681 Project

[SPDguns]

Hey SPD,
You can add the barrel pins too can't you?

Do you think the pinned barrels are stronger than the unpinned? It just makes more sense they are to me. I kinda felt they cheapened the guns when they went to unpinned.

My OPINION- I don't believe the pinning makes the barrel stronger. This is one of the sources of endless debate. From an engineering standpoint, it would make sense that drilling the frame and barrel would structurally weaken it, however when a S&W frame fails, it usually fails along the top strap due to squib loads/home brew super hot mega-magnum-rocket-fuel-double-charge-handloads and flame cutting. I can add the barrel pin, but it's not necessary, especially with the S&W revolver barrel clocking issue that is prevalent. Pinning the barrel makes it harder to clock the barrel.

Quality control has greatly diminished over the years across all manufacturers due to attempts to lower manufacturing costs. Just take a S&W made in the '50's and set it near a current production gun. I won't own a 2001 or later S&W revolver with a lock unless I absolutely can't find or they don't make the model I'm looking for.

 

[SPDguns]

I probably have a gadzillion dollars in this thing. Cost of gun+cost of sights+cost of tooling+machine time making fixtures+set up time+ machine time......

 

[Snattlerake]

I probably have a gadzillion dollars in this thing. Cost of gun+cost of sights+cost of tooling+machine time making fixtures+set up time+ machine time......

Like I said, skilz.

 

[gerhard1]

It does look nice. Please don't take what I said earlier as criticism; I didn't intend it like that. I love both my 681 and my 686.

 

[SPDguns]

Bump by request

 

[Johnny]

good looking pistol. Sure will confuse somebody 20 years from now trying to figure out why the frame stamp is a 681 with adjustable sights.

 

[mtngunr]

I am of two minds on such a project. Nice condition 681s are rarer every day, about 53,000 made total of all versions including no-dash, and the dash versions, over an 11yr run which ended back in 1992, only circa 5000 per year average, while 686s are still in production. The no-dash/no-M stamp versions getting to be the rarest (M-stamp showing it was sent back for the recall mod of smaller diameter hammer nose/bushing for what turned out mostly a defective ammo problem leading to primer flow tying up cylinders). And it was one of the finest (and ever rarer even at its own production time) fixed sight revolvers ever made. And I generally am against modifying high quality discontinued items for which there is definitely a market for originals.
But, that is some fine workmanship rather than butchery, you got the gun you wanted out of the deal, and meanwhile incrementally bumped up the value of unmodified guns (such as mine) by further reducing the supply, so, I suppose it a win/win all the way around. Very good work, for sure, and despite in the future there being those who will hate that such was done, it will end up in someone's hands who thinks it just what they were looking for, thanks to the excellent workmanship.
PS- the barrel pinning was strictly to prevent unscrewing which unscrewing was ever rarer as thread tolerance able to be tightened over the years, and became unneccessary long before it was discontinued. The same time frame deletion of recessed cylinders likewise had become superfluous years and years earlier by advances in case design (except in rimfire).

 

[Shadowrider]

Hey SPD,
You can add the barrel pins too can't you?

Do you think the pinned barrels are stronger than the unpinned? It just makes more sense they are to me. I kinda felt they cheapened the guns when they went to unpinned.

I agree with SPD.

Pinned barrels aren't stronger per se, the pin is just an insurance policy that the barrel stays put. When they were pinning barrels they used a thread fit that wasn't as tight as they used on non-pinned since they are interference fit. That's why you see constricted barrels at the frame in non-pinned guns and you almost never saw that with pinned guns.

 

[mtngunr]

I agree with SPD.

Pinned barrels aren't stronger per se, the pin is just an insurance policy that the barrel stays put. When they were pinning barrels they used a thread fit that wasn't as tight as they used on non-pinned since they are interference fit. That's why you see constricted barrels at the frame in non-pinned guns and you almost never saw that with pinned guns.

The constriction is simply from tolerance slop, as many guns never had pins and never had constriction except with sloppy workmanship, the SAA was never pinned.