{"id":38829,"date":"2015-07-23T01:34:30","date_gmt":"2015-07-23T05:34:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/blog\/?p=38829"},"modified":"2015-07-23T01:34:30","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T19:55:00","slug":"a-long-range-revolver-smith-wesson-647-varminter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/a-long-range-revolver-smith-wesson-647-varminter\/","title":{"rendered":"A Long Range Revolver? Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>

The Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter, shown without the included red dot sight or blade front sight.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Buy one on GunsAmerica\/Search.htm?T=Smith + Wesson + 647<\/a><\/p>\n

Check it out at Smith & Wesson: Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter<\/a><\/p>\n

I first laid eyes on this little\/big gem while on a prairie dog hunt in the great state of Montana. It took just one shot at a distant prairie dog for me to know I had to get one in my hands. Big, heavy, long and beautiful, its performance on varmints was astounding.<\/p>\n

The Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter is a product of the famous Smith & Wesson Performance Center. That\u2019s where souped up guns, with lots of extra design\u00a0features, and tender loving care come from. While you can discern the Performance Centers roots from the engraving on the side, this gun looks the part. Brushed stainless steel finish, shrouded and fluted barrel and beautiful wood stocks make its premium status pretty obvious.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter with a Bushnell Elite handgun scope. Note the rear site has been removed to allow space for the optic.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The stocks are two piece wood with internal pins to keep the halves from shift around.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

In the box<\/h2>\n

This revolver arrives in pieces so to speak. You can think of it as a modular platform with a bunch of goodies inside the box that you can configure to your personal taste.<\/p>\n

The revolver itself arrived naked. It had an adjustable rear site and the built-in rail, but nothing else mounted. The rear sight is a standard black notch design with windage and elevation adjustment screws. Included in the box is a front sight that clamps onto the exterior of the barrel, just forward of the fluting. This sight is a flat black, partridge style blade. The edges and corners are sharp, so you can get a crisp sight picture. If you want to go irons only, just pop this on and you\u2019re ready to rock.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter comes with a red dot optic, bipod, and stainless steel rail segment. I used the Warne scope mounts to try a Bushnell Elite 3500 handgun scope.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"Both<\/a>

Both hammer and trigger are chromed.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

While we\u2019re talking about sights, you\u2019ll find a UTG 6\u201d Commando red dot sight in the box too. This model comes with a Weaver \/ Picatinny mount that installs on the machined-in rail on the 647 Varminter. The optic offers adjustable red and green illumination and a sun shade up front.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll find a stainless steel Picatinny rail segment that\u2019s about 1 \u00be inches long. This screws onto the base of the barrel shroud just forward of the ejector rod. This is for the included UTG Shooters Bipod. This Bipod comes with a Picatinny rail clamp to mount directly to the Smith rail segment. The legs are about 4 \u00bd inches long with wide rubber feet for stability. The bipod legs lock into the up and down positions and release with a gnurled sliding knob. It\u2019s an easy, quick, and positive locking action. The mount itself has a limited swivel movement, so once the legs are planted, you can traverse the revolver side to side. This traverse plate has a friction adjustment, so you can loosen the swivel action or lock it down according to your personal preference. The UTG Bipod comes with its original packaging, so there are extra goodies in there like a swivel stud mount. You won\u2019t need this for the Smith & Wesson 647, so just know they\u2019re there in case you want to use the bipod for other guns.<\/p>\n

Also in the box are the obligatory extras including cable gun lock, owners manual, and fired cases. You\u2019ll also find two keys for the internal lock present on most (or maybe all) of new Smith & Wesson revolvers. Because lawyers.<\/p>\n

The Revolver<\/h2>\n

At first glance, you might think the 647 Varminter is a slightly scaled down version of the 460XVR, except the cylinder is a heck of a lot smaller. A barrel shroud with machined-in rail extends forward of the frame, then transitions to a long and elegant looking fluted barrel. On the 647 the shrouded section extends almost 4 \u00bd inches from the frame. The fluted barrel segment is an additional 7 inches, part of which is covered by a locking ring. Overall barrel length is 12 inches. With a satin stainless finish all around, this is one attractive revolver. You\u2019ll notice a shallow beveled crown on the muzzle which helps protect from nicks and dings.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The rail segment is machined into the barrel shroud.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The front sight is easily removable if you want to go with a pure optics solution.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

