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May 13, 2014
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I'm excited!
I do have a question about Dan's though... why did they decide to put the cylinder release in front of the cylinder and not back by the grip like everyone else does? It seems a bit awkward where they positioned it. Then again, I don't have mine yet so maybe it is a better location, but it honestly doesn't seem like it.
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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Good question, and I have your answer:
The front latch allows a DW revolver to align the cylinder more precisely and firmly to the barrel/forcing cone. Rear lock up allows the cylinder to wobble slightly in relation to the barrel, and the best possible accuracy results from having the bullet exit from the chamber in the most stable orientation to the barrel. In a DW, the front of the cylinder is locked into alignment with the rear of the barrel. The DW also has a spring loaded lock up at the rear of the cylinder, again, keeping the cylinder precisely aligned in relation to the barrel.
Welcome to DWF, and thanks for asking an easy question 
Steve
edit to add: Since I only shoot DW revolvers, I've also found it very easy to use speed loaders with DW. While I am opening the cylinder latch and ejecting empties with my left thumb, my right hand is moving the speedloader to the cylinder. If I had to release the cylinder with my right hand, I could not also be holding a speedloader.
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
May 13, 2014
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Steve CT said
Good question, and I have your answer:The front latch allows a DW revolver to align the cylinder more precisely and firmly to the barrel/forcing cone. Rear lock up allows the cylinder to wobble slightly in relation to the barrel, and the best possible accuracy results from having the bullet exit from the chamber in the most stable orientation to the barrel. In a DW, the front of the cylinder is locked into alignment with the rear of the barrel. The DW also has a spring loaded lock up at the rear of the cylinder, again, keeping the cylinder precisely aligned in relation to the barrel.
Welcome to DWF, and thanks for asking an easy question
Steve
edit to add: Since I only shoot DW revolvers, I've also found it very easy to use speed loaders with DW. While I am opening the cylinder latch and ejecting empties with my left thumb, my right hand is moving the speedloader to the cylinder. If I had to release the cylinder with my right hand, I could not also be holding a speedloader.
That makes perfect sense to me and I can't wait to test that at the range! 
April 28, 2014
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A good friend is a retired police training officer. He's a Smith guy, and showed me one of the things you have to watch on a Smith is not to accidentally let your thumb unlock the cylinder in a gun fight.
Supporter
June 25, 2013
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It's a right handers maneuver because you use your left hand to perform the so called butterfly maneuver to handle a revolver and that forward latch is perfect for it.
Endeavor to persevere,
Press on regardless.
Need little, want less, love more.
May 13, 2014
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I picked it up and WOW... the pictures on the auction site didn't do it justice. In fact based on the pictures I thought it may have been a bit rough and needed to be re-blued, but it looks mint except for some minor wear right on the end of the barrel, looks like holster wear. I'll try to get some pictures tomorrow after I get done mowing my Scottish Highland of a back yard! (By that I mean picture over an acre of lush rolling hills of the Scottish Highlands... then imagine that as your back yard... then imagine mowing it with a push mower!)
My LGS/FFL guy scared me though. When I showed up he asked me if the seller mentioned anything about the trigger and trigger pull, and I thought uh oh... maybe that's why it was so cheap! Then he said "Oh, no I didn't mean there was a problem... just try it." This is my first Dan, so I don't know anything about them other than what I have read, but do they all have that smooth of a trigger? My FFL guy was thinking it must have had a trigger job- it is that smooth. It even came with a leather holster, which surprised me because that wasn't mentioned in the auction. I'm not bragging about the holster though, it is pretty worn... you could say almost ratty. But the thumb break is perfect and it is a smooth draw.
This is my first .357/.38 (I carried a .45 in the military and am a bit partial to that, and I have a 9mm, 9x18 and 7.62x25 pistol as well as the venerable .22lr!) so I don't have a preference or experience with good ammo yet. The FFL/LGS has a good price on Blazer so I picked up a box of .357 JHP and .38 Special. Any recommendations on good yet affordable ammo?
I agree with my FFL guy... for $350 I think I stole it!
I think I am going to get a 4" barrel and shroud and this just may be my new carry gun when I go to town. I live WAY out in the mountains, I tend to carry my .22lr with shot rounds when I am out working on the property, mainly to take care of snakes.
It was a good day 🙂 Even my wife liked the Dan!
Dans Club
DWF Supporters
April 20, 2010
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Sounds like you grabbed a nice one, guve us a range report and some pics when you can!
"The lion and the tiger may be more powerful, but the Wolf does not perform in the circus"
Dans Club
December 5, 2008
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I think smooth actions are the rule rather than the exception. Every DW I have handled has been really smooth. The smooth action is one of the causes for 
Enjoy!
July 9, 2013
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Dan Wesson Acquisition Syndrome. Its like a Lays potato chip. You can't have just one.
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