SMITH AND WESSON 642 LADYSMITH

[johnny blaze]

I have a 642. For some reason I like the Lady Smith. Maybe it is the grips, I don't know.
I just checked the Smith and Wesson catalog and the Lady Smith sells for 200.00 more than the standard 642 (list price).
It looks like the same revolver only with real nice grips on it.
Anyone have any information on this?
Also, what are the wooden grips called on the Lady Smith, and are they available?
Thanks

 

[FW]

The 642 Ladysmith is the same as a 642 with two exceptions.

The Ladysmith has fancy wood grips on it.

The Ladysmith has "Ladysmith" scribed on its sideplate.

There are a lot of fancy wood grips available for J frames.

Get the regular 642 and shop for exotic grips of your choice. It might cost less to do it this way. Also, it won't say "ladysmith" on the side.

 

[ugaarguy]

Ladysmiths come with a trigger job from the factory. This involves, if I remember correctly, lighter springs in some places and polishing trigger/hammer/sear engagement surfaces. This all results in a lighter and smoother trigger pull, and that's the where the money goes.

 

[lawson]

The exact same grips can be purchased from smith & wesson for about $50, and your local gunsmith can perform the trigger/action job for a reasonable fee.

You could buy a standard 642 and have these adjustments done without having "ladysmith" on the side, and possibly for less money. Shop around and do the math, see what you can come up with.

 

[johnny blaze]

Thanks for the replys. Great information there. Makes sense on the trigger and the grips, that would increase the price.
I am off to do some price checks.

 

[Bob79]

I have owned 3 different LadySmith J-frames (currently 2) and none of them had an action job from the factory. The trigger pulls were no different from any other J-frame I've owned (10+ over the years). I too have read posts where people claim LadySmith's come w/ factory action jobs/lighter springs, but I have not seen it.