The shroud completely covers the ejector rod until you release the cylinder. One note here. There are about 1 \u00bd inches of clear space between the front of the ejector rod and the bipod mount which I found to be plenty of room to operate the ejector rod without interference.<\/p>\n

The cylinder itself is fluted. As the .17 HMR is a rimmed cartridge, the chambers are inset into the cylinder, so cartridge bases line up flush when inserted. The ejector star is inset likewise.<\/p>\n

Both hammer and trigger are chromed. The trigger has an adjustable over-travel screw, accessible with a small Allen wrench from the back side. When I received the gun, it was properly set with no detectable over-travel, but you can adjust according to your preference in seconds. While we\u2019re talking about the trigger, I tested single-action pull weight at exactly 4.25 pounds. In single-action mode, there is hardly any movement prior to a crisp break, perhaps somewhere between 1\/16 and 1\/32 of an inch. The double-action trigger press exceeded my 10 pound Timney Trigger scale, but my educated guess is that it\u2019s around 12 pounds. This is one of the few revolvers I would almost always shoot single-action anyway. I for one am not going to go all revolver purist and take precise long distance shots through a magnified optic using double-action. The hammer has aggressive checkering and has a positive feel, so cocking for single-action shots is easy and sure.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The cylinder and ejector star are recessed for the rimmed .17 HMR cartridges.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The rear sight is adjustable for windage and elevation. Note the grooves to reduce glare.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

The stocks are two-piece wood. They are mounted using pins that lock them into position on the frame and an additional pin that secures them to each other. A single screw keeps them in place. Unlike other two-piece handgun stocks I\u2019ve seen, these are incredibly secure. There is what I would describe as \u201csoft\u201d checkering on the sides of the stocks. This is appropriate as there is not enough recoil to make a super-sticky grip surface a necessity.<\/p>\n

The Ammo<\/h2>\n

.17 HMR is a rimfire cartridge, but fortunately, it\u2019s a lot easier to find than standard .22LR. It\u2019s also more expensive, owing to its performance, bottleneck design and premium bullets.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"I<\/a>

I tested three different types of .17 HMR ammo: Hornady V-Max, Hornady XTP, and CCI FMJ.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The .17 HMR uses a bottleneck cartridge based on the .22 Magnum.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

Brought to market by Hornady back in 2002, this cartridge is derived from the .22 Magnum. The .22 WMR cartridge case is necked down to take a .17 caliber projectile. Large case capacity, combined with bullets in the 17 to 20 grain weight range, make for a smokin\u2019 hot rimfire. .17 HMR can max out, in the right gun, around 2,500 feet per second. To put that in perspective, it\u2019s about twice as fast as .22LR although the projectiles are about half the weight. It\u2019s a flatter shooting, longer distance cartridge perfect for varmint hunting. I guess that\u2019s why this gun is called the Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter.<\/p>\n

For this review, I tested three varieties of .17 HMR ammunition.<\/p>\n

Hornady V-Max 17 grain<\/p>\n

Hornady XTP 20 grain<\/p>\n

CCI FMJ 20 grain<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll get into specific performance of each through this revolver a bit later.<\/p>\n

Optics<\/h2>\n

As we mentioned earlier, the 746 Varminter comes with a red dot optic. It\u2019s fast, and perfectly appropriate for hunting, but this gun far exceeds the sighting capability of a 1x red dot. The very first thing I did was install a Bushnell Elite 3500 handgun scope. The Bushnell Elite 3500 is a 2-7x variable optic with duplex reticle. The outer area crosshairs are thick, while the inner crosshairs are fine to improve visibility and assist with precise aiming. Now we\u2019re all set. The gun is capable of making a fire ant dance at 100 yards, so some magnification is in order, but that\u2019s just my opinion. With the wide variety of potential uses for this revolver, I completely get why Smith & Wesson includes a general purpose red dot. If you buy a gun like this, you\u2019re probably going to have very specific preference in optics. The included red dot lets you get started, then you can customize as you wish.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The included red dot optic offers red and green adjustable intensity dots.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The iron sight is not in the way of the included red dot, but I had to remove it to mount a magnified scope.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

Shooting<\/h2>\n

Oooooh. That about sums up the shooting experience. This revolver is noticeably louder than a .22LR, but that\u2019s expected given the significantly larger case and charge. Recoil is non-existent, also owing to the tiny, lightweight bullets coming out the fiery end. I started off shooting with the included red dot, but it immediately become clear that this is a 100 yard plinking gun. 25 yards is simply too easy. You can literally pick off aspirins all day long at that distance. The included red dot is fast and will get you going immediately after purchase, but I got spoiled and quickly mounted the Bushnell Elite 3500 magnified optic.<\/p>\n

