The on-going adventures with my 586 L Comp

[Podmonkey]

Now it is time for a LOOOOONG overdue range report. Holy Frjioles is this ever overdue!
I had a very bad attitude brewing as I headed to the range for a test firing after finally getting this thing back. I purchased a 50 round box of Armscor 158gr FMJ .357 Magnums and a 50 round box of PMC 132gr .38 Special FMJ for test firing, didn't want use up any of those nice Remington SJHPs if it wasn't going to work right.
And I must say it functioned so well that in tge end, so far it was worth the ordeal, bad attitude totally lifted! It fired off every round with nary a hiccup. In fact I have finally experienced the true joy of revolvers:



I'm not even a revolver guy but I think that is pretty decent nevertheless. Both groups were shot double action, I intend to mostly shoot in DA as that is what a modern revolver is designed for.

Impressions: the 586 L Comp is a very fine shooting piece with a very smooth and even trigger, single action pulls feel like mouse clicks, double action is very smooth and it easy to keep the gun steady as you work through it.
The black on black post in notch sight picture wasn't especially brilliant but was adequate and the front post is a little on the finer side which I prefer, I honestly don't see a great need to replace them at thus point. The sights were perfectly regulated out of the box too, tge .357s were dead nuts on and the .38s hit just slightly low so maybe I'll adjust the sights for a 6 o'clock hold in the future.
Recoil......... what recoil? The .38s felt like .22s and the .357s felt like 9mms out of a Glock 19 to me. The Armscor loads are rated @ 1350 fps so a proper full house load but felt like nothing out of this gun regardless.
All in all I enjoyed shooting the L-Comp immensely and I can certainly see why revolver shooters are so devoted to the type.
I will now go ahead and shop for a decent holster and look into getting those VZ black cherry G10 grips. The Houge Bantam grip felt perfectly fine, they just lack the sexiness I'm looking for.

I might even purchase further S&W products this range session worked out so well.
Thank God for that!

 

[Robin]

Glad it worked out for you Pod.
Robin

 

[fresch]

Back when my hands worked smoother, I could single action more accurately and almost as fast as double action. By rocking an cocking, back on target.
38/357 cheap fun enjoy!

 

[Podmonkey]

Rather than start a new thread I just re-titled this one. A new title for a new start eh?
Anyway since my newly repaired S&W has performed to my satisfaction I went ahead and ordered a basic but nice holster from 1791 Gunleather and those VZ grips I had been talking about.
And also since it seems to be great fun at tge range I'll be saving up for a 1k case of 357s to go ham with. If the weather cooperates I'll take the 200 rounds I have now and beat up the steel at my local range.
With colder weather on the horizon I intend to see what it is like to CC with some proper big iron on my hip. I have a nice Eddie Bayer shacket that would make a good cover garment until heavy coat weather gets here.

 

[fresch]

Just remember you have 6 well placed shots.

 

[Brawny71]

Just remember you have 6 well placed shots.

And speed loaders can help with that. A lost skill that is making a comeback

 

[fresch]

Or the N.Y. reload.

 

[Podmonkey]

Just remember you have 6 well placed shots.

7 shots

And speed loaders can help with that. A lost skill that is making a comeback

Moonclips

 

[S&W Fan]

Now it is time for a LOOOOONG overdue range report. Holy Frjioles is this ever overdue!
I had a very bad attitude brewing as I headed to the range for a test firing after finally getting this thing back. I purchased a 50 round box of Armscor 158gr FMJ .357 Magnums and a 50 round box of PMC 132gr .38 Special FMJ for test firing, didn't want use up any of those nice Remington SJHPs if it wasn't going to work right.
And I must say it functioned so well that in tge end, so far it was worth the ordeal, bad attitude totally lifted! It fired off every round with nary a hiccup. In fact I have finally experienced the true joy of revolvers:

View attachment 246264View attachment 246265

I'm not even a revolver guy but I think that is pretty decent nevertheless. Both groups were shot double action, I intend to mostly shoot in DA as that is what a modern revolver is designed for.

Impressions: the 586 L Comp is a very fine shooting piece with a very smooth and even trigger, single action pulls feel like mouse clicks, double action is very smooth and it easy to keep the gun steady as you work through it.
The black on black post in notch sight picture wasn't especially brilliant but was adequate and the front post is a little on the finer side which I prefer, I honestly don't see a great need to replace them at thus point. The sights were perfectly regulated out of the box too, tge .357s were dead nuts on and the .38s hit just slightly low so maybe I'll adjust the sights for a 6 o'clock hold in the future.
Recoil......... what recoil? The .38s felt like .22s and the .357s felt like 9mms out of a Glock 19 to me. The Armscor loads are rated @ 1350 fps so a proper full house load but felt like nothing out of this gun regardless.
All in all I enjoyed shooting the L-Comp immensely and I can certainly see why revolver shooters are so devoted to the type.
I will now go ahead and shop for a decent holster and look into getting those VZ black cherry G10 grips. The Houge Bantam grip felt perfectly fine, they just lack the sexiness I'm looking for.

I might even purchase further S&W products this range session worked out so well.
Thank God for that!

