are the biggest and toughest 44 magnum double actions ever made. They have very generous cylinder lengths, and they handle 300+ grain bullets easily. 355 grains is not a problem either. The downside to the regular Redhawk is the trigger is not something a lot of gunsmiths know how to deal with. The single action trigger is just like any other, they can be very good. Out of the box most Redhawk triggers are not great, more like 5 pound SA pulls. The double action is what it is, they aren't too heavy, but they stack. It's not bad, but it's not the best out there. Lighter action springs can help, but it takes trial and error. The Super Redhawks are very similar to the GP100. They can have really nice triggers, and they come out of the box pretty good. The only real downside is how ugly they are.

S&W model 29 is an ok 44 magnum. They can't handle a high volume shooting of full power 44 magnum like a Redhawk can. Another very common issue is cylinder skipping where the cylinder stop lets the cylinder rotate under recoil. There are extra power springs which help, but do not completely eliminate the problem. If you never intend to shoot anything but 220 or 240 grain bullets, then no big deal, they work great with that. If you intend to shoot 260-300 grain bullets, then you can make them work. If you want to shoot 300+ grain bullets, you are probably going to be disappointed.

If you are ok looking at the used market and not scared of the prices, try to find a Dan Wesson 44. Those are sweet guns, probably the best ever. Great triggers, solid guns that hold up to a ton of shooting. They are switch barrel revolvers, so you often find them with multiple barrels.

My preference for a 44 magnum is the 5.5" Ruger Redhawk, but I'd love to have a Dan Wesson 44 with 6" half lug.

That is a fantastic price. A LGS had a run-of-the-mill 4" Dan Wesson and it was priced for $1,400 by it itself. No pistol-pac, no other grips, etc. Just the gun by itself.

Yeah, I probably would have made a move on it if I hadn't just bought a S&W 25-5.

If by some stroke of luck it's still there in a couple of weeks when I can get my gun fund built back up I might bring it home.

I’m a S&W revolver fan and have been since the mid 90s.

I’ve owned a bunch of different models.

Sold off, traded dozens.

Still have 4-5 J frames, 4” 686+ in case I want to shoot .357 and a PC 7” 629 Stealth Hunter for deer.

I only carry a revolver as a BUG these days

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Eye would get a "4 colt python.