Shooting the iron sights with precision was surprisingly easy. Depending on exactly where you mount the front sight, you\u2019re going to get about a 14-inch sight radius, which starts to approach rifle territory. This extra long sight picture, combined with the sharp flat black blades and notches, is easy to shoot, even for aging eyes. The front sight is about a mile and a half in front of your face.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"Shooting<\/a>

Shooting from the bench, making use of the bipod.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"Cylinder<\/a>

Cylinder capacity is six rounds.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

This gun is not so heavy as to prevent a two-handed hold, but the bipod will spoil you. Rest it on a table, nearby log, or even the ground, and your ability to make precise shots magnifies ten-fold. The bipod is heavy duty enough that you can apply forward pressure against the legs to gain stability. I didn\u2019t worry about bending or breaking anything.<\/p>\n

The action was silky smooth right out of the box, as I would expect from a Performance Center gun. Even with the tiny, and sometimes finicky, .17 HMR cartridges, the ejector operated without fail. I have yet to get a cartridge rim stuck under the ejector star.<\/p>\n

Cleanliness is next to Godliness<\/h2>\n

.17 HMR is a tiny cartridge. As a result, the cylinder holes are also tiny, as is the ejector star. In fact, all the internals are tiny. Tolerances are tight, so it\u2019s extra important to make sure the 647 is clean. When everything is small, there\u2019s just not much room for slop. Check the chambers to make sure there\u2019s no gunk in there that will interfere with proper headspacing of the diminutive .17 HMR cartridge. Dirt can push the cartridge back a bit, causing friction with the breech face. If you feel any unusual tightness in rotation of the cylinder, check for debris under the ejector star. It\u2019s a simple case of knowing your gun and keeping it clean.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"Note<\/a>

Note the trigger overtravel stop. It’s adjustable from the back with a small Allen wrench.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The overall barrel length is 12 inches, 4 1\/2 of which is shrouded.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

Velocity<\/h2>\n

With the 12-inch revolver barrel, you won\u2019t get the full velocity of 2,500 feet per second that you might obtain with a full length rifle. I tested velocity using a Shooting Chrony Beta Master Chronograph placed 15 feet down range and observed the following:<\/p>\n

Hornady V-Max 17 grain: 2,096 feet per second<\/p>\n

Hornady XTP 20 grain: 1,952 feet per second<\/p>\n

CCI FMJ 20 grain: 1,987.5 feet per second<\/p>\n

Bottom line? You\u2019ll easily get about 2,000 feet per second with most, if not all, flavors of .17 HMR ammunition. That\u2019s kinda smokin\u2019 from a handgun, don\u2019t ya think?<\/p>\n

Accuracy<\/h2>\n

Hey, this revolver says performance center on the side so I decided to start my accuracy testing at 50 yards. 25 yards is for sissies. Since the target was 50 yards out, and my eyesight is rapidly stinking more and more, I used the configuration with the Bushnell Elite 3500 handgun scope, which offers 7x magnification. I shot 6-round groups, so every chamber was counted in the averages. From multiple groups, here are the average group sizes at 50 yards.<\/p>\n

50 Yard Accuracy, Six shots<\/h3>\n

CCI FMJ 20 grain: 1.41 inches (Best 6-shot group was .78 inches!)<\/p>\n

Hornady V-Max 17 grain: 3.7 inches<\/p>\n

Hornady XTP 17 grain: 1.7 inches (Best 6-shot group was 1.41 inches)<\/p>\n

When you look at that, you might think, \u201cOh, that\u2019s nice.\u201d Just remember, this was from 50 yards, using the bipod from a table, not a machine rest. The .78 inch group kinda blew me away, so I figured I\u2019d move a target out to 100 yards. Yes, for a revolver.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"I<\/a>

I used the Bushnell Elite 3500 variable 2-7x handgun scope for accuracy testing.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The CCI FMJ turned in an amazing .78-inch group for 6 shots at 50 yards.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

