cens, You got a scarce one! The Mod 63 was only made for a year (1977) and are pretty hard to find. Being a J-frame, they have a coil mainspring and a very short throw hammer. The larger K-frame Mod 17 or 18 has a flat mainspring and a longer hammer throw. This really affects DA trigger pull. Mod 63s are considered a "kit gun" and very sought after by collectors.

 

With a trigger like this I can understand why it only lasted a year. I honestly think it will be fine once I get some bigger grips for it. The Pachmayrs on it now are dinky and, even with my not large hands, I end up with the trigger resting to the inside of my first knuckle.

Also, I can say that its internals are not nearly as user-friendly as the Ruger DA revolvers. I buffed up the underside of the rebound slide while I had it apart but that was about all I figured I should touch. I can't imagine I'll take it apart for cleaning purposes as often as I do the GP100 or SP101.

Chris

 

cens, I was wrong about the years of manufacture. The bulk of them were made in 1977 (first year of production) but S&W continued to make them in small quantities until 1998, when they were discontinued. S&W re-introduced the Mod 63 this year. Look inside the yoke. If you have a no-dash up through a dash 3 (example Mod 63-3) then you have one of the older models.

The good news is .... if you practice and get good with the Mod 63, any other DA will be a piece of cake. I had a Mod 34 (same basic gun only in blue). SA wasn't bad but DA was really heavy. I tried installing a lighter mainspring and found it got a lot of misfires in the DA mode so I went back to the factory spring.

If it makes you feel any better ... I also had a SP-101 in 22 LR. I smoothed up the action where trigger pull was very nice but accuracy could not compare with my 4" S&W Mod 18. The SP-101 and the S&W Mod 34 now belong to someone else.

 

It is a no dash model so I think your initial dating is accurate. You're also right about the SA; it is far too short to be bad. Cleaning, re-seating, and re-lubricating the mainspring and taking a couple of burrs off the strut helped to diminish the overall "raspy" feeling I was getting in DA so now it more or less just really heavy. I'm disappointed to hear that a lighter mainspring may not be a good option. Did you ever try a different rebound slide spring? I'm guessing that it would make a difference in trigger weight as it seems to serve as the trigger re-set spring, but there may be negatives that aren't apparent to me.

Chris

 

cens, Like any S&W revolver, the rebound spring has to be matched to the hammer spring. If you use a lighter rebound slide spring with the factory hammer spring, there's too much hammer spring tension so the hammer stalls on the hump on the rebound slide and won't let the trigger reset. If you can get by with a lighter hammer spring (most won't) you can also lighten the rebound slide spring.

I've worked on a good many J-frames and they are all pretty heavy in DA. With the centerfire models, you can lighten the hammer spring and rebound spring a little and still get good primer hits. The difference is the rimfires have an in-frame firing pin whereas the older centerfires had hammer nose firing pins which applies more energy on the primer.

Springs are cheap so give it a try with a reduced power Wolf set. If it doesn't work, you're not out much. If it does work with lighter springs, DA will still be plenty stiff but not as bad as stock. Always test in the DA mode. You can use a pliers to remove several bullets then dump the powder. The "primer only" cases should "pop" and there should be a nice dent in the rim. If the primed cases just make a "puff", chances are they won't ignite reliably.

 

Thanks. That's helpful information. Even if I can't make the DA a thing of beauty, this is really just a range play/plinking/practice gun so using it as a de facto SAO is always an option for the first two and, as noted, struggling through the heavy DA is good for the last one.

Merry Christmas!

Chris

 

I had one, and wish I had it back. The prices on a used one pretty much rules that out, however.

 

I've got one and it is always one of the first ones that I pack for a range trip. Guess I was lucky... I put the Wolf springs in it and cleaned up the internals. It has one of the sweetest double actions. Better than my K-frame 18. It goes bang everytime that it is suppose to.

It is harder to shoot than a larger frame, but that is also one reason I shoot it so much. It makes everything else a piece of cake.

 

I have a Wolff spring pack on order so I can see if I get lucky, too. With inexpensive grip choices being few, at least that I've been able to find, I'll fiddle with springs first before I plunge for new grips to make the gun more easy to handle for me.

Chris

 

I have a 63-4, the 5” Model 63. I have played with smoothing the internal parts and installing a slightly lighter rebound spring. It now has a fairly heavy, but smooth double action trigger. I have been breaking in the barrel with Federal bulk stuff to smooth the barrel with copper wash stuff. Seems to work, but takes a while. I also put Pachmayr Gripper grips on mine. My hands are large and the Gripper fits much better than the standard grips.

 

If you are unhappy with it, and want to part with it, give me a shout. I may be interested. Especially if it eas made before 1960s.