The L frame is essentially a strengthened K-frame, with a slightly larger cylinder, to allow more metal around each chamber, and a larger opening in the frame to accommodate it. 357 Magnum would reside in either K or N frame revolvers until 1980, when Smith & Wesson debuted the L-frame 586 (carbon steel) and 686 (stainless steel). 357 Magnum into such svelte frames were hard-shooting, packable pistols, but ones that did not, at the time, hold up well to a steady diet of ever more powerful and punishing. 357 Military and Police) and Model 19 (the legendary Combat Magnum). 357 Magnum was fitted into the slender K-frame, of Model 10 and M&P fame, producing the medium framed Model 13 (or. Before the L-frame 686 was a glimmer in the eyes of S&W engineers, the. The Registered Magnum and Model 27 were, and are, terrific guns, but for patrolman’s work or self-defense both were very heavy and bulky. The impact of the Registered Magnum on the sphere of guns and ammunition cannot be understated: it was the literal genesis of magnum handguns. The Registered Magnum was discontinued after only a few years, but its standardized stablemate, the beefy N-frame Model 27, which has been around nearly as long remains in production today. Made to order and specification in almost every detail, the Registered Magnum was crafted to a standard and level of care unrivaled before or since. 357 Magnum service revolvers, the progenitor of both design and the cartridge itself appearing way back in 1935 in the form of the exquisite Registered Magnum. The L-frame 686 is descended from a long line of S&W’s successful. If you are seeking a dependable, potent handgun for defense or hunting, you can hardly do better than a 686 variant. 357 Magnum that is heir to all of the design elements that make S&W revolvers so desirable. One of S&W’s most perennially popular medium-frame guns is the 686, a stainless, strong. In fact far from it while obsolescent, amid countless cries of being outmoded, outdated and outmatched, the double-action revolver, produced by quality makers like S&W, continues to steam along well into the 21 st century, and is more than capable of fulfilling all essential requirements of a defensive weapon. It is an old trope, but the revolver is not dead.
While military users are rare today, their revolvers continue to serve faithfully in the holsters of countless civilians, police officers and security guards. For over a century, S&W has been producing excellent revolvers for militaries, law enforcement agencies and well-heeled civilians. The name Smith & Wesson is synonymous with wheelguns the world over, with good cause.