S&W 986 5" barrel anyone familiar with them

[welder_48340]

Thinking of getting one and wondering if anyone has any input. I like 9mm as I own quite a few pistols but very few revolvers. Do have a ruger in 9. Thanks fols. Also all have a happy and safe holiday. Bob

[tazman]

I don't own a 986 but do own a 929. The weight and the balance will be different between the two pistols as well as different barrel lengths and number of rounds.
What I can tell you is the revolver I own is a great shooter. It is set up well for cast and shoots the same group sizes with both jacketed and cast. Function is very good as you would expect from the Performance center. I don't use the double action pull much but it feels about the same as the pull on my 686.
I have heard rumors about the brass sticking in the titanium cylinder but have not experienced it in the couple of thousand rounds I have put through mine.
One of the fun things the revolver allows is loading down the 9mm to powder puff loads if you wish. Your OAL is not restricted by magazine length and the cylinder will accept a boolit seated very long. This allows you to use different nose profiles and weights that would not work properly in a semi auto pistol.
Lots of fun things you can do with it in the way of experimenting with loads. It is definitely not a one trick pony.

[DougGuy]

I don't know how S&W makes these titanium cylinders. My experience with them so far is that the throats on the ones that have come through my shop for sizing have been very egged. Haven't seen one yet that had round throats in it. A couple were so severe I could not hone out the egging completely without going to .360" or greater with the throats. Just saying.....

[tazman]

I never measured the throats or barrel on my 929. I just shot it and went with the results.
If it ain't broke.........

[Forrest r]

The so called bad cylinders are meaningless, 2" or less 10-shot groups are common with these 9mm revolvers @ 50yds. The big difference is the weight between the 929 & 986 (44oz vs 35oz). The weight difference I'm referring to has nothing to do with handling/balance/etc. It has to do with bullet jump. You will find out real fast about the to crimp/not to crimp the 9mm reloads. Couple that with light bullet/short body vs heavy bullet/long body.

A lot of shooters struggle with accuracy in the 9mm. No wonder when you see comments like there's no need to crimp/only remove the bell/case tension to hold the bullet/etc.
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There's been tests done with the 986 using a ransom rest @ 25yds/10-shot groups using 3 different bullets and 3 different oal's. By simply adjusting the amount of crimp the groups shrank 3/4". They measured oal's at the start of the 10 round test, the 5th round & the last round. It was nothing to find 10/1000th's + bullet jump by the 10th round (20/1000's + was not uncommon/some factory ammo included). They tested with different expanders & different crimp dies. At the end of the day the loads with the shortest oal and heaviest crimps gave the smallest 10-shot groups.

This tells you they were using the wrong bullet & how important the crimp is. Every 9mm load I work up I test for bullet jump, makes a huge difference in accuracy/consistency. The 9mm cartridge is extremely accurate & that 986 will bring out that accuracy. But it will come at the cost of learning how many bad & good habits you have while reloading for the 9mm.

Most shooters would be more than happy with 2" 10-shot groups & 25yds with their favorite 9mm firearm. With the 986, not so much.

[welder_48340]

Thanks for the input. I hope I get much more on this firearm. I know the guys at the range chuckle at me as I am know to crimp pretty darn heavy. Right now I cast TL 124 TC for my Semi autos and a Ruger Blackhawk convertable. They are very accurate all in all. Far better than I can shoot. The 986 would be the dedicated 9mm revolver plus the first S&W revolver I would own. Tazman thanks for the input I liked the 929 just felt a little big in my hand. The 986 fit a tad better. Thanks again and great info Forrest. Enjoy the holiday and happy shooting.

[tazman]

Thanks for the input. I hope I get much more on this firearm. I know the guys at the range chuckle at me as I am know to crimp pretty darn heavy. Right now I cast TL 124 TC for my Semi autos and a Ruger Blackhawk convertable. They are very accurate all in all. Far better than I can shoot. The 986 would be the dedicated 9mm revolver plus the first S&W revolver I would own. Tazman thanks for the input I liked the 929 just felt a little big in my hand. The 986 fit a tad better. Thanks again and great info Forrest. Enjoy the holiday and happy shooting.

If the weight of the gun isn't a problem, you need to remember that the feel of the gun can be changed greatly by some third party grips.
The majority of my S&W revolvers wear aftermarket grips. The factory grips just don't work for me.

[6.5 CM]

Never understood a 9mm revolver when a 38 Special is superior in every way. Ditto 45 ACP revolvers vs 45 Colt.