100 Yard Accuracy, Six shots<\/h3>\n

CCI FMJ 20 grain: 2.94 inches<\/p>\n

Hornady V-Max 17 grain: 5.92 inches<\/p>\n

Hornady XTP 17 grain: 4.04 inches<\/p>\n

Let me say that one more time. 100 yard accuracy testing for a rimfire revolver! Dang, this part was fun.[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

1.41″ 6 shots, 50 yards with Hornady XTP.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

A 6-shot, 3-inch group from 100 yards. Not too shabby!<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

Closing Thoughts<\/h2>\n

While this gun is clearly optimized for small game and varmint hunting, it sure makes a fun plinker. Take it to the range with a younger or newer shooter, and I guarantee they\u2019ll be hooked. Using it from a table with the bipod makes the size and weight a moot point. The smallest (responsible aged) child can handle this gun with ease that way. Better yet, the inherent stability ill give them plenty of satisfaction with easy hits on target.<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"Note<\/a>

Note the pins on both the frame and inside the stocks to prevent shifting of the two halves.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"Although<\/a>

Although I didn’t really need it, I used a bag of lead shot to stabilize the gun for accuracy testing.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

Lest you think this is a newbies gun, I think I appreciate it even more for plinking. There\u2019s not much more fun than a good rimfire. The ammo for .17 HMR is generally premium stuff for hunting and varmint control, so you\u2019ll pay more than for .22LR, but than than .22 Magnum on which this cartridge is based. One suggestion, if varminting, use any ammo you want. If you plan to hunt small game for the pot, consider using FMJ bullets as they\u2019ll preserve a lot more meat. A V-Max projectile moving at 2,000 feet per second will certainly leave a mark!<\/p>\n

Factory Specs<\/h2>\n

Model 647 .17 HMR Varminter
\nMSRP: $1,419.00 *
\nSKU:170229
\nModel: 647 – .17 HMR Varminter
\nCaliber: .17 HMR
\nCapacity: 6 Rounds
\nAction: Single\/Double Action
\nBarrel Length: 12″ \/ 30.5 cm
\nFront Sight: Black Ramp
\nRear Sight: Black Blade Adjustable
\nOverall Length: 17″ \/ 43.2 cm
\nWeight: 54 oz. \/ 1,530.9 g
\nGrip: Wood
\nFrame Material: Stainless Steel
\nCylinder Material: Stainless Steel
\nFinish: Satin Stainless
\nOther Features: Red Dot\/Green Dot Sight
\nBi-Pod
\nChrome Hammer
\nChrome Trigger with Trigger Stop
\nPerformance Center Tuned Action<\/p>\n

[one_half]<\/p>\n

\"Great<\/a>

Great big revolver, tiny little .17 caliber holes.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half]<\/p>\n

[one_half_last]<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>

The iron sight is not in the way of the included red dot, but I had to remove it to mount a magnified scope.<\/p><\/div>\n

[\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This isn’t your average revolver. The Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter is a complete long-range package. What kind of accuracy can you expect from a rimfire handgun? You just might be surprised. Read our review of this unique wheel-gun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":38843,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_specdata_upc":"","_specdata_placement":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7,42,209],"tags":[798,132,102,108],"featured":[],"hunt365":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-38829","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-gunsamerica-authors","8":"category-revolvers","9":"category-tom-mchale","10":"tag-17-hmr","11":"tag-buzz","12":"tag-feature-articles","13":"tag-guns"},"yoast_head":"\nA Long Range Revolver? Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Smith & Wesson's 647 Varminter is a long range revolver with a lot of potential. If you're a dedicated wheel-gun fanatic, this may be right up your alley.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/a-long-range-revolver-smith-wesson-647-varminter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Long Range Revolver? Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This isn't your average revolver. The Smith & Wesson 647 Varminter is a complete long-range package. What kind of accuracy can you expect from a rimfire handgun? You just might be surprised. Read our review of this unique wheel-gun.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/a-long-range-revolver-smith-wesson-647-varminter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gun Reviews and News | GunsAmerica.com\/Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gunsamerica\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"http:\/\/facebook.com\/mygunculture\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-07-23T05:34:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-18T19:55:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/Smith-Wesson-647-Varminter-16.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Tom McHale\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@http:\/\/twitter.com\/mygunculture\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@gunsamerica\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Tom McHale\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"15 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/a-long-range-revolver-smith-wesson-647-varminter\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/a-long-range-revolver-smith-wesson-647-varminter\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Tom McHale\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0d300d007eac411171a5b1eff424c4de\"},\"headline\":\"A Long Range Revolver? 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