Had a good Friday night, unagi dinner with friends and then home for booze and Vampyros Lesbos. Rolled out of bed this morning, checked my email, and found a new e-flyer from CDNN.

And guess what they just got in stock? A whole buttload of no-lock Smith & Wesson revolvers. Check it out:


#SMI100419 15 · 38spl · 4" · Brite Blue · Adjustable Sight · SAMPLE · No Lock........$389.99
#SMI101615 37 · 38spl · 2" · Black Airweight · Fixed Sight · Round Butt · No Lock · Box Marked "Japan" ...$349.99
#SMI102810 442 · 38spl · 1.87" · Black · Limited Edition · Round Butt · No Internal Lock....$359.99
#SMI102420 60 · 357Mag · 2.13" · Stainless · Fixed Sight · Rubber Grip · No Lock.......$439.99
#SMI102430 60 · 357Mag · 3" · Stainless · Adjustable Sight · Full Lug · No Lock............$449.99
#SMI102302 60NL · 38spl · 2" · Stainless · Rubber Grip · 5-shot · No Lock.....$429.99
#SMI102434 60-10 · 357Mag · 3" · Full Lug · Adjustable Sight · No Lock · Round Butt................$469.99
#SMI164301 619 · 357Mag · 4" · Stainless · Fixed Sight · 1/2 Lug · 7-Shot.....$499.99
#SMI103644 629 · 44Mag · 6.5"· Stainless · Classic Deluxe · 2 Grips · No Internal Lock · Extra Sight Blades.....$649.99
#SMI149811 629 · 44Mag · 6.5"· Stainless · Classic · "NRA" · Full Lug · No Lock.....$599.99
#SMI103640 629 · 44Mag · 8.37" · Stainless · Classic · Full Lug · No Internal Lock......$599.99
#SMI103646 629 · 44Mag · 8.37" · Stainless · Classic · 2-Grips · No Internal Lock.....$549.99
#SMI103070 638 · 38spl · 1.87"· Stainless · Lightweight Bodyguard · No Lock.....$369.99
#SMI102502 64 · 38spl+P · 2"· Stainless · Fixed Sight · No Lock · Rubber Grip.........$449.99
#SMI102608 65 · 357Mag · 3" · Matte Stainless · Lady Smith · Laminate Grip · No Lock · 6-Shot.......$499.99
#SMI104272 686 · 357Mag · 6"· Stainless · Ported · Full Lug · No Lock.................$549.99


I gave ‘em a call (800-588-9500) and was told that these are odds-and-ends that S&W had in inventory, so they’ll probably go fast.

(I have no connection to CDNN aside from being a satisfied customer, and I’m posting this not to pimp them but to let my readers know about an unusual opportunity.)

… instead of just a comment.

existingthing and I were discussing proper J-frame holds in comments here. I won’t swear that this is the One True Way, but here’s what I’m doing:

Notice I’m keeping my thumb pointed sharply downward, as this keeps it (A) from interfering with the tip of my trigger finger and (B) way the hell away from the cylinder latch. It seems to work well for me. Any input from serious wheelygun shooters would be appreciated.

(the topic of discussion is the rumored imminent release of private nude photographs of actress Anne Hathaway)

pdb: sweeeeeeeet

TD: she’s already been nekkid in two movies

pdb: really?

TD: yeah, Havoc and Brokeback Mountain (don’t ask how I know this - ed.)

pdb: damn

pdb: I think I’ve got that in the shed

TD: Brokeback Mountain?

TD: you probably have it under your pillow

Not from me, from Standard Mischief:

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He’s a sharp guy and I’m sure he’ll take good care of you. Plus “free” is a whole lot cheaper than the $70/hr you could expect to pay a pro for this kind of help.

Here’s my own generous offer:

If you are hot, female and single and you want to get off, I will help you. And I’m flexible on the “hot” and “single” parts.

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If you’re considering the switch (and you should be!) I’d also suggest reading my piece on protecting your privacy as a blogger.

7 yards, offhand, “real” double-action (not staging the trigger) with the new S&W 642. Target is a standard NRA B-8; the black is 5.5″ across.

I ran a few cylinders through the gun to get used to it (recoil is really quite mild considering the lack of gun weight), then settled down and tried to shoot pretty

Yeah, I’m happy with it.

Today is primary day here in Michigan, so after work I trotted off to my local polling place to cast my ballot.

Now, I live in Wayne County (wherein lies the city of Detroit), which makes the process a truly empty ritual; the county is so heavily dominated by Detroit Democrats that Republicans barely make even a token effort.

There were only a handful of Republicans on the ballot, none of them facing primary challengers, so I voted the Democrat side (ticket splitting isn’t allowed), skipping over all uncontested races and voting against all incumbents.

Then, to paraphrase George Carlin, I came home and jerked off, so that I could claim to have done ONE productive thing with my afternoon.

Grant Cunningham reports some unfortunate but not-unexpected details on the new Smith & Wesson 642s:

These are new production guns made with “leftover” non-lock frames, according to S&W. In addition, these guns have the traditional screwed-in barrels, as opposed to the sleeved liner type that the company is now using.

They were able to put together approximately 4,000 of them, and there will be no more.

Disappointing that S&W remains so pigheaded about the lock issue; looks like my first new Smith will also be my last.

Ah well, as the great James Brown said:

The way i like it is the way it is,
I got mine ‘n’ don’t worry ’bout his

An unusual late-season allergy flare-up has had me basically sidelined since Thursday. I STILL haven’t made it out to the range to test-fire my new Smith 642 and my freshly-revamped CZ 85. I also missed my chance to see Dark Knight at the IMAX on Friday. In point of fact, I haven’t done much of anything aside from sampling various OTC antihistamines, dozing fitfully in the La-Z-Boy, and watching movies.

Zyrtec finally gave me enough relief to let me get out of the house and do a few things. Managed to scrounge up some food for the coming week and 100 rounds of Remington .38 Special for the Smith.

Oh yeah, I’ve also been dry-firing the 642 to get used to the pull. It’s breaking in nicely and I’m now confident that at least 75% of my shots will end up downrange

Seriously though, I’m starting to get a feel for the rhythm of DA revolver shooting and the front sight is slowly but surely steadying. The gun has a little hitch in the trigger right as the bolt locks in place, and learning to pull smoothly through that point is taking some work. I’ll get there.

Hope y’all have had a better weekend than mine.

So I have this nifty new Smith 642 and I was planning to pocket-carry it, but…

I usually have my left front pocket full of car keys, house keys, cell phone, and flash drive. Right front pocket is for my wallet, with my knife clipped to the edge and my lighter in the watch pocket. My Seecamp rides in a pocket holster inside my back pocket.

This arrangement works for me, but the Smith is a little too fat to comfortably replace the Seecamp in a back pocket. And I don’t really want to relocate any of my front-pocket stuff to make room for the Smith. Nor do I want yet another IWB rig, a belly band or an ankle holster.

This will require further thought. Any advice would be appreciated.