de cocking 686+

[GunDog]

sandmanx408: Read the Safety and Instruction Manual that came with your revolver...

http://www.smith-wesson.com/wcsstore/SmWesson/upload/other/S&W_Revolver_Manual.pdf

[beretta929mm]

do it with two hands.

[nitrous_bob]

honestly, i OFTEN have to decock my ruger GP100
because i hunt with it AND i carry it for defense while bow hunting, and riding my quad, and i keep it holstered while in the cocked position (strap holds the hammer back too)

there is ALWAYS the chance the hammer can slip, BUT, im sure your smith has the "action bar" or similar like a ruger, and if you remove your finger from the trigger soon after releasing the hammer, even if it slipped...it would NOT fire, as the action bar blocks the firing pin from the hammer

but those cross hatchings on the hammer make it much more difficult to slip, and its not that hard to get used to decocking it. pretty soon you'll be comfortable doing it with one hand

[schneiderguy]

I'll add a 3.5 here. After pulling the trigger and the hammer is being lowered REMOVE YOUR FINGER FROM THE TRIGGER. This should prevent the firing pin from being engaged should the hammer slip. I know this works on my Smith 686, Ruger Gp100 and Taurus Tracker (no snickering).

I know it doesn't work on my Smith 27-2. Then again putting your thumb between the frame and the hammer that has the firing pin on it is a tight squeeze.

Every S&W post WW2 has the hammer block. Your 27-2 is missing a part if the hammer falls all the way without the trigger depressed.

[jazman]

honestly, i OFTEN have to decock my ruger GP100
because i hunt with it AND i carry it for defense while bow hunting, and riding my quad, and i keep it holstered while in the cocked position (strap holds the hammer back too)

there is ALWAYS the chance the hammer can slip, BUT, im sure your smith has the "action bar" or similar like a ruger, and if you remove your finger from the trigger soon after releasing the hammer, even if it slipped...it would NOT fire, as the action bar blocks the firing pin from the hammer

but those cross hatchings on the hammer make it much more difficult to slip, and its not that hard to get used to decocking it. pretty soon you'll be comfortable doing it with one hand

No disrespect, but I totally disagree carrying a revolver with hammer cocked.

[gsparesa]

How much does a person gain by caring a revolver in single action vs double action? (A question for Jerry Miculek) Didn't you play with snap-cap toy guns as a kid? De-cocking a toy gun is the same process. Why not purchase yourself a pellet gun to practice. I have a daisy revolver that I was using to teach my daughter to shoot. I still use it to dry fire and practice the fundamentals.

[Revoman]

"The best practice is to never cock it unless you are on target and ready to fire in single action.
There is no reason to cock a loaded double action revolver, then uncock."

"I never cock the hammer on a revolver unless I fully plan on pulling the trigger immediately afterwards."

So you guys have obviously never been on a firing line where there is a "CEASE FIRE" called and all guns must IMMEDIATELY BE SAFED-OFF. There are plenty of times when a cocked revolver needs to be decocked.

The other advise for decocking is sound though. Practice a little and be safe.

[JLM Ranger]

Practice, practice, you need to learn how to handle your revolver in all circumstances. Be safe.

[Gryff]

So i got my 686+ out of jail today, excited to fire it, as i was messing around with it, i began to wonder, how do i decock this if i pull the hammer back?

online it saw on you tube that i hsve to hold the hammer, pull the trigger and bring both at the same time slowly to their idle positions, seems kinda unsafe, is there any best practices for decocking a revolver?

You don't need to bring the trigger back to "idle" while you slowly lower the hammer. You can lower the hammer fully down, and then let the trigger out.

Practice at home with no ammo in the room. It's not hard, although I agree with others that you should rarely have to do it when you actually have ammo in the gun.

And if you plan to use the gun for self-defense, then here is a piece of unsolicited advice. Learn to shoot the gun well using double-action. A few might argue, but most people will tell you that you fight with a revolver using double action only. It's safer, you shoot faster, and there is less to go wrong than if you try to cock before your shoot.

[mievil]

There is no reason to cock a loaded double action revolver, then uncock.

Someone get a hold of the dude that engineered a decocker and tell him he wasted his time. And while you're at it, tell whoever invented the safety that they wasted their time, too. Hundreds of millions of firearms designed poorly. What a shame.

On that same token, tell whoever invented the brake pedal on a vehicle that there is no reason to stop a car once the accelerator pedal has been pressed.......

[schneiderguy]

You don't need to bring the trigger back to "idle" while you slowly lower the hammer. You can lower the hammer fully down, and then let the trigger out.

In the S&W action releasing the trigger prevents the hammer from going all of the way forward.

So no you don't have to let the trigger go, but if your fingers slips off the hammer with the trigger pulled back the gun might go off.

[Gryff]

In the S&W action releasing the trigger prevents the hammer from going all of the way forward.

So no you don't have to let the trigger go, but if your fingers slips off the hammer with the trigger pulled back the gun might go off.

I didn't realize that. Thanks.

[3006Garand]

The best practice is to never cock it unless you are on target and ready to fire in single action.

There is no reason to cock a loaded double action revolver, then uncock.

This

[3006Garand]

I have the same revolver. Mine is a 4" 7 shot revolver. I love that thing. Everytime I take it to the range everyone wants to shoot it. It's really fun, and accurate, and bad ash!

[JDay]

You can open the cylinder before decocking.