September 3rd, 2024

Great Rimfire Revolver — Smith & Wesson Model 617

Smith & Wesson 617 4

While Accurateshooter.com concentrates on high-accuracy rifles, we know that many of our readers enjoy handguns. We are often asked “What is your favorite handgun — Glock? HK? SIG Sauer?” The answer to that question may be surprising. This Editor’s favorite handgun, at least the one that gets shot most often, is a rimfire revolver — that’s right, a wheelgun.

This Editor’s first really accurate handgun was a .22 LR Smith & Wesson Model 617 that could easily stack ten shots in a dime at 10 yards. It remains my favorite and most-used handgun. What can we say about the Model 617? The single-action trigger pull is superb, and the accuracy surpasses most any semi-auto rimfire pistol, except for a few, very expensive target pistols. We like the 6″ version for the longer site radius, but the 4″-barrel 617 is also very accurate, and it balances better.

Smith Wesson model 617 .22 LR Revolver handgun
S&W Model 617 now has a 10-round cylinder, but early models were six-shooters.

We strongly recommend that new pistol shooters start off with a .22 LR rimfire handgun. The .22 LR cartridge is accurate but has very low recoil, less “bark” than a centerfire, and very little smoke and muzzle flash. New shooters won’t have to fight muzzle flip, and won’t develop a flinch from the sharp recoil and muzzle blast common to larger calibers. With the .22 LR, the trainee can focus on sight alignment, breathing, and trigger pull.

Smith & Wesson Model 617 Video Reviews
Here are two video reviews of the Smith & Wesson Model 617, both 4″-barrel and 6″-barrel versions. Both videos demonstrate the 617’s great accuracy. The reviewers concede that this handgun is pretty expensive, but all agree that the Model 617 will last a lifetime, and hold its value.

Hickok 45 Demos a 4″ Model 617. See also Hickok 45 m617 Part 2:

This Video Features the Full-size 6″-Barrel Model 617:

Recommended .22 LR Revolver Training Targets

The .22 LR cartridge makes small bullet holes in paper. These can be hard to see if you’re shooting at large, black bulls-eyes, particularly at an indoor range. Also, when shooting rimfire, you’ll go through ammo quickly. For that reason we recommend targets with bright-colored, multiple aiming points.

Pistol plinking practice Rad fluorescent target fun

Pistol plinking practice Rad fluorescent target fun

The 19″x25″ Sight-Seer target (left) is great for pistol practice. It features eight red bulls on a 1″-square grid. Ultra bright fluorescent red inks, printed on heavy, 60-lb vellum paper, are highly visible, even indoors. You can use a classic Six O’Clock hold with this target, putting the bottom of each circle on top of your revolver’s front sight.

The smaller, 8.5″x11″ Sinclair Fluorescent Sight-In Target (right) has four small diamonds surrounding a large center diamond overlaid on a 1-inch grid. Diamonds and grid are printed in fluorescent red/orange on white, heavy-grade paper so your shots print nice and clean. A 25-pack is $6.99 at Brownells.

Recommended .22 LR Ammo Box

smith wesson model 617 mtm ammo caddy carrier box plastic

When we go to the range with rimfire handguns or rifles we bring this handy ” target=”_blank”>$13.99 MTM ammo caddy. The compact carry case will hold boxed ammo, plus you can lay out your ammo in 10-round rows (with 100 rounds nose-down). This makes it easy to fill the 10-Rd cylinder on your Model 617. This ammo case is offered in both blue or red (rust) and there is room in the center for more ammo boxes. One recent purchaser notes: “Very handy box for .22 LR makes knowing your shot count easy”.

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