I kind of have a hankering for this gun. I've held one and it seemed to point really well. Haven't shot one. I'm expecting it to not be the most pleasant shooting experience but I am ok with that. I've seen online reviews and for the most part they are positive. Does anyone have any experience with this hand cannon?
-
If you enjoy the forum please consider supporting it by signing up for a NES Membership The benefits pay for the membership many times over.
Smith and Wesson 69 Combat magnum
- Thread starter union
- Start date
greencobra
NES Member
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2011
- Messages
- 27,226
- Likes
- 26,726
I have one. For me there's something cool about it. Shot it a bunch. Went through some grip options (including X-frame grips and custom Herrett Jordan Troopers) before settling on standard, inexpensive Hogue monogrips that don't even cover the backstrap. The X-grips do cushion but have no roll and focus the recoil on the webbing of the hand. There's not that much cushioning. The Troopers, by contrast, are designed to roll, but they would hurt the webbing of my hand as the top of the grips rolled over the webbing of my hand under recoil. With the monogrips, it's still punishing, but there's some roll, and there's nothing that hurts me when it does. It's a sharp recoil with full-house magnum loads, more than when I shot a guy's 454 Casull Ruger Alaskan, but I can shoot the 69 reasonably comfortably in double action with gloves. I don't often choose to put more than 50 magnum rounds downrange on a given day, though, and usually more like 35.
I did try it with a Leupold 4x FXII scope at one point, even though it only has a 4.25" barrel. It was super accurate and also very comfortable to shoot that way, but when I got the 327 TRR8, I set up the scope with QD rings as an optional config for that gun. Besides, it's the size of the 69 and that makes it cool.
FrankNA
NES Member
Your a brave man (or mountain of a man) that can carry a 55+ oz. chunk of iron on your hip or other part of your body. I’m too old for that these days. If I’m going to carry a revolver, it’s going to be my Kimber K6s 3” DASA .357 magnum at 25 oz.
How do you like your Kimber?
greencobra
NES Member
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2011
- Messages
- 27,226
- Likes
- 26,726
it'll pretty much do anything you ask of it, for sure...as long as you do your part.
I'm a sucker for smaller frame, 5 shot big bore revolvers. While I'm not a fan of .44 calibers, given nobody other than Taurus is making a .45 Colt worth a shit (Charter availability is piss poor and quality is bottom of the barrel) the .44 Mag is really the only option and it's a choice between the Taurus Tracker and S&W 69. The Taurus is half the price, so if you're uncertain about recoil and don't want to put the money out for the Smith right away, then get the Taurus and if you don't find the recoil that terrible you can sell it and upgrade.
You won't be shooting either of them much, 25 rds worth and you'll want to stop before a microfracture forms in your wrist.
You won't be shooting either of them much, 25 rds worth and you'll want to stop before a microfracture forms in your wrist.
FrankNA
NES Member
It’s the right balance of size and weight - it’s a great revolver! Carries nicely OWB or IWB without that big hunk of iron on your hip feel and it shoots and handles really well. Kimber did their homework when they decided to enter the revolver market.
1903Collector
NES Member
Not even sure it's a L frame, I had one and it felt more like a K frame. Not a pleasant gun to shoot with full power 44's,
Retired-LEO
NES Member
Unless you reload 44 special and 44 magnum ammo is really expensive.
Although 38 special and 357 magnum ammunition is not cheap; it is significantly cheaper that 44's.
With proper loads; the 357 Magnum has plenty of stopping power (for most situations).
Retired-LEO
NES Member
It is a "L" frame.
It's definitely not pleasant to shoot. (I have shot one)
Personally I prefer the S&W 686 (which comes in many variations of barrel length, sights and cylinders that are fluted or unfluted)
357M is such a dramatically better choice overall that I hope anybody in the market for a 69 already has at least one full size 357M, if not a collection.
I forget to mention...it seems to me that both the 69 and the revised version of its little brother, the 66, tend to have triggers that underwhelm out of the box and remain fairly heavy compared to other model S&Ws after they smooth up. I'm not sure why. I would blame it on the design changes somehow, but the revised model 19s I've handled didn't seem that way. I played with a reduced power hammer spring in my 69, but I just got light strikes for my efforts. A longer firing pin and a reduced power hammer spring together probably would have worked, but I don't mind the factory set up so much, so I went back to that. It's not like I need it to have a great DA trigger.
Thanks for all the good info so far. Haven't made up my mind yet. Still leaning to getting this hand cannon. I already have a couple of guns that shoot 44mag and 0 guns that shoot 38/357 which is a big part of why I'm looking at this over the 357. I am not set against adding another caliber to the collection but I would prefer not to at the moment. At some point I would like to add them all but that is a bit down the road.
KBCraig
NES Member
The nice thing about revolver calibers is that you don't (usually) burn through a lot of it, and reloading doesn't require anything more complicated than a simple Lee Loader.
The Lee APP press is the best sub $100 press for handgun calibers. Lots of versatility, faster than any single stage press on the market, thing is light as a feather. Only drawback is you can't use an automatic powder dispenser with the mouth flare dies on it.
If people are just looking to get into reloading, I would direct them to the APP before any other single stage or turret press.
Works for me. I had mine out today. I just shot 25 rounds, 240gr Zero JHPs over 22 grains of N110, and stopped early to get back to work. My groups were probably the best that I see with any of my handguns. I really like it.
Just get it, figure out what grips make you happiest, and wear gloves if you want.
Measured or guessed at? My 69 started to get lighter once, but then I noticed my strain screw was walking out.
Just an update for those that don't make it further down the page. I did end up buying the 69 combat magnum. Haven't had a chance to try it yet but I am off this week and next so I will give it a test run. I did hold the 686 plus. I foresee one of those probably making a home in my safe in the not too distant future.
Hogue grips. They have many choices from rubber to wood, checkered or smooth, etc.
When I got 69, the stock grips were a little different, and those were horrible under heavy recoil. It looks like they have switched to more of a curved bantam style, which is probably better. I can't say because I haven't shot it with those specifically. After trying a lot of grips, I don't happen to like the ones that cover the backstrap as much. That's a personal thing.
A lot of people seem to use the "impact absorbing" grips S&W supplies on their X-frame revolvers. The thing I don't like about them is that it has a nearly straight line in the palm and, while there's some gel cushioning right there, the shape of these grips directs virtually all the recoil to the top of the grip. No thanks.
I tried the Herrett Jordan Trooper grips, which are designed to roll in the hand under recoil, and roll they do. They don't offer that product anymore, and I didn't stick with it, anyway. Little too much roll for me.
The cheap Hogue monogrips (19002) is what I've ended up. They're actually rubber, not rubberized plastic, so I get a pretty good grip. I tend to wear simple work gloves from Home Depot when I shoot the 69. I use Hogue monogrips on all my K, L, and N frame S&W revolvers, except for my 27-3, on which I use a wood grip from Hogue that has the same shape.
