Best option for current, off-the-shelf 3" .357? King Cobra vs 66 vs Ruger vs Kimber?

[swampyank33]

I've had a 2.75" m66 for about a year now, and have carried it and shot it quite a bit. It has been excellent, and has exhibited none of the QC issues that I read it may have. I do think of it more as a .38+P gun, as the Pachmayr Compac Pro grips I have on it are pretty awful to shoot with magnum loads but conceal well for me.
I also have a recently acquired WC GP100, the matte blue model. The trigger is pretty awful currently, heavy and gritty, so I guess I'll have to get inside and see if cleaning and polishing some surfaces make a significant difference, and shoot the heck out of it. The trigger on my 66 is much better.


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[awp_101]

Short of abuse, using the wrong powder or trying to use it for launching tactical nukes it’s hard to tear up a GP.

[jh9]

really tempted to start looking for a 3" 7 shot gp100

I still want one of these:

https://ruger.com/products/gp100/specSheets/1782.html

Even though I should know better.

Was there ever a fix for the initial run of their 7 shot cylinders being too small for some cases with .440" rims? I've seen yes then no then maybe and never followed up. That's been a couple years now so I assume they've got it sorted out.

[OlongJohnson]

There is a thread or two around here somewhere, and several mega-threads on the various Ruger forums. My understanding is that if someone had a problem and sent it back, the fix was that Ruger would offer them an exchange for a six shooter. So you either are willing to manage your ammo to not have an issue, or you live with a six shooter. I have read nothing of shifting the PCD of the chambers larger, which is the only engineering-based fix that would accommodate all ammo.

[jtcarm]

the matte blue model. The trigger is pretty awful currently, heavy and gritty, so I guess I'll have to get inside and see if cleaning and polishing some surfaces make a significant difference, and shoot the heck out of it. The trigger on my 66 is much better.


Sent from my SM-A515U using Tapatalk

My MC is the smoothest DA trigger I’ve ever encountered on a Ruger, but it’s still longer and not as consistent as my Smiths.

I found I had to commit to practicing with it exclusively for several weeks and quit running back to my K frames before I could shoot it as well. My splits are probably a hair slower but I can shoot the Super Drill just as well.

I also had to add shims to the hammer and hammer dog. The later had a ton of play and adding the shims really improved the trigger.

[Stephanie B]

I'll probably regret this*, but there's a 3" Ruger GP100 for sale right here on P-F by @awp_101

https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....quot-357-GP100

*regret because I'm sorely tempted to buy this myself.

Jeebus. If I hadn't dropped six bills on a Model 14 ten days ago, I might be all over this.

[Chuck Whitlock]

Jeebus. If I hadn't dropped six bills on a Model 14 ten days ago, I might be all over this.

I did the same thing yesterday on a Springfield Champion, or I'd have beat you to it.

[vtfarmer]

There is a thread or two around here somewhere, and several mega-threads on the various Ruger forums. My understanding is that if someone had a problem and sent it back, the fix was that Ruger would offer them an exchange for a six shooter. So you either are willing to manage your ammo to not have an issue, or you live with a six shooter. I have read nothing of shifting the PCD of the chambers larger, which is the only engineering-based fix that would accommodate all ammo.

Starting in December 2018, Ruger did move the location of the chambers outward in the cylinder. There hasn't been a large number of reports from buyers since then, certainly no more than ten. A few of the early reports gave cylinder measurements of : outside diameter 1.550", outside chamber wall .075". The cylinder diameter on my early run 7 shot is 1.545", outside chamber wall .085". So it appears that Ruger enlarged the cylinder .010", and moved the chambers outward .015" to create more rim space. That's not a lot of movement, but the small number of reports since have been positive. I confess I've been fighting the urge to buy another, current production gun for a while now. Measure and compare side by side. Sort out some cases of .440" max diameter and see if they do fit. I suspect I'll have a weak moment this fall.

[jh9]

Starting in December 2018, Ruger did move the location of the chambers outward in the cylinder. There hasn't been a large number of reports from buyers since then, certainly no more than ten. A few of the early reports gave cylinder measurements of : outside diameter 1.550", outside chamber wall .075". The cylinder diameter on my early run 7 shot is 1.545", outside chamber wall .085". So it appears that Ruger enlarged the cylinder .010", and moved the chambers outward .015" to create more rim space. That's not a lot of movement, but the small number of reports since have been positive. I confess I've been fighting the urge to buy another, current production gun for a while now. Measure and compare side by side. Sort out some cases of .440" max diameter and see if they do fit. I suspect I'll have a weak moment this fall.

Normally I'd be concerned about getting old stock with the narrower cylinder but I guess that's not really a problem right now...

[gato naranja]

My timid re-entry into the revolver atmosphere has occurred in the form of a dead-common 4" stainless GP100 (the current model # is 1705).

The guilty party from #20 with two other "utilitarian" objects.