I got the M49 I won on GB last Friday and took it out to the range with some of my dwindling stash of WC handloads. The gun is accurate and shoots to the sights with that ammo. The action is super nice - too nice, I'm afraid; it's far nicer than my 642. It was 100% with the 60 rounds I shot, but they had Federal 100 primers. I haven't had a chance to try other ammo, and I'm low on .38 Special factory ammo anyway.
The sideplate screws show that they've been messed with, though they're not too bad, so it's probable that the springs have been replaced. Is there a reason to not replace the current springs with factory S&W ones? I have to call S&W tomorrow anyway to order some thumb latches.