TheBigDog65
Amateur
Our local Bomgaars store ordered one straight away. A friend here in town couldn't wait and after visiting every other FFL in town with no joy, Bomgaars hooked him up, supposed to be here in the next week or so.
Lipsey's Smith & Wesson Ultimate Carry J-Frame revolver!
- Thread starter John Dunbar
- Start date
JimH
Regular Member
So, after listening to the UC podcast I am even more interested in getting one. However, I am now sitting on the fence about buying one chambered in .38 SPL. My initial thoughts were most of the wheel guns I have are in .38 or .357, so it just seemed the better way to go. Now...... I am now wondering if I was too quick to dismiss a 32 gun in my pocket for fun years ago........especially listening to the talk about the variety of .32 ammo out there and the probability of more flavors to come.
However, my first hurdle seems to be finding one in Vegas that I can put my mitts on. Years ago, i tried to go with a J frame for front pocket carry, but I could not get a good grip on it, and ended up going the route of LCR's with Pachmyer grips. I found that that I could wrap all the fingers around the LCR grip while still in my pocket, and I wonder if that is the case with the UC as well?
The hunt continues.....
However, my first hurdle seems to be finding one in Vegas that I can put my mitts on. Years ago, i tried to go with a J frame for front pocket carry, but I could not get a good grip on it, and ended up going the route of LCR's with Pachmyer grips. I found that that I could wrap all the fingers around the LCR grip while still in my pocket, and I wonder if that is the case with the UC as well?
The hunt continues.....
You might already know this, but one of the things to be aware of when pocket/ankle/IWB carrying a 638 vs a fully shrouded hammer 6/442 is that lint will build up in the inner workings of the 638 considerably more easily than on a 6/442. One should be prepared to pull the side plate and clean out the innards of a 638 more often than on a 6/442.
As for the Lipsey's guns, part of what makes them attractive to me is that it does what I'd like a gunsmith to do to a 6/442 for less added cost than shipping it off to a gunsmith.
As for the Lipsey's guns, part of what makes them attractive to me is that it does what I'd like a gunsmith to do to a 6/442 for less added cost than shipping it off to a gunsmith.
That is actually good to know, I had not heard that before. What are the added benefits of the Lipseys?
For me, the sights (similar to the 640 Pro) are the big deal, making the $759 MSRP worth the extra $220 over the 642's MSRP, or the $120 over a 642 Performance center.
Even if I found a gunsmith willing to replace the integral front sight on an aluminum frame gun, I probably can't have a rear sight added in any satisfying way. Chamfered charge holes and beveled cylinder are nice to have, but not as big of a game changer. This particular VZ grip isn't available as a separate part at the moment, but their other J-frame grips are $75-79.
However, if you don't care about the rear sight or prefer a ditch rear sight for a pocket gun, the scandium frame M&P340 is probably the hot ticket right now. With them, you get an XS front sight as well as the improved trigger pins and 2 piece barrel that they brought to the Lipsey's guns. They've got a steel cylinder instead of the titanium cylinder of the 340/360PD, so they weigh 2oz more, but crimp jump with lightweight bullets is less of a risk than with the 340/360PD, and the extra weight makes them inbetween those super light guns and a 642. They're .357 Magnum capable if you're a much manlier than I. They can be found for as low as $800, and there's a $50 rebate on most J-frames through the end of the month.
I get your first point, and stepping back to evaluate actual needs is absolutely the way to go. On point 2-I don't have any special info, but based on watching/reaching/listening to all the comments from Darryl and Bryan I expect their next project to not be a J frame. They talk consistently about wanting to keep the costs reasonable on the special projects (hence the aluminum frame an 32 H&R instead of a scandium gun that would be well over $1K). With doing both the 32 and 38 calibers, and the upgrades they already put into the UC guns, it would make sense for them to pursue another frame size as I think they really accomplished their goal of a smartly upgraded basic J frame that balances features and price. If I had to make a guess on the next gun, I could see them pushing a 3" 38 K-Frame, perhaps with similar upgrades like a dovetail front sight, better stocks, and possibly some minor internal work. Just speculation at this point, but I have to get it out there so if I happen to be right it's on record haha!
These are selling for quite the mark up on Gunbroker right now. I’m sure their hotness will cool off as they become more available. My 340 M&P has been my long time go to. Front sight went out quite a while back, it’s got chamfered cylinder and action tuned a little already. I’m still very tempted by the 32 though.
642UC and 432UC arrived. Out of the box everything is nicer than the vanilla counterparts. I really look forward to shooting these. The sights and stocks are such a noticeable upgrade. The triggers are more smooth with a slightly different press (all positive) from my broken in 442.
My 442 took a backseat to my LCRs. These change that dynamic.
If I wasn't able to find a 642/442UC this month (currently at FFL since my background checks are usually delayed), I was going to buy a 340 M&P while the rebate was still going.
