Who builds the better double action revolver?

[DirtyHarry]

Another vote for S&W...

[Tom C.]

Ruger (after a little work)
S&W
Dan Wesson

Let’s confine this to .44 mag, for the sake of simplicity.

S&W are the best out of the box, but they may not have the durability of either the Ruger or DW.

Rugers tend to be a little rough out of the box, but they are built like anvils. The double action trigger of the Redhawk is one of the best around, but the out of the box single action trigger leaves a lot to be desired. The rough edges can be polished off, and you are left with a gun comparable to the Smith in smoothness that is still more durable.

DW builds guns that imo are a little more rough than the Rugers. They are also bull strong like the Rugers. They can be polished to give good single action trigger pulls, but the double action pull isn’t, imo, close to the Ruger. Features like the heavy, interchangeable barrels lend them nicely to competition. I used my DW744 for silhouette for years. Very well suited to that, but I wouldn’t carry it afield. I prefer my Rugers for that.

[RLB]

I have three Dan Wessons a .22lr .357mag-.44mag all mine have excellent double and single action triggers..I think the DW have a shorter throw in Double action then smith or ruger..if you like to fiddle with guns..and need one pistol for many different purposes then the DW fits the bill. the extra weight helps tame recoil and the accuracy is excellent...
 The down side is weight and size then DW are large fram pistols I slap on a 2 !/2 barrel on mine for carry and a 6in barrel for target and hunting..but you will get used to the weight and size.

RLB......I don't have anything against S&W I think they make a good revolver and would be my second choice...Personally I think the ruger revolvers are to rough and need a lot of polishing and tuning to get up to my standards. with the cost of smith work you could easly buy a DW with plenty of barrels..

[Poohgyrr]

Better??

If I want a realgun I buy Smith.   

Remember the old thickness war that Ruger started??

Remember the advertisement that S&W ran, that stopped the war??

 

I have a copy of that ad, and can post it from home later...

[Flash]

I wouldn't tell my name for a S&W or spend a single dollar on one. So that leaves DW first, for accuracy and function and Ruger a close second. As mentioned before, the others can't compete. Brake something on a FA and you may as well keep it in the safe for two years, waiting on parts. They (FA) look good in the safe but they just don't meet my expectations as a shooter.

[m-g Willy]

S&W FOR ME!
My first handgun was a  22 High Standard revolver .
My next handgun was a S&W model 28 in 357

WOW!!! what a differance !!
 I learned trigger control in double action shooting with the Smith. 
I also had a DW 357 that was just as good as the smith , but I was more familier with the Smith
Tried some Colts ,New Service and Official Police revolvers with same action as the Python.
Could never shoot double action as good with the Colts as I could with the Smiths or DW guns.
 I would for some reason not let the trigger return fully with the colts when fast double action shooting and freeze the gun.
After over 40 years of hangun shooting most my double action guns are S&W n frames.


Willy

[JHT]

I bet everyone saw this one coming!  There just had to be strong opinions going in all directions, but with only one correct answer.

I am "nonbiased" and "independent in my thinking," therefore my opinion should count my heavily than most others.

Smith & Wesson hands down the winner, even more so S&W of 25+ years ago.  I know this fact just by counting the brands and ages of my double action handguns.  Actually, quite simple.

Thanks for asking.

Jay

[454Puma]

For me  It would be Ruger, DW then S&W as I could never own one. The 357 DW I owned and wish I had back was a great shooter just not as rugged as the Ruger and it could never take the beating a Ruger can! S&W could never think about heavy   loads as a steady diet I've seen  to many shot to pieces!
Yep they'll shoot target loads like crazy, but a diet of the heavy stuff no way! Rugers could careless what you feed them they shoot just about anything!

[Poohgyrr]

I am "nonbiased" and "independent in my thinking," therefore my opinion should count my heavily than most others. Jay 

OK JHT.  I'll admit my bias and hardheadedness, and defer to your opinion.  Thank you for saving me from the error of my ways.



 

(EDITED:  Actually, I loved my blue 4" Python, but never could shoot it as well as the Smiths.  Sold it to buy a PC Smith that is awesome.)

(PS.  If it doesn't say S&W on the gun, then it should say Colt!)

 

[RollTide]

I beg to differ with 454Puma.  The Dan Wesson can take everything a Ruger can take and then some.  The silouette shooters have proved that in spades for the last 20 years.  (Actually I think the Ruger Super Redhawk is a match for the DW in strength, but not in accuracy.)  And to be fair, the new S&W X frames will probably prove as durable as the DW and the Ruger, but their N frame 44's will never be as durable.  I look for S&W some day in the future to come out with a large frame 44 that will be comparable with DW and Ruger for strength and will outshoot the Ruger for accuracy since it will use the DW barrel system like the S&W X frame does

Roll Tide

[snuffer#1]

Are you kidding me! The GP 100 series by RUGER! bar none

[475/480]

I like DA's and have a few SW and DW but the best by far is this Hamilton Bowen SRH 500 Linebaugh- 6" bll ,With a cast 465 Keith it will clover leaf at 25 yds,I just got it so I have not checked it out past  25 yet.

