Broke out a safe queen

[Thumbcocker]

Model 24 S&W with Hogue cocobolo grips. A birthday present from Mrs. Thumbcocker some years back. NOE 429421 8.0 of power pistol. 25 yards from a Weaver stance. Even a blind hog gets an acorn once in a while.


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[shoot-n-lead]

Looks mighty fine!

Glad to know that I am not the only one that uses paper plates as targets.

[John Allen]

Nice gun, I love the smith double action 44's

[Hickok]

Nice gun, I love the smith double action 44'sYou can add me to that list, and the K and L frame Smith's!

Thumbcocker, Beautiful Smith and nice shooting!

[Treetop]

Nice shootin, Thumb! And with a beautiful revolver, too. Tt.

[Dennis Eugene]

Where's the "like" button? I'll push it twice.

[9mmsubgun-m11]

Beautiful gun and excellent grouping. Currently working on my revolver skills.

[Petrol & Powder]

What a great gun. Nice shooting too.

[MakeMineA10mm]

Model 24 S&W with Hogue cocobolo grips. A birthday present from Mrs. Thumbcocker some years back. NOE 429421 8.0 of power pistol. 25 yards from a Weaver stance. Even a blind hog gets an acorn once in a while.


127101127102

Thumbcocker,
First, very nice pistol there! A lot of the joy is just holding something that nice in your hand and then adding in it is a 44 Special makes it even better.

I noticed on your first target that you had a nice cluster of 3 touching with a 4th just barely out, and then two more further away. I've been tucking away in the back of my mind an idea after reading a couple magazine articles as well as some on-line articles with photos. Have you measured all 6 of your chamber throats?

The reason I ask is that all of the articles I'm talking about were addressing the idea/concept of reaming chamber throats to match or be .001" or so above groove diameter and so that they are all the same in the entire cylinder from chamber to chamber.

Back in about 2005, Ruger started reaming their cylinders with a single reamer that moves from chamber to chamber, rather than a tool-head with 6 reamers which reamed all the chambers at once, but each with a separate reamer. Switching to the single-reamer production method caused the throats to be more consistent and improved grouping.

Several gun magazine authors have also written articles about using pin gauges and throat reamers from Brownell's to get all their chamber throats the same size and .001" to .002" above groove diameter. Another article I read was about the "Fire Lapping" process which did the same thing, as well as cleaning up the barrel's forcing cone.

In all of these, the "BEFORE" pictures looked a LOT like your first picture, with the shooter and gun obviously capable of shooting cloverleaf groups, but there's one to 3 bullets out of the group. In the "AFTER" photos, the groups have pulled together and the cluster of shots were dramatically tighter. The cloverleaf seemed to be gone, but the five or six bullet holes were no more than a bullet hole away from each other. (VERY tight grouping.)

I'm just curious about your M-24, because I recall reading some lamenting about the throats on these being oversized, but yours appears to have the ability to group really tightly, taking the possibility of a couple tight throats into consideration...

[Thumbcocker]

I would blame the gun if I could, but the ones out of the group are all me. The first target was actually shot last.

[45 2.1]

S&W model 24's and 624's are great handguns, capable of exquisite accuracy. Enjoy them every time you can. Alloy and boolit play a big part in accuracy obtainable with them also.

[EDK]

I've had model 29s and 629s BUT the 24 and 624 are the most elegant guns I've owned. My first was a model 27 converted to 44 Special with a factory 6.5 inch model 24 barrel. Currently a 6.5 inch 624 languishes in the safe until I can join the local gun club.

Pin gauges from Grizzly Industrial can sure tell you a lot about accuracy...or lack thereof...in revolvers.

[pworley1]

Very nice. How could you leave that beauty in the safe so long?

[rintinglen]

I had one of those and wish I could have afforded to keep it, but it went down the Hiway along with the 624. I regret the 24 but not the 624. The 24 was pretty accurate, the 624 was mediocre, on a good day. I would like to get another, but it ain't happening any time soon, unless I stumble across a truly sweet deal.

[captaint]

A few years back, I decided ALL the safe queens had to earn their keep. That "it's too pretty to shoot" business had to go. I'm very glad I shot them all. Should have done it sooner. IMO, we can't really enjoy a gun unless we put it to work. Now, I enjoy shooting them much more than just looking at em.... Mike

[EDK]

ALL my guns have been safe queens since I moved out last May. Don't miss the ex- BUT my 100 yard range down hill from the house sure was nice. I wonder if I could go back and mine the backstop.

[Groo]

Groo here
There are safe guns and there are Safe Guns.
Some sit in the safe because they are unused.
Some because they dont "need"to be.
My python is one as I have hit targets at 300yds with it,it just fits.
Your m-24 looks like one of those, sits in the safe patiently waiting for the call [some times for years] and performing as if
you shot it just the day before..
Gives you a warm feeling, don't it........