Smith and Wesson Top Break Revolvers

[H. K. Uriah, SASS #74619]

Well, yesterday, at a shoot in Middleton, Mass, which was great, I had a chance to compare my three S&W Top Break revolvers over the the course of the match.

 

Pistol Number 1: New Model 3 in .34/44 Target using .38 S&W ammo loaded with BP sub.

Pistol Number 2: Uberti Schofiled in .45 Colt loaded with Trailboss

Pistol Number 3: Model 3 DA in .44-40 loaded with BP sub.

 

I made sure to use each gun at least once in either hand, shooting Double Duelist Style.

 

Here are some observations and thoughts.

 

Actually shooting these things at the range during a shoot is very different from practice target shooting in your basement, or using snap caps to to familiarize yourself with them.\\

 

All three guns fit equally well in both my hands.

 

All three guns were pleasant to shoot, but not as easy and quick as a Colt style gun. Perhaps with practice one could get better with them, but that's only a supposition.

 

I found all three guns easy to cock, but there was a lot more "movement" of the guns in my hand, mostly left and right, that I found with the Colt

 

Okay, here are some particulars.

 

Pistol Number 1: The New Model Three seemed to be the easiest to work and shoot. Note that even with black powder, it's very hard put enough in the small .38 S&W case to make it go boom in a big way. I used this gun on all six stages. My first two stages I was using Winchester nickel brass, which seems to have less capacity than other brands. For one thing, you can't use a .360" bullet. If you do, the case bulges where the bullet is, and will not fit in the chambers of the revolver. this, I was using a .358" hollow base bullet from Buffalo arms. (I actually used this round for the other brass as well. It looks signigicantly different from the .360" bullet I use with smokeless loads to give it another visual cue as to what is loaded in it.) Anyway, when the time came to shoot these rounds, to call them mouse fart loads would be an instul to mice everywhere. Please keep in mind that the targets at this shoot were fairly close. You'd get a "POP" sound, wait, and then hear the bullet hit the target with a nice non threatening "plunk." People were actually calling out "Wait for it" as I shot! I had loaded up 12 round this way, as I didn't have enough enough of my "other" brass for a full 50 rounds. I also have a feeling that I may have underestimated a proper charge amount. But, it worked. If ever I want some super light loads on purpose, I know what to do. Anyway, on stages 3 to 6, I was able to use the other brass, which had a much more respectable loading. This was a mixture of various manufactures headstamped both .38 S&W and .38 Colt NP. And, this was all vintage enough that they were balloon head cases. Was able to get much more powder in them. THESE rounds made a very respectable boom, and hit the targets with respectable clang without the obvious delay that a super slow bullet takes to get there with. Also got some noticable flame coming out the barrel on occasion.

 

One thing about this gun is that you MUST take your finger off the trigger to cock it. Otherwise, the hammer will not come back. This was a problem for me only a couple of time over the course of the match. Another thing is that you've got to be pulling the trigger all the way back. A couple of times I had a round not go off. The first time this happened. I opened the gun, saw that there was NO primer impact at all, closed the gun, and when that round was back under the hammer, it went bang, and had a good primer hit. Twice more, I had this failure to fire, and I just kept "reshooting" the already expended rounds. In both cases, the second time the round in question was tried, it went boom with no problem, and had a good indent in the primer. The only thing I can figure is that I may have been letting go of the trigger too quickly, and it thus stopped the hammer from falling all the way.

 

Overall, a very nice gun, but you do have to make sure you use it properly.

 

 

 

Gun number 2. The Schofield replica was loaded in .45 Colt, using my standard smokeless Trail Boss loads. It shot very well. I did not seem to have to be shifting the gun around as much in my hand to shoot it as the New Number 3, but there was still some of that. Like that other gun, you have to be sure to let go of the trigger to cock it, but I did not have the problem of letting go to quickly and causing a failure to fire. I used this gun for two stages. Overall, another nice gun to shoot. As to which gun is better, tne New Model 3 of the Schofield.... It's hard to say. Both had things to recommend them over the other. The target sights on the New Model 3 were easier to pick up than the simple ones on the Schofield, but that is not to say that the Schofields were all that difficult. I'd pretty much have to call it a draw.

 

Gun number 3 was a Model 3 DA in .44-40 that I used on 4 stages, single action style. Without saying the properly loaded BP loads in this gun made a very satisfying BOOM, but recoil was not at all exessive. Cockling the pistol was very easy, however, you have to very carefully hold the gun. If you don't it will shift in your hand, and your trigger finger will wind up at the very top of the trigger instead of in the middle of the curve. Also, the tolerances in this gun are VERY tight. I had a couple of ever so slightly high primers. By ever so slightly, I mean that you could not see that they were high, but if you carefully ran you finger over them, you could feel the very slightest of bumps compared to fully seated primers. This almost imperceptable flaw was enough to make it very hard to cock the pistol. After this happened to me, I became very careful about feeling the primers on later stages before going to the loading table. A very nice gun to shoot, but doing so SA style IS a bit awkward, which is understandable as the gun was just not made to fired that way. Maybe someday I'll find a side match of something where I can run it DA and see how that compares. Overall, I'd have to rate this gun in 3rd place behind the other two, just becuase of the awkwardness in properly cocking it for SA style. Still, it is a fun gun to shoot, and if you happen on a local club that'll let you use it at a monthly, I'd not hesitate to recommend getting one if it suits your fancy.

 

Well, that's about all I have to say about these fine firearms in my collection. I hope ypu all found this interesting.

[Trailboss (Santa) Dave]

I have a #3 that I have only used in staged gunfights loaded with 777. Love it for the looks it gets and the what the he77 is that I get.