July 23, 2012, 02:28 PM | #1 |
Senior Member
Join Date: June 19, 2012
Location: East Texas
Posts: 407
|
Revolver Actions
I am used to shooting semi-automatic pistols, but I am developing an interest in revolvers. The few double action revolvers I've shot surprised me with how heavy and long the double action (start with hammer down in case I have the words wrong) trigger pull was.
What make has the best double action trigger pull? I am mainly interested in the .357 family. |
July 23, 2012, 02:46 PM | #2 |
Senior Member
Join Date: March 3, 2006
Location: NE Ohio
Posts: 998
|
Current production I would say S&W with Ruger a very close second. It takes some time to get accustomed to the DA triggers.
|
July 23, 2012, 04:01 PM | #3 |
Senior Member
Join Date: September 3, 2011
Location: Poteet, Texas
Posts: 959
|
I've carried a S&W revolver on and off for 35+ years. I'm biased. S&W are decent out of the box with some older guns real good because they've been shot a lot. S&W are really easy to work on if you don't have a heavy hand and go slow and take little steps. As a very general rule, springs can be lightened a little, rough spots can be lightly stoned and places that rub and shouldn't can be smoothed.
The M65 I carry had a pin on the hammer sticking out just a bit, a little stoning and it no longer rubs. The NRA disassemble instructions are easy to follow. |
July 23, 2012, 04:15 PM | #4 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: October 12, 2002
Location: The same state as Mordor.
Posts: 5,568
|
Quote:
__________________
"As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven. " |
|
July 23, 2012, 04:28 PM | #5 |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 15, 2008
Posts: 770
|
If you want the current best production, check out the S&W Performance Center models.
Wolfe makes spring kits that will lighten the DA pull also. |
July 23, 2012, 06:18 PM | #6 |
Senior Member
Join Date: February 23, 2005
Posts: 13,195
|
I'm a little biased toward S&W revolvers as well...and the triggers are better in DA or SA than most other revolvers...
in the K frames ( medium sized frames) model 19's or 66's are both pretty good. In the L frames ( a little bigger than the K frames ) mod 686's.... In the N frames ( large frame ) ...the model 27's ...have some of the best triggers out there in DA and SA and while I have listed only models in .357 mag ...to me, they represent some of the better guns in the S&W lineup...and are still affordable / good long term guns that a person will love to have for many years...but S&W made a number of very good models in .22 / .38 spl / .41 mag / .44 mag / .45 acp ....etc...as well... |
July 23, 2012, 06:49 PM | #7 |
Member
Join Date: July 12, 2009
Posts: 76
|
Ruger GP100 or maybe an LCR. Don't have an LCR, but I have read the DA trigger pull is better than anything else currently available.
Jerry |
July 23, 2012, 07:12 PM | #8 |
Senior Member
Join Date: October 12, 2004
Location: Viera, Florida
Posts: 1,340
|
The S&W revolvers I use in competition have DA pulls that are so light that people can't believe they'll set off primers, but they do, every time. I've never felt a pull like that on a Ruger.
Keep in mind that a super-slick revolver action has to be done by someone with lots of experience and knowledge. You won't find one on a factory gun, not even one from the Performance Center. They won't use anything except factory springs and a factory firing pin. The S&W 327 shown below is a PC gun, but they didn't do the action. |
July 24, 2012, 09:21 PM | #9 |
Senior Member
Join Date: September 13, 2011
Location: SW Florida
Posts: 890
|
Who did? Who would you send an S&W N-frame to for the best action job?
|
July 24, 2012, 10:15 PM | #10 |
Senior Member
Join Date: July 20, 2005
Location: Indiana
Posts: 10,446
|
A DA revolver will always have a longer and heavier trigger than that of a SA semi-auto because the revolver must accomplish three tasks with each pull of the trigger (cock the hammer, release the hammer, rotate the cylinder) while a SA semi-auto only does one (release the hammer). Because of this, an out of the box trigger pull of 10lbs is not considered unusual or problematic on a DA revolver.