That’s some fine 10 yrd. Shooting. Now step it back to 25yrds. And watch what those L-comp revolves are really known for.

 

[S&W Fan]

P.S. Happy to hear all turned out well. There’s nothing like a well tuned revolver for maximum range time FUN!

 

[Podmonkey]

That’s some fine 10 yrd. Shooting. Now step it back to 25yrds. And watch what those L-comp revolves are really known for.

Thanks! I'm just getting started with it and I intend to get better yet. I have that other 200 rounds to go through this weekend and no I am doing all kinds of mental maths to figure out on how to get much larger quantities of 357 as soon as possible.
On that note: The recoil of .357 loads is so mild in this gun I'd just assume shoot magnums primarily, especially since there isn't a very large price difference between .38 these days, pretty much everything is .50-.60 cents a shot now.
Will a L frame stand up to a long term steady diet of high pressure Magums? As in thousands and thousands of rounds?

 

[Podmonkey]

P.S. Happy to hear all turned out well. There’s nothing like a well tuned revolver for maximum range time FUN!

Indeed. Revolvers do seem to be more fun to shoot for some reason. Another pdd thing I noticed was that when I shot my 5 shot 340 I was always taken by how fast 5 rounds went, It didn't feel like enough like thw fun eneded too soon.
Despite having only two additional rounds I didn't get that feeling with the L-Comp. 7 shots felt like a satisfying volume of fire to me.
I also enjoyed the booming, fire breathing nature of 3" compensated barrel juxtaposed with the serene recoil impulse. Lots of strum, not so much drang.

 

[kev74]

Your gun will eat a shit ton of 357 before you even think about wearing it out, but it would eat even more 38.

Dry firing is a great way to do some trigger exercises without burning through ammo. Try pulling the trigger until the cylinder turns and locks, but before the hammer drops. If you keep doing that while you're watching TV at night, you will develop excellent trigger control.

38 & 357 is probably the easiest cartridge to load for, so consider saving the brass.

 

[Podmonkey]

Your gun will eat a shit ton of 357 before you even think about wearing it out, but it would eat even more 38.

Dry firing is a great way to do some trigger exercises without burning through ammo. Try pulling the trigger until the cylinder turns and locks, but before the hammer drops. If you keep doing that while you're watching TV at night, you will develop excellent trigger control.

38 & 357 is probably the easiest cartridge to load for, so consider saving the brass.

You kidding me? I'm typing this with my phone in my left hand while I'm dry firing the L-Comp in my right. When I woke up today I grabbed the L-Comp of the bedside table and click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click-click.................I think I might be autistic.
I can stage the L-Comp on the second click pretty well but I see that as being somewhat defeating the point. For precision fire I could always just pull the hammer back no? Even if this is primarily a recreational gun for me the L-Comp was designed to be a serious defensive pistol and I'd like to learn to shoot it as such: via full DA trigger stokes all the way through the break. It's a smooth trigger so I want to be able to eventually dump 7 shots rapid fashion into the 10 ring at defensive distances.

Also- you ever notice the theme for Hill Steet Blues playing in the background when you pick up a DA revolver? I swear I can when I pick up my 586.

 

[Robin]

Nice looking and sounds like a smooth operator, guess I won't find one of those in the oldies case.
Robin

 

[S&W Fan]

Nice looking and sounds like a smooth operator, guess I won't find one of those in the oldies case.
Robin

I wouldn’t give up on it so fast. The L-comp revolvers have been around for close to 10 yrs. I’ve seen them on the secondary market many times.

 

[FP1201]

I've always been a Colt fan for their styling and ergonomics, but the truth is the S&W's always out shot them...I bought the worst looking piece of shit you've ever seen from a guy, tore it down, replaced about everything except the frame, crane, and barrel, followed Kunhousen's Book, and while the metal is pitted under that spray & bake finish, it's a fine shooting model 10
.38 spec revolvers don't enjoy the preference that 357 magnums do, but they're a whole lot more fun punching paper than magnums, and with good ammunition, especially +P it's a potent enough round. (for decades thee round for Police was a 158gr Lead Round Nose)
.38 spec. Brass can be had for less than scrap prices
hundreds of published sweetheart loads, about as much powder as you put Pepper on your eggs, and small pistol primers...it's a great cartridge, but it and revolvers have been eclipsed by 9mm Pistols.
On a tangent: Crossman? makes a "Big Game Hunting" Air Rifle in .357 that uses 147gr Nosler Pellets at 850fps...guess what a .38 special is.

 

[Podmonkey]

Well, the L-Comp acquitted itself in fine fashion Thursday and we will see how it does tomorrow, that being Sunday, as I will be expending the 200 rounds of Remington .357 SJHPs that I recently bought. I have a further 200 rounds of Magtech .38 Specials also but I'm thinking I should be saving those for the 340PD. Frankly the recoil of .357s out of the L-Comp is so agreeable that is what it will primarily be fed. It feels about the same as my Shield Plus shooting 125gr +P HSTs to me.
SG Ammo periodically sells the Remington SJHPs in quantity at a good price so once I see them back in stock I'll purchase a thousand of em. Everything I've seen on that load indicates it still gets the job done as a defensive round and at fifty cents a shot can also serve as range blasting fodder as well. I should get a box of those stupid hot 180gr Buffalo Bore loads and see how they do as well.

