American Handgunner July/August 1982

pull, though, was excellent-an ounce over
three pounds, with the barest perceptible
trigger movement after sear release.
In the interest of fairness, it must be
stated that no new gun will ever be as
smooth as one that has been cycled a few
thousand times. A characteristic of S&W
actions is that they get smoother with use,
and mine are well used. Most certainly,
they're more civilized now than when they
were new.
Since the L frame is visibly smaller than
the N, I was surprised at how heavy it felt.
A consultation with Mr. Fairbanks-MoJ:se
quickly revealed that, at 46 ounces, the 6­
inch L is 2 ounces heavier than my 5-inch
N model, and weighs 9 ounces more than
ger is smooth and wider than the regular
S&W trigger, but not as wide as the extra
cost target or combat models. It is also
thick and chunky looking, as if they took a
wide trigger blank and just tapped it with
the forging hammer so it didn't get mashed
as much as it should have been. The trigger
works fine, it just doesn't have the classic
S&W look.
The hammer's unusual appearance
stems·from the fact that the cocking spur is
placed low. This makes the nose proportionately
longer than on K or N. But the
low spur is there for a reason. L's grip
frame is exactly the same as K's. This exactness
is carried to the location of the
hammer spur and even the thumb latch,
ing. This gives a due as to what the Smith
& Wesson folks had in mind for the new
frame size. More on this subject later.
The final departure from previous practice
was noted in the serial numbering system.
The test gun's number is AAB0024. A
call to S& W gave me the key to the new
procedure. The first L frame gun produced
was No. AAAOOOI. Gun No. 10,000 was
AABOOOO. Thus, the test gun was the
1O,024th L frame gun built.
While taking the gun apart for detailed
comparison photos, I gently touched a few
spots on the L's action parts with a hard
Arkansas stone to hurry the aging process.
After the photo session, when the L was reassembled,
its DA mechanism was better.
-
These S&W cylinders fit, from left to right, Models K, L, N.
Triggers I hands: ~ (longest), L, K (shortest).
Hammers, Models N,L,K (left to right), are slightly diHerent.
L barrel' has nearly tVl(ice metal thickness' at throat.
AMERICAN HANDGUNNER· JULY IAUGUST 1982
the 4-inch 19, which tips the scales at a
mere 37. The extra weight, of course, is in
'the barrel, which gives the gun a distinct
muzzle-heavy balance.
Except for the full barrel length underlug,
the L looks almost like any other
Smith & Wesson, but there are differences.
Though the cylinder is larger in diameter
than K's, it is shorter, because case heads
are not recessed. This reduces weight and
cost, but the wide gap between cylinder
and breech face is a departure from normal
S&W practice.
The L's hammer and trigger, too, look
"different." The trigger is a new one, first
offered on L guns but usable on any K or
N frame. In fact, it may become the standard
trigger on K and larger guns. The
other day I saw a Model 13 that came from
the factory with this trigger. The new trigwhich
is also set slightly lower than the
usual position. These deviations from the"
norm were made for the express purpose
ofduplicating the feel of the K frame grip.
Many folks believe that the K grip is ideally
sized for most people, that larger or
smaller won't do.
The L's frame is a little taller than K's,
but the same length. The window, or cylinder
opening, is necessarily larger, to accommodate
the greater diameter cylinder.
""At the front, the L frame is wider than the
K, to handle the thicker barrel.
For the first time that I can recall, the instruction
sheet with an S&W revolver
includes sighting information. Instructions
for Models 586 and 686, carbon and stainless
steel versions of Distinguished Combat
Magnum revolvers, list sight settings
for Practical Police Pistol Combat shoot-
The first tIme at the range the 586 didn't
give a "Distinguished" performance. Fired
single action from the bench while sighting
in, it performed okay. But the DA mechanism
was still a little stiff for good rapid fire
work. The extra ounces out at the end of
the barrel didn't seem to help or hinder in
any manner. I decided that the action
would have to be smoothed some more before
the gun could reach its full potential.
Another couple hours of shop time and
the L began to blossom. McGivern always
preferred the N frame for his "Fast and
Fancy" double action shooting exhibitions,
because the big gun would run faster
than the K. The L has the same fast-flicking
roll; the cylinder seems to develop a
momentum ofits own that adds power and
rhythm to the shooter's efforts.
. Continued on page 73
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