Sean

[Poohgyrr]

 

I won't argue with a Bowen, but the bestest dbl action is this 2 1/2" Smith M66-2, tuned by the Bill Davis Service Center.  It is handy to carry about town, shoots nose size groups past 50 feet, and it's likely to handle any situation that comes up where I travel...

[Lloyd Smale]

getting a little off topic arent we. Last i heard FA didnt make a da gun and to bash them id like to hear a personal experience. There probably the strongest most reliable revolver ever made. They sure make my expectations as a shooter!!!! Ive never owned one but have probably put 10000 rounds through different buddys guns and there every bit as nice as any of my custom single actions and a big step over a production gun like a ruger or smith or colt or dw. Bottom line is all of these guns are fine weapons. Its a matter of what your going to do with them that will determine which you buy. I own or have owned everyone of them. Ive got a slug of smiths and a couple ruger das Ive owned colts and dws but dont have any right now and theyve all done me well. I get a kick out of a guy that buys say a ruger and has never owned anything else puts maybe 20 boxes of ammo through it and claims he has the best gun in the world. I dont even judge a gun worthy till the round count gets to around 5-10000 and even then its just getting broke in. Truth be told theres proably not 20 people here that will ever wear out a handgun. Ive been shooting the crap out of them for years and have shot exactly two loose one was a smith 15 that i have absolutely no idea how many rounds were shot out of it but it many of pounds of lead were melted for it and the other was a 45 vaquero that saw just to many loads that would make bill ruger roll over in his grave. I did loosen up one model 29 too in my younger dumber days shooting loads that most guys wouldnt put in there rugers. All were fixed for free and were an education for me. None of my guns see loads like that anymore as a matter of fact i dont know when the last time i loaded a rifle or handgun up to a max load in a manual it just isnt needed. What you need to do is find out which handgun is best for you not which handgun is the best because there all good guns anymore.

[Drilling Man]

Truth be told theres proably not 20 people here that will ever wear out a handgun. Ive been shooting the crap out of them for years and have shot exactly two loose one was a smith 15 that i have absolutely no idea how many rounds were shot out of it but it many of pounds of lead were melted for it and the other was a 45 vaquero that saw just to many loads that would make bill ruger roll over in his grave. I did loosen up one model 29 too in my younger dumber days shooting loads that most guys wouldnt put in there rugers. All were fixed for free and were an education for me. None of my guns see loads like that anymore as a matter of fact i dont know when the last time i loaded a rifle or handgun up to a max load in a manual it just isnt needed. What you need to do is find out which handgun is best for you not which handgun is the best because there all good guns anymore.

  AMEN!!  Finally some common sense posted here....

  I can remember two handguns i shot loose, (S&W 19 and 29) and one handgun that i shot apart. (Ruger Super Blk. Hawk.)  I have no idea how many rounds i fired through those guns to do that...

  I did have a Ruger Single Six that just plain broke, it also had a lot of rounds through it...

  DM

[hemiram]

Well Drilling Man, I respect your experiences, but I certainly haven't shared them.  I currently own 6 Dan Wessons and have owned at least 4 others in the last 22 years.  I have never had any trouble with the cylinder latch, nor barrels nuts shooting loose, nor trigger pulls, especially single action.  They are a little harder to work on, but they also have fewer moving parts and are much more rugged than any Smith.  Although I have never had a Dan Wesson trigger I thought was bad, I will admit older S&W probably has a little edge in the trigger department.

To each his own, I sold my Smiths and kept my Dan Wessons.

Roll Tide

I don't know how anyone can say a DW, especially in the smaller frame, is harder to work on than an S&W. To me, the innards of an S&W are overly complex for what it does. Same goes for Colt.

I just got the 5th and 6th DW's I've owned (Stupidly sold the first four), and can totally take them apart and put them back together in minutes without tools until the sideplate goes on and the barrel nut gets tightened. I really good S&W DA trigger is a tiny bit smoother than a good DW is, but in SA I would say it's a dead heat, so it's not important, IMO. I've never understood how anyone could have problems with the latch or the barrel nut. I've never had a problem with them on any of the six I have owned. Unless you are shooting at extreme range, the barrel being changed shouldn't affect it enough to worry about, and if the nut loosened, it wasn't tight in the first place. I shot a couple of thousand full power .357 cartridges through one of my DW's, and the nut was as tight as the day I put the barrel on.

My entire list of problems is:

1. The factory sight will break, if you wear the gun in a holster and fight with people. I got tired of buying replacements, and had it welded or brazed together. Problem solved. My 715 has an aftermarket sight that appears almost "bulletproof".
2. I bought a custom grip for one of my Model 15's, one where it was specially made for my hand. I really loved it, and it looked great, made from Zebra wood. The screw that came with it was too long, and it caused the gun to be totally unsafe until I cut the screw down.
3. One of my front sites came off, the screw had loosened. A little loctite fixed it, but I think it was probably just loose in the first place.

That's it, no other problems, no timing issues, no FTF's, except with crappy reloads, and no damage except cosmetic from the gun banging around, and the time I fired a second round after a squib and bulged the barrel. $25 for a new tube, and I was shooting again in a few minutes.