 

[Podmonkey]

200 rounds of Remington 125 gr .357 Mag SJHPs and tge best group of the day, @ 20 yards:

Those Remingtons must be significantly more spicy than the Amscors regardless of what tte boxes say as recoil was significantly more than any 9, 40 , or .45 I have ever shot. Nevertheless still entirely comfortable. Even after 200 rounds and the S&W running burning hot I was still hungry for more. Alas .357 is expensive.
Most of my fire was in DA, as was that group, and I think I'm getting the hang of it. Working with a DA revolver is extremely rewarding and fun!

 

[Xae289]

Glad you finally got the gun that you paid for. Looks like it's shooting great now and I'm glad you're finally enjoying it

 

[fresch]

Now call them and ask for the parts for free that they "couldn't" put on to make up for your inconvenience. Ask for a supervisor right off.
You won't get any parts but you will get the satisfaction of screwing with them.

 

[FP1201]

200 rounds of Remington 125 gr .357 Mag SJHPs and tge best group of the day, @ 20 yards:
View attachment 246505
Those Remingtons must be significantly more spicy than the Amscors regardless of what tte boxes say as recoil was significantly more than any 9, 40 , or .45 I have ever shot. Nevertheless still entirely comfortable. Even after 200 rounds and the S&W running burning hot I was still hungry for more. Alas .357 is expensive.
Most of my fire was in DA, as was that group, and I think I'm getting the hang of it. Working with a DA revolver is extremely rewarding and fun!
View attachment 246506

You mentioned the 340PD a couple times: If you're used to shooting .357mag out of that little fucker, then damn near anything else will seem like "shooting a .22 or 9mm"

 

[Deplorable Me]

I really like the DA trigger on my 586L. Nice targets!

 

[Podmonkey]

You mentioned the 340PD a couple times: If you're used to shooting .357mag out of that little fucker, then damn near anything else will seem like "shooting a .22 or 9mm"

I wouldn't at all say that I am "used to" shooting 357s out of the 340. I shot a 50 round box of .357s on it's inaugural range trip and a cylinder's worth once since. I mostly shoot .38s out of it, indeed .38 Special +Ps are what I carry in it. While I didn't find .357 recoil from the 340PD to be brutally painful as some have claimed I do find it particularly unpleasant and I have a hard time getting tge magnums to print anything that looks like a group from it. With the .38 +P Golden Sabers however I can get a fairly tight group @10 yards. I have 200 rounds of MagTech .38s lying around, I should put them through the little S&W next range trip I take. I do think it is an entertaining little piece.

 

[Podmonkey]

Something just occurred to me: would tge blast off that compensator melt a fiber optic front sight?

 

[FP1201]

Something just occurred to me: would tge blast off that compensator melt a fiber optic front sight?

Good question... having replaced a few missing fiber strands on front sights (mostly muzzle loaders) the filament isn't very strong, and after inserting it you heat the blade of a screwdriver and melt the end just a dab to keep it from sliding out...it'd have to get pretty hot, and the gasses from the port might just do it...you're going to find out.

 

[S&W Fan]

Something just occurred to me: would tge blast off that compensator melt a fiber optic front sight?

Good question and sadly one that I can’t answer. I don’t think that I can recall ever reading on any of the various sites that I’m on anyone ever installing a fiber optic site on a ported revolver .
However, I have read many times on the Smith & Wesson sites that a Lot of folks have installed the gold bead front sight to great satisfaction.

 

[Podmonkey]

Good question and sadly one that I can’t answer. I don’t think that I can recall ever reading on any of the various sites that I’m on anyone ever installing a fiber optic site on a ported revolver .
However, I have read many times on the Smith & Wesson sites that a Lot of folks have installed the gold bead front sight to great satisfaction.

Yes, I have also considered a gold bead sight as an alternative. There is one from SDM that would fit the bill. I am also planning on getting the Brownells Competition Rear Sight Blade to pair with it. This item would provide a deeper, slightly wider rrear notch and I think these two items would provide me the improved sight picture I'm looking for. Neither of these products are very expensive either.

 

[Podmonkey]

So come to find out just around the corner from me is a part time gunsmith, highly regarded in the community, who also happens to be a member at my range. He heads up the various youth .22 and trap leagues in fact. Anyhoo I was over there to drop off a rifle for some minor work and I asked him his thoughts regarding the fiber optic sight. He is firmly of the opinion that the sight would ve totally fine. I'll mull it over a bit between going with a fiber optic or gold bead. Maybe I'll put up a poll thread later on.

 

[4WHLDRFTN]

The shop owner said "this is a PC model, there shouldn't be problems, it's not like you bought a Taurus. "
I says
"I bet you if I bought a Taurus we wouldn't be shipping it back!"

Get your shit together Smith & Wesson!

I like when a clueless fk still believes that Taurus makes bad guns. They had a couple back in the ‘80’s. Sig has had more recalls on ther garbage in the last 2yrs.