Loaded up a few boxes with CCI Mini Mags, Federal Golden Bullets and Federal Auto Match today. Only 1 failure in 300 rounds, that was an AutoMatch that wouldn't go off even after the 4th try.
I just reamed the chambers so that my ammo would drop freely after firing. It worked and all 300 rounds simply dropped out of the cylinder after each loading.
I used my DS-10 speed loader and loading blocks from SpeedBeez. The DS-10s sure help when you want to do a lot of shooting and have little time to do it.
The 617 is set with a double action trigger pull of just over 8 pounds and it reliably shot all the ammo I used. I was really worried about the Mini Mags because they had required 10 pounds to fire but they are working now and I'm happy.