Picked a no dash 686

[C-grunt]

A buddy recently put up a no dash 686 for sale and I picked it up yesterday. It has some very minor blemishes next to the cylinder release and the stocks are obviously not new, but otherwise it's in great shape. Im more a shooter than collector so this thing is in basically pristine shape as far as Im concerned. It has a AAB serial which from what I can tell puts it in the 80-81 production timeframe. It does have the M stamp so it was retrofitted with the hammer and bushing upgrades.

Ive shot multiple 686 guns in the past but have never actually owned one. Ive said before that a 686 is probably what I would choose for a "only gun" type of scenario and now I have one. Im excited.

20211022_202514 by chase, on Flickr

20211022_202531 by chase, on Flickr

20211022_202556 by chase, on Flickr

 

[e rex]

Very nice revolver. I have it's twin in the 686-4. I've put a lot of lead down the barrel since I bought it in 1997, put on Miculek grips and that's about it.
It would get a lot more use if I could buy primers.

 

[ThomasT]

Looks good to me. I don't need another 357 but I am sure if I found a deal on a 586-686 I would buy it. Good find.

 

[gotboostvr]

Mine's an AAD prefix, making it just a touch younger than yours.

If yours is nearly as good as mine, you'll be very happy. Of the 31 revolvers I've owned, my 4" 686-0 is pretty far and away my favorite.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Nice score, OP! Also my fave-

The L frame does nearly everything perfectly.

 

[Speedo66]

Gray 3M ScotchBrite pads match the S&W stainless finish very well. Should be able to make the imperfections disappear.

Great gun, good luck with it!

 

[bannockburn]

Welcome to the club!

My Model 686-no dash has the best out-of-the-box DA/SA trigger on any S&W revolver I have ever used.

 

[Old_Grouch]

Only two words come to mind: I'm jealous.

 

[ontarget]

I have always thought that my 686 no dash would be very close to the last gun I would part with.
Very close to perfection.
Nice score OP.

 

[Tallball]

You'll get many years of enjoyment out of it.

 

[Riomouse911]

Sweet! That’s a real beauty for sure .

One of my first Gun Broker firearm purchases was a 4” 686+. I carried it on duty for a few months while healing from a thumb injury, I never felt undergunned or outclassed while carrying it.


(I picked up a new 2A gun cleaning mat, love it! )

For me a 686 is just a tad heavy for belt-carry ccw, but in a ccw shoulder rig, on the belt while hiking/hunting or for home/vehicle carry, you can’t do any better than that revolver you now own.

When you get a chance to exercise it at the range let us know how it shoots for you.

Stay safe.

 

[I6turbo]

Nice one!

I've had friends and acquaintances over the years who have had all sorts of handguns, and I've been able to shoot a bunch of 'em and handle even more. I've never handled or shot one that I'd trade my 1982 model 686 no-dash for. Among other things, none of them had an action or trigger pulls that were as good, including the 3 or 4 vintage Pythons in the bunch. And none were as accurate in my hands.

 

[Walkalong]

Beautiful! I foolishly sold my 4" No Dash 686, and I regret it to this day.

 

[Zebraranger]

Nice acquisition, I like the grips too. I acquired a new gun today myself, I'll post about it in another thread.

 

[S&W-Keeper]

Nice revolver,I bought the first one that I saw when they first came out.I still have it.

 

[Dragonfly]

Nice catch! A no-dash 686 I picked up in 1984 was my first centrefire handgun—I competed with it for years, and since it was looking a little tired decided to give it a bit of a buff with Mother's polish a few years ago.



I don't own it any more, but I still have my 3" CS1 to keep me in the 686 game.

 

[bannockburn]

Riomouse911

For me a 686 is just a tad heavy for belt-carry ccw, but in a ccw shoulder rig, on the belt while hiking/hunting or for home/vehicle carry, you can’t do any better than that revolver you now own.

Found this Uncle Mike's shoulder holster at a LGS that I use to frequent quite often, in a box of old holsters they had out on the floor as clearance items. Managed to find all the pieces parts that went with the holster (it was for a S&W K/L frame and they gave it to me for free! Can't beat that!

I took it home and set it up with the straps and everything and found it quite comfortable to wear and it did a great job of holding the gun securely in place.

 

[Riomouse911]

I have a Bianchi Miami Classic that works really well for my K-frames. I carried a 2.5” Model 19 in it for years with zero issues, I’ll bet that 686 will carry just as easily for you .

Stay safe..

 

[tightgroup tiger]

I carried an N frame Smith in one of those Bianchi leather shoulder holsters. I wish I still had it. I sold it and the pistol when I was young and stupid.