Tell me the good and bad. I'm thinking I need a large bore Smith. The largest I have now is a 686. Hasbeen

Excellent shooters..big bullet, low recoil....can be hopped up if needed.

Only major drawback of the 25-2 was the shallow rifling made for jacketed bullets. I shot quite a bit of cast through the two I have owned and they shot well. The best load was the 225 Speer HP with I believe 6.5 grains of Unique...excellent accuracy at 25 yards.

Barrels were 6.5" from the late 50s to around 1978 when they were reduced to 6".

If you don't mind stainless there are lots of good 625s...JMs, Mountain Guns, 1989s...

Bob

Check your PMs.

Watch the cylinder throats if you want to shoot cast. Some of them are fine but they have a tendency to be all over the map with some running unusually large. If they are way oversize there isn't much that can be done short of a new cylinder or just shooting jacketed bullets.

There was a Model 25-7 in .45 Colt. They fixed the cylinder throat issue. Fairly rare pistol, though, and may cost over a grand...

I think most of the bore differences are in the 45colt arena. Not so much the .45acp.
My experience with the 25-2 is the n frame sops up a lot of the recoil translated real easy shooting, and dead butt accurate.
The moon clips are the original speed reloader.
After the 25-2 comes the 25-5. You are on a difficult slope.
I have fired a lot of 200grain "68H&G lead pills and they worked quite well.

625-3 does not suck.

I appreciate all the wisdom. I always thought I would like an ACP pistol. I just have never had a desire for a 44 mag. I think I could warm up to a 41. I know you all know about the gun bug , there is no end. I hand load so loads can be tailored to my liking.
Some friends, who know more then me do not recommend any of the pistols with the lock and MIM parts. They tell me the triggers can't be tuned as well. Hasbeen

P&R 25-2's can also have larger than std ACP throats, as do most any and all 1917's of Colt or Smith makes; newer 625's like .452/.451 stuff.
The 25-2 I have is Uber fun out to 100 yards with well aligned bullets. Jacketed won't run that far with any consistency (.454/.453 throats).

It's really like a giant 14.....with a lot more slap.

Shallow rifling begs for heat-treated hard, but even plain WW metal will run fine.

45 ACP, 45 ACP in full moons or 45 AR's all run the gamut in the older guns......if it doesn't shoot, it isn't being fed right!

Like this??

ET, how hard are those to come by. Hasbeen

Absolutely nothing wrong with the 25-5....or 25-2.



Colt BigSnakes also get a bad rap in 45 Colt; but they are one of the absolute best. Just fill the throats....

Friend has a 25 MG....throats are a snug .4525....yes, easy to get to shoot well with common dies and casting gear!!!

I call it blind luck to blunder into my 25-7 or Model of 1989. My buddy from the old PD had it and he changed guns more often than most change underwear and sold it to me for 200 bucks.I love it. Excellent shooter.

yes, like that, damn it

I've got a 25-5 from about 35 or so years ago and I still love it.

Traded my BIL a SS 115 prop for it, best trade I ever made.

Great pistol. It has the ramped front w/red insert and 6" barrel. It's sweet.

My 25-2 has .454" throats and shoots the Lyman #452664 250 gr SWC sized to .454" in AR brass very, very well. Only bullet and brass I use in the piece.

Nice one here



https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbth...e:_FS/FT_in_Maine_Smith_24-3#Post9690559



Mike

Large bore slow bullets just in 44

I have one made in 1970 that I got off a gun forum for $360 + $30 FFL in 2002.

The firing pin strikes are not reliable with moon clips I have, so I have always used auto rim brass.

The most power I have got out of it is with:
a) 230 gr FMJ Montana Gold 1.4" 24 gr H110
b) 300 gr cast 1.55" 17 gr LIL'GUN, roll crimp

Clark Guns [no relation] has been converting 25-2s to 460 Rowland for 15 years, which is higher pressure than my loads, but I think my loads, with longer OAL, kick just as hard.

Any idea what pressures those loads are running?

460 Rowland conversions are running 38 kcup

My loads are more like 25kpsi.
And that is as hot as I want to consistently run when I see 0.065" thick chamber walls in a 45.

A Ruger Blackhawk 45LC is 0.071" and I will run 25kpsi in those all day long.

I have blown up enough revolvers to know where the weak spots are and how much safety margin I want away from that.

25-2 revolvers are expensive, so I have worked up the powerful loads with lots of safety margin. The longer OAL gets the high velocity without the high peak pressure.

Yep, just like that.

Here's mine in the Big Horn mountains of Wyoming on an Elk hunt....







Only 2,000 were made. I know of two that were destroyed, and ET and I have one each, so that only leaves 1,996 left available in the world....maybe!

I have two. I know where another is.

Hoarder...........

Hoarding guns means you have succeeded in life.

Shoot that 25-7 RL-28 was talking about today. I have to admit I'm impressed. Hasbeen

My son has one and won't part with it... Best shootn wheel gun I ever shot..

