S&W Model 66-3 3inch BBL info please

[Grok]

Found one at local LGS for $950 in very good condition. Salesman said they are very hard to find. Can anyone give me any info on this revolver and what it should go for. Thanks

[Dagga Boy]

They are very desirable to fans of the K frame.

[TORCH2J]

Stop, just stop..There is one at my LGS for $650.00 and I almost have to wear blinders when I walk by it. My wallet cries everytime I start stepping towards the revolver counter.

[Wayne Dobbs]

I have one...it's sweet, but not $950 sweet. Given the market for traditional S&W revolvers, that $650 deal seems very reasonable.

[Hizzie]

Exactly the shenanigans that helped push me to Ruger and the Wiley Clapp.

[TR675]

It may be expensive now, but in 10 years that price'll be cheap, cheap, cheap.

[Wayne Dobbs]

I have heard from the Smith and Wesson Forum that you didn't pay too much, you just bought too soon!

[Wheeler]

I have heard from the Smith and Wesson Forum that you didn't pay too much, you just bought too soon!
Dangit! Beat me to it!

[TR675]

I have heard from the Smith and Wesson Forum that you didn't pay too much, you just bought too soon!

That's what I meant to say.

Ya know, I was in Cabela's Fun Library the other day looking at a bunch of minty Colt Pythons and Diamondbacks, with boxes...and I don't care how cheap they are today compared to what they'll be 10 years from now, $3,995 is freakin' expensive.

[Grok]

Thanks guys for the info.

[Stephanie B]

Ya know, I was in Cabela's Fun Library the other day looking at a bunch of minty Colt Pythons and Diamondbacks, with boxes...and I don't care how cheap they are today compared to what they'll be 10 years from now, $3,995 is freakin' expensive.

I was in one of their libraries yesterday; they had a Rossi and a couple of Tauruses (Tauri?) there. I almost thought about making a snarky comment, but then I remembered that a lot of public libraries have a section for trashy paperbacks.

[Tamara]

I'm afraid to find out what PC13s are fetching these days, lest I never shoot mine again. :(

[1986s4]

I'm afraid to find out what PC13s are fetching these days, lest I never shoot mine again. :(

OK, what does one of those look like, please? I have a nice blue M13 3" that I love to shoot. So much so that I bought a M10 to prevent myself from wearing it out.

[Wheeler]

...to prevent myself from wearing it out.

I don't think that means what you think it means in the context of a Model 13... :)

[1986s4]

I don't think that means what you think it means in the context of a Model 13... :)

Not sure I get what you're saying. I know the M13 is a well made piece and I shoot mostly .38's in it. But everything wears eventually. For practice and some matches I'll use the M10 as it feels and shoots just like the M13, even thought the M10 has a 4" barrel.

[Wheeler]

Not sure I get what you're saying. I know the M13 is a well made piece and I shoot mostly .38's in it. But everything wears eventually. For practice and some matches I'll use the M10 as it feels and shoots just like the M13, even thought the M10 has a 4" barrel.

You're talking about tens of thousands of rounds before stuff starts to wear out. The internals can be replaced and then tens of thousands of more rounds ran through the gun. When Craig Buckland was running a Model 66 for Team S&W he had to replace the cranes fairly often because he would slam the cylinder shut so hard. That's not normal use and he readily admitted it.

I'm not knocking your choice to shoot the M10 over the M13, I'm just saying that you can run a LOT of ammo through one before parts start to wear or break and if they do they can be replaced.

[1986s4]

You're talking about tens of thousands of rounds before stuff starts to wear out. The internals can be replaced and then tens of thousands of more rounds ran through the gun. When Craig Buckland was running a Model 66 for Team S&W he had to replace the cranes fairly often because he would slam the cylinder shut so hard. That's not normal use and he readily admitted it.

I'm not knocking your choice to shoot the M10 over the M13, I'm just saying that you can run a LOT of ammo through one before parts start to wear or break and if they do they can be replaced.

Roger, thanks good to know. The cylinder did sieze up once. My gunsmith fixed it straight away and told me some crud had built up in the ejector rod area. Since I carry this pistol I decided to get a training pistol also.

[LSP972]

The internals can be replaced and then tens of thousands of more rounds ran through the gun. .

Uh... maybe. If you're referring to the original-style forged/milled/machined "internals"... those are drying up fast. The factory claims to be out of just about everything for that genre of revolver, and I have had three acquaintances contact me in the past few months, looking for parts. To provide one example- hammer noses. Mistakenly referred to as the "firing pin" by nimrods (much like the yoke is called 'the crane'), this is one part on classic K frames that does break from time to time. S&W changed to the frame-mounted inertia firing pin almost 20 years ago.

My point here is that while some of the current MIM parts can be fitted into a worn classic 30+ year old S&W revolver, some cannot. So, IMO, 1986s4's concern about minimizing wear and tear on his classic M-13 is valid.

.

[Tamara]

OK, what does one of those look like, please? I have a nice blue M13 3" that I love to shoot. So much so that I bought a M10 to prevent myself from wearing it out.

PC13 (http://cosmolineandrust.blogspot.com/2008/01/sunday-smith-32-model-pc-13-1995.html). Made back when the Performance Center was still mostly John French and Paul Liebenberg.

[Tamara]

Uh... maybe. If you're referring to the original-style forged/milled/machined "internals"... those are drying up fast. The factory claims to be out of just about everything for that genre of revolver, and I have had three acquaintances contact me in the past few months, looking for parts. To provide one example- hammer noses. Mistakenly referred to as the "firing pin" by nimrods (much like the yoke is called 'the crane'), this is one part on classic K frames that does break from time to time. S&W changed to the frame-mounted inertia firing pin almost 20 years ago.

...and even on Gunbroker, you're competing for parts against the factory. (They were out there buying part lots on the internet as far back as '04, according to RUMINT.)

Sand Burr Gun Ranch had a few hammers and triggers in the showcase... for sixty-some-odd bucks a piece IIRC.

I'm trying to keep an eye on some of the wholesalers because they occasionally have old K-frame "parts kits" for reasonable rates, the whole gun (less frame) for not much over a hundred bucks. Next time I see that at CDNN or Bud's or wherever, I'm jumping on two or three, just in case.

[1986s4]

PC13 (http://cosmolineandrust.blogspot.com/2008/01/sunday-smith-32-model-pc-13-1995.html). Made back when the Performance Center was still mostly John French and Paul Liebenberg.

Thanks! Nice looking piece.

[SGT_Calle]

PC13 (http://cosmolineandrust.blogspot.com/2008/01/sunday-smith-32-model-pc-13-1995.html). Made back when the Performance Center was still mostly John French and Paul Liebenberg.

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/07/02/5upa4e6a.jpg

I'm in love.

[LSP972]

...and even on Gunbroker, you're competing for parts against the factory. (They were out there buying part lots on the internet as far back as '04, according to RUMINT.)

.

Now, THAT I hadn't heard about.

Fascinating...

.

[Wayne Dobbs]

Another approach is to try to buy older guns that are cosmetically trashed just for the lock work parts. Expensive, but just like aircraft and vehicles get "cannibalized" in hard times, we may have to do the same thing with Smiths.

[cigardad]

One of my favorite revolvers.

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb192/cigardad/66-3.jpg

[TR675]

I like that a lot. Very nice setup.