S & W .45 ACP Revolvers

[don leo]

For the last few months, I've been interested in purchasing a Smith & Wesson .45 ACP revolver. I've agonized over choosing between the original, blue 25-2 6 1/2 inch and the stainless 625 in 5 inch. Anybody out there have experiences with both models who can provide some sort of guidance?
Also, does anyone know a good source for surplus Remington .45 Autorim ammo ? I know Remington no longer manufactures it, and I'm still kicking myself for walking past a few boxes at a gunshow last year...

 

[Rod WMG]

Don leo,

Are you a handloader? Midway has the brass (at least last I checked) and handloading this cartridge is easy. For the price of a very few boxes of the discontinued .45 AR ammo (which wasn't all that accurate anyway), you can easily get into reloading.

Reasons to buy the 625 .45ACP: stainless steel is much easier to care for; when these first came out, the word was they were held to tighter specs than the older blued guns; almost everyone, including me, really loves his 625; the guns are nicely "balanced;" the guns are strong enough to handle hot loads.

Reasons to buy the blued guns: They are more pleasing to the eye of older shooters who grew up when guns were blue, not stainless or "black;" barrel lengths may be a consideration; the older guns look more sleek to me due to the half, not full, underlug; cylinders may not have been held to as tight tolerances as the new guns; actions of the older guns may tend to be smoother and slicker.

I think it honestly boils down to what you like as far as looks and "feel" are concerned.

Be aware that there are some 1917 .45 ACP blued guns out there from both Smith and Colt. These aren't regared as strong enough to handle hotter loads due to advances in metallurgy and to their advanced age.

Hope this helps.

 

[Robert the41MagFan]

Here is a way to save time looking for autorims and money that you will spend buying them. Go to TK Custom, they manufacture the moon clips for the 625, 686, 627 and 629. They are both fast and easy to use. Cheap too. With these moon clips, you just use your favorite 45 acp ammunition.

A note about autorims, maximum pressure on these cases is less than in a standard acp case. Have not looked in a reloading manual, but I am almost sure. Have a box of cases and that was the reason I have never used them.

http://www.moonclips.com/frameset.html

Robert



[This message has been edited by Robert the41MagFan (edited November 26, 1999).]

 

[singleshot]

Georgia Arms is selling .45 AR ammo loaded in Remington brass. Midway does have brass in stock- I just bought some- and it is easy to load.

I have both a 25 and a 625. Never did a formal accuracy comparison, but my gut feeling is that the 625 is a little more accurate.

 

[don leo]

Thanks for all the responses. Has anybody tried shooting the acp rounds without the moonclips in these guns ? I read somewhere that its possible, but one needs a rod to poke out the shells.

 

[thequickad]

I owned a 5" 625 and I have shot it quite a bit and bought a whole load of full moon clips for it. It is possible to shoot without using the moon clips. I tried it a few times without and issue except maybe the cylinder rotation is quite weird with the loose rounds. I did experienced a consistent problem on the 625, the cylinder crane seems to shoot loose and requires retightening quite often.

 

[G. Kennedy]

When it comes to .45ACP S&W revolvers I think it is your choice between the Model 25 or 625. The only caveat I would make is if you want to shoot it in IDPA the barrel length can be no longer than 5-inches. In my experience the 625's are VERY accurate......

 

[Short Bursts]

Yes you can fire .45ACP cartridges in these revolvers without full or halfmoon clips because the .45ACP chambers on the mouth of the case. You will need something to push out the fired cases.

 

[jimmy]

FWIW, I have a S&W Model 25 in .45 ACP and tried shooting Remington .45 Auto-Rim cartridges in it. For some reason, the lead bullets of these cartridges would leave a thick ring of lead on the step inside each chamber after only one or two rounds had been fired through it. Due to the ring of lead, subsequent rounds wouldn't seat and the cylinder wouldn't close. So I shipped the revolver to S&W's service department. I didn't and still don't know what was wrong with the cylinder (if anything) or what S&W did to repair it (also if anything). About then the supply of .45 Auto-Rims began to dry up anyway, so the ability of my Model 25 to shoot these cartridges without the leading problem remains a minor mystery.

 

[Dr.Rob]

so has saami spec changed since ww1??

My 1917 Colt Army revolver still shoots 230 gr ball ammo at point of aim, and anything I've ever fed through it. Bottom line is if your gun isn't +p rated, then you have NO Business shooting +p loads in it reguardless of anecdotal stories or toughness or strength.

Then ONLY exeption to this rule has been RUGER (there is a REASON there is a seperate loading data chart for RUGER 44 magnums. however there are NOT seperate charts for ruger 38's, 357's, 9mms and 45s)

I'd love to own a stainless 625, if I could ever find one for sale.

That said, I'd also love a S&W army model to go along with my colt.

How about i draft a letter to colt for a stainless new service revolver in 45acp with a 5.5 inch barrel and satin finish???

ah well a boy can dream


Dr.Rob

 

[Monty]

Good luck with that letter to Colt. I think they discontinued all their DA revolvers.
I recently came into possession of a nice .45ACP revolver, S&W 625-3 3" Model of 1989. Was looking for the 5" but when I saw the 3" couldn't pass it up. Still hope to get a 5" someday.

------------------
Buy, Sell and Trade guns in WV!
http://onelist.com/community/WVGunSwap

 

[Byron]

I also recently picked up a 625 3" (625-4) that I had absolutely no intention of getting, but there it was in the case... Couldn't resist, paid too much, really like the gun. At seven yards offhand, all six go into one ragged hole, which is unusual for me. The full moon clips were awfully tight, so I Dremeled them open just a bit; also bought a de-mooner from Brownell's (same one also in Dillon catalog). Clips are like speedloaders and are nice for saving your brass. I was told that without the clips, you may get light primer hits.