Love my "1911s" --- Star 9mm and Kimber 45 ACP, they make sense.

[pergoman]

I suggest going with the 929 if you do any kind of competitive shooting. That extra round makes a big difference in events against the clock and 7 shot revolvers are rarely seen in use unless that is what the casual competitor already had (like a 686+ for example). There are no 7 shot gun classes but 6 shot and 8 shots guns have different classes. With a 7 shooter you would be going head to head with 8 shooters in most games. You can sometimes go against 6 shooters if you don't forget to count. My 929's all shoot very well. The triggers need work but that is standard for any revolver these days. Getting a #6 to #6.5 double action trigger that goes bang every time with Federal primers isn't that difficult.
Why is a 9mm superior to 38's? Lots of reasons.....if you shoot competitively. The brass is shorter to begin with so you don't need to get 38 short Colt brass to speed your reloads. Shorter ammo is faster to reload a gun with whether in moon clips or speed loaders. The 9mm brass lasts very long compared to 38 brass which splits somewhat quickly. 9mm brass is available for free or close to it; 38 brass is not free.

[pergoman]

The downside to the 929 is the 6-1/2" barrel and underlug. A nose-heavy gun doesn't point and swing to multiple targets as quickly. The extra barrel length is fine for using the iron sights but useless with a red dot. My "open" gun has the barrel cut to 4-3/4" and the underlug milled off. Shortened and lightened 929s are common in competition. The factory compensator is useless, as well. Many guys have the barrel nipple milled off so there is one less thing to go wrong (come loose). If Smith made a 5" 929 with a quick change front sight base they would sell well.

[tazman]

I don't shoot competitively, but I agree about the factory compensator. I removed mine and the gun shot better and was somewhat quieter to me. I had a problem with the compensator bolt working loose to the place where a boolit exiting the barrel would hit the side of the hole in the compensator. No accuracy at all that way.
I didn't want to locktite the bolt so I just removed it. That was a long time ago and it hasn't been on the gun since.

[welder_48340]

I do not plan on using is for competition at all just a little local target shooting. The larger 929 just seemed to fill my hand a little more than I like. The place I went to did not have any other N size with a different grip for me to try. On the subject of 9MM I do cast and reload a large amount of bullets so cost is certainly a factor. Since I have been given around 3,000 lbs of lead yes thats right a ton and a half of lead I went that route. Thanks again Gents for all this input. Will have to try and find a shop with a N frame with other grips and try it on.

[tazman]

When looking for a handgun for fun and cheap reloading, it is very hard to beat a 9mm. The revolver allows every advantage of the 38 special as far as light target loads plus the brass is a lot cheaper.

[6.5 CM]

https://elitereloading.com/shop/once...special-brass/

500 for <30 bucks is a lifetime supply.

Although with factory 38 special at <$15/box I don't even load it. (and no fing moon clips either!)

[reddog81]

Never understood a 9mm revolver when a 38 Special is superior in every way. Ditto 45 ACP revolvers vs 45 Colt.

Love my "1911s" --- Star 9mm and Kimber 45 ACP, they make sense.

I got a 929 about a year ago and it has become my favorite shooter. Who needs .38 Special when 9mm is better in every way?

Before I got the 929, a GP100 or S&W 15-2 would come with on every range trip. Not anymore. I regularly have 20 or more moonclips loaded up and ready to go which makes shooting the 929 just as convenient as any auto-loader. The gun is super accurate and I've started shooting at 50 yard target and 100 yard plates.

The 9mm moonclips aren't any harder to load than any regular magazine and you save time not having to pick up brass. Rimz makes plastic moonclips that are even easier to load and unload than the metal ones.

[6.5 CM]

Hmmm ? "better in every way" ??? Guess you never owned a Colt OMM or Shooting Master eh ?

[reddog81]

I've got a couple OMM's, however they aren't any more accurate, hold fewer rounds, and I'd prefer to not shoot 1.000's of rounds per year through them.

[JMax]

I had a 986, loved it but a shooting buddy wanted it more. Very accurate and reliable. Comments on crimp are spot on.

[welder_48340]

Tazman when you went with the other grips on your 929 are they thinner. I feel the Hogue grips are a tad wide for me. Or maybe the are fuller etc. Thanks Bob

[Texas by God]

Never understood a 9mm revolver when a 38 Special is superior in every way. Ditto 45 ACP revolvers vs 45 Colt.

Love my "1911s" --- Star 9mm and Kimber 45 ACP, they make sense.

I never understood Algebra but at least I didn't cut down people that did.