What's not to like about the 25-7?

It has an un-fluted cylinder, which I prefer for the aesthetics of it. It has a 5" barrel, which many folks feel is about the perfect length for an N frame revolver.
Last but not least, it is chambered in .45 Colt which will take any critter on this continent with appropriate loads. They are accurate with good tolerances as well.

I agree fully.

Article excerpt from John Linebaugh:

"S&W also made a few model 25-7s. This was a 5" gun with a non-fluted cylinder. For a hunting gun this model is tops. All were marked model of 1989 on the barrel with white etching and came with Hogue monogrips. I would change these for some nice wood or ivory micarta. The front sight may be a bit short for heavy bullet loads but the gun has the minimum dimension chambers and is a top performer.

I've shot two or three of them here with the 310gr Keith slug (old NEI mould) and 23.5 gr of H-110 for a full, honest 1,200 fps..(THIS IS A MAXIMUM LOAD). All guns printed this load in the 1-1/2" range at 25 yards off sandbags.

I know for a fact this load will go through elk like cheese at long range. I don't mean to be beating a dead horse but velocity does not buy us power. Instead it buys us trajectory and range. At handgun ranges I'm not sure we need an abundance of either. I load to 1,200 fps for a good all around speed in my sixguns. If I need more power I go to a bigger slug or caliber.

Most of the new 25-7's that I have inspected and shot here not only had minimum chambers but many had tight chamber throats. The common diameter was near .451 and none exceeded .452. This is plenty tight. Always remember that tight cylinder throats build unnecessary pressure. We polished all throats so the bullets we used would push through with minimum resistance.

Like Elmer said in his fine book Sixguns, all bullets should pass through the cylinder throats with just slight finger pressure. Overall the Smith & Wesson Model 25-7's are fine revolvers that offer plenty of punch for most situations normal folks will find themselves in. They shot bullets a little bigger and a little heavier than the .44 magnum at the same speeds from equal barrel lengths.

The difference in chamber pressure makes up for the difference in mechanical strength in the guns. The .45 just isn't quite as strong mechanically as the .44 magnum in the cylinder, but in turn the .45 does any equal amount of work with less pressure. It all balances out.

To date my oldest and most used S&W .45 Colt has probably taken 5,000 plus loads. Half of these have been 24.0 gr H-110 with the 260 Keith. Doesn't sound like I shoot it a lot huh! Well, I shoot a lot of other stuff daily on the side, and I figure this old Smith gets carried about 200 miles per shot. It's packable, practical and powerful, and that's what Old School sixguns are all about."

Mine is a 25-5. Started life as a .45 Colt, but I had my gunsmith make an additional cylinder for it in .45 ACP. Best of both worlds. Very accurate with either cylinder.

Did you have that thing round-butted Sam?

yes I did. I also had the blue revolver hard choromed. I added Tritium night sights as well. All the internals were new, and it is one helluva shooter.
A more recent shot.

One helluva nice looking gun, Sam.

By the way. After hearing a lot of good advise and shooting a 25-7, I found a 25-9. It is almost the same as the 7. I'm in the load development stage right now. Thanks for all the help.

625-5 does not suck either.

Who's grips so that I know to avoid them like the plague. Are they that far up on the north end?

Hi
I don't know much about the Model 25-2's But I have a Pre-25 that shoots Pretty Good at the 25 Yard Range as shown. Regards, The General

Been wondering if you were still kickin' General.

well, I have one on the way.

It wasn't stupidly expensive, either I have a holster to fit full-lug 5" N frames. Need to round one up to fit this one...and also fit my 5" 5-screw .357

Since I have a couple of Ruger .45 Colts, I'll need to figure out how to not shoot the "Ruger-only" loads in it. It's fairly easy to find the Speer 230gr Gold Dots that are intended for the .45 ACP. I might be curious to try them in the 25-7, and seeing the jacketed bullet should make it obvious it's intended for the S&W.

It was also real interesting reading Linebaugh's comments about the strength of the 25-7. Don't plan to load 260's at 1200 fps but that's a greater strength level than I have heard elsewhere.

If you got the one that just ended on Gunbroker, I think you did well. I'm loading mine below 1000 fps with 250 gr. LSWC. Reloader 28 on this forum shoots some pretty stiff loads with 4227. Hasbeen

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=483386562

I have had a 1972 S&W 25-2 since 2002.
I have not taken it to the range yet.
But I have a lot of handguns that shoot that well.
To shoot that well for me, they must have a scope and be in a rest.

What does impress me is that you did that with open sights.
I am 64. My eyes are focused at 3 feet and my hands shake.

The throats on 25-2's run a pretty consistent .454". The P&R'd 25-5 45 Colt's are the problem pieces. I had one with .457" throats and bought bullets from Beartooth sized at .456" so all worked fine. I have since fitted a .4525" cylinder to match my other 45 Colt's so one size bullet fits all.