Tag Archives: Airweight

22 Years with the same old Snubby

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For those situations