S&W Model 986

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gerhard1

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Took it out today and put over 200 rounds of Federal through it. No light hammer strikes, and every round went 'bang'. I could do one of two things: send it back to S&W and have it gone for another four weeks or I could do what I think is more practical and stick with Federal. I am not 100% made up as to which I'll do but I think it will be the Federal route.
 

Shadowrider

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Try some Remington and other ammo too. The WWB 115 grain ammo you were shooting is on par with pig crap as far as quality. I'd lay odds that Tula and Wolf are better though I don't shoot those either. Your gun is likely just fine now.
 

gerhard1

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Try some Remington and other ammo too. The WWB 115 grain ammo you were shooting is on par with pig crap as far as quality. I'd lay odds that Tula and Wolf are better though I don't shoot those either. Your gun is likely just fine now.
I have some Remington stuff. I'll try that. Now, I need to get a new tool box, too, as I keep things separated by frame size and caliber. Makes it easier when I go to the range to just grab a gun and a toolbox, a pizza container and my shades. The ears are already in the truck.
 

gerhard1

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Just ordered three boxes of Federal 124 grain Hydra-Shok 9 mm ammo from Midway. Plus some more moon clips. The reason I chose Federal is that they go bang reliably in this wheel gun, and I have decided to start carrying it. It's fairly light-weight--and given ammo that it likes--is a dependable gun. Plus, 9 mm hardball is not too terribly expensive to practice with.
 

gerhard1

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On the 986, I put 182 rounds through it today, mostly drills including reloading with the moon clips and also continuing to function-fire it. With the exception of 7 Hydra-Shoks, all of them were Remington 115 gr FMJ. And they all went bang. All shooting was DA and most of it was un-sighted fire.

Right now, I am very pleased with my 986. There has not been a single misfire when I use Federal or Remington stuff. I'll probably take it out later today as I have a Winchell's box that needs killing.

One odd thing I noticed was that the Remington cases have smaller diameter extraction grooves and they occasionally become dislodged from the moon clips. Not a problem with other brands.
 

gerhard1

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Since I have so much WWB 9 mm on hand, I decided on an experiment. TK Custom has extra-thick moon clips and I have ordered ten of them. My intention is to see if that helps with the light hammer strikes.
 

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