Thanks for this, awesome follow up. Carrying the 640 and shooting magnums through it was not a pleasant experience for my hands, as the original wood grips gave me some nasty cuts inbetween my thumb and index finger (same spot as a poorly filed 1911 safety would rub.) However with the rubber grips I found (I wanna say they're actually SW grips) that has changed. That being said I mostly carry 38s in it now.
For me, the sights (similar to the 640 Pro) are the big deal, making the $759 MSRP worth the extra $220 over the 642's MSRP, or the $120 over a 642 Performance center.
Even if I found a gunsmith willing to replace the integral front sight on an aluminum frame gun, I probably can't have a rear sight added in any satisfying way. Chamfered charge holes and beveled cylinder are nice to have, but not as big of a game changer. This particular VZ grip isn't available as a separate part at the moment, but their other J-frame grips are $75-79.
However, if you don't care about the rear sight or prefer a ditch rear sight for a pocket gun, the scandium frame M&P340 is probably the hot ticket right now. With them, you get an XS front sight as well as the improved trigger pins and 2 piece barrel that they brought to the Lipsey's guns. They've got a steel cylinder instead of the titanium cylinder of the 340/360PD, so they weigh 2oz more, but crimp jump with lightweight bullets is less of a risk than with the 340/360PD, and the extra weight makes them inbetween those super light guns and a 642. They're .357 Magnum capable if you're a much manlier than I. They can be found for as low as $800, and there's a $50 rebate on most J-frames through the end of the month.
I'll look into the 340 PD more as I have no issue with ditch sights. I usually put green paint on the rear and red paint on the front, and that makes them pretty easy to pick up. I'll do some price comparisons and see what I can figure out. Thanks again!
Picked up the 642UC today.
Trigger is averaging 10 lbs, 6 oz on my Wheeler digital scale, weight is 16.45 oz on my kitchen scale. Cylinder gap is 0.003-0.004. Grips are smoother than I'd expected, but fill out my small-to-medium sized hand nicely.
Unfortunately, my front tritium sight is dead, so I might have one of the guns with the .32 H&R barrel shroud tensioned on to a .38 Special barrel insert.
Trigger is averaging 10 lbs, 6 oz on my Wheeler digital scale, weight is 16.45 oz on my kitchen scale. Cylinder gap is 0.003-0.004. Grips are smoother than I'd expected, but fill out my small-to-medium sized hand nicely.
Unfortunately, my front tritium sight is dead, so I might have one of the guns with the .32 H&R barrel shroud tensioned on to a .38 Special barrel insert.
Attachments
I haven't even checked my tritium vials. Maybe I should.
There were some issues with how the front sights were installed at S&W that resulted in broken tritium vials. Contact S&W and get a return authorization and it will get fixed.
I emailed the regional S&W LE rep, so he should get back to me Monday or Tuesday (depending on how many weekend emails he's got to sort through).
632UC showed up today. Out of the box, the trigger was very smooth, and I'm looking forward to seeing what a few hundred dry fire presses will do. The sight picture is great! A couple things I noticed out of the box are that 1: I needed to break in the cylinder release a bit. The bolt was fine, i just didn't want to open. It's getting better, though, with some reps. The grips have an outstanding shape, and I really appreciate the front doesn't come to a point like some other VZ revolver grips. However, there were some noticeable burrs at various edges of the grips. Nothing that will be hard to fix, just an observation. Overall, even with the out of the box issues for a brand new sub-model, I'm VERY much looking forward to this gun. I've also got a 432UC on order to join the stable with my 432PD and a couple earlier 32 Long snubs.
Attachments
I went to the range and put 80-90 rounds though my 642UC and 10 through my LCR for comparison's sake. I mostly shot 132 gr PMC, along with some 125 gr handloads, and a cylinder of Ranger Bonded 130 gr +P, at 7-10 yards.
I spent some of that time just figuring out what the best grip for the 642UC was and getting used to the trigger.
Recoil on the 642UC was fairly stout, but there was less of a difference between it and the LCR (with factory Hogue grip) than I had expected. The recoil impulse with the high grip I could get felt more inline and less flippy than what I remember from the last time I shot an aluminum J-frame, but it has been a while. My hands could probably benefit from the grip being slightly slimmer, but I wasn't in danger of losing my grip when I shot one-handed.
I've never loved XS dot sights for shooting tight groups, but when I did part on the trigger and was consistent on sight alignment, I was able to get decent groups.
I spent some of that time just figuring out what the best grip for the 642UC was and getting used to the trigger.
Recoil on the 642UC was fairly stout, but there was less of a difference between it and the LCR (with factory Hogue grip) than I had expected. The recoil impulse with the high grip I could get felt more inline and less flippy than what I remember from the last time I shot an aluminum J-frame, but it has been a while. My hands could probably benefit from the grip being slightly slimmer, but I wasn't in danger of losing my grip when I shot one-handed.
I've never loved XS dot sights for shooting tight groups, but when I did part on the trigger and was consistent on sight alignment, I was able to get decent groups.
If you have any issues with the warranty repair let me know please.