This does not mean, however, that a DA revolver cannot be shot as well or better than a semi-auto, only that a different technique may be necessary. One of the most common practices of those transitioning from a semi-auto to a revolver is to attempt to use the same placement of the trigger finger. Many semi-auto shooters place the pad of their first finger on the trigger as this is what gives them the best control with a SA trigger. While this technique works well with a SA, many people (myself included) find that placing the trigger in the distal joint of the first finger allows more leverage and better control when using a DA revolver. Also, be aware that different revolvers will have different feeling actions. There are three basic action types upon which the majority of DA revolvers are based: Colt, S&W, and Ruger. The S&W action is preferred by many because it is the "smoothest" meaning that the weight of the pull is relatively consistent all the way through. The Colt, on the other hand, "stacks" most prominently meaning that the pull will become perceptibly heavier just before the hammer is released. Rugers are somewhere in between in that they stack more noticeably than a S&W, but not as noticeably as a Colt. Stacking isn't necessarily a bad thing but more a matter of personal preference: some like it and some don't. Finally, small revolvers will usually have heavier triggers and medium and large frame ones. This is because the smaller, lighter hammer requires a stiffer mainspring in order to avoid light strikes and failures to fires. The exception to this is the Ruger LCR which has a surprisingly light trigger although it does seem noticeably longer than other revolvers of similar size. |
July 24, 2012, 10:22 PM | #11 |
Senior Member
Join Date: January 24, 2009
Location: Anchorage Alaska
Posts: 3,341
|
You haven't experienced smooth until you have fired a Colt Double-Action.
Unfortunately, they are scarce. So Smith & Wesson from S&W Performance Center is pretty good. The "stacking" of the Colt (seems to me) to be a good thing for fast double-action shooting because the inertia of the cylinder must be overcome at the start of the trigger stroke, so light spring pressure is a good thing. Later in the stroke, the cylinder is already rotating, so the heavier resistance of the spring kind of evens out the amount of force your finger must apply. This, of course, applies most when firing fast. Welcome to the wonderful world of wheelguns. Yes, it does take some getting used to. Lost Sheep |
July 27, 2012, 06:27 PM | #12 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: October 12, 2004
Location: Viera, Florida
Posts: 1,340
|
Quote:
I do my own guns, but I've been doing S&Ws for over 40 years. I dropped my FFL years ago, so I can't help you. |
|
July 28, 2012, 06:55 AM | #13 |
Senior Member
Join Date: October 24, 2010
Location: Austin, Texas
Posts: 3,318
|
A colt Anaconda is just like a good Smith, very smooth with no typical Colt stack.
Damn accurate as well. |
August 1, 2012, 06:05 AM | #14 |
Senior Member
Join Date: April 25, 2011
Posts: 154
|
I like S&W J frames. Then again I bought myself a m34 22 kit gun and tried to wear it out and teach my self DA shooting. I thought the first time I shot it it was awful,but I was too broke to bail. But I hung in there and now I really like to shoot DA. J frames have a totally different action than other S&W's. My experience is to start with a 22.
__________________
olafhardt |
August 1, 2012, 07:55 AM | #15 |
Junior member
Join Date: February 2, 2008
Posts: 3,150
|
"I've never felt a pull like that on a Ruger". Me either. I like Rugers and own a bunch of them but they will never compare with a S&W no matter who "works" over the trigger pull or how light the springs are. I also agree with the fact that NO company sells a box stock revolver with a "nice" trigger pull. You have to pay a real revolversmith for that.
|
August 2, 2012, 01:51 PM | #16 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: December 20, 2008
Location: Pittsburgh PA
Posts: 2,863
|
Quote:
__________________
Winchester 73, the TFL user that won the west |
|
August 2, 2012, 06:50 PM | #17 |
Senior Member
Join Date: October 12, 2004
Location: Viera, Florida
Posts: 1,340
|
Years ago, I had a stainless Security Six that I dry-fired DA thousands of times. The action was very smooth and I won several matches with the gun, but it wasn't all that light, even after I installed lighter springs.
In 2008 I bought a GP100 and did everything I could with the action. There was just no way to get it as slick as my Smiths. I sold the gun to a Ruger fan who loved the action. I didn't let him try any of my Smiths. |
August 2, 2012, 08:20 PM | #18 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: July 20, 2005
Location: Indiana
Posts: 10,446
|
Quote:
The exception to this seems to be the Ruger LCR as its trigger is noticeably lighter than any I've ever felt on a J-Frame. I notice, however, that the LCR's pull seems noticeably longer and I wonder if the longer pull is a necessity in order to have both a light trigger and reliable primer ignition (I'm not familiar with the internals of an LCR as I've never seen one disassembled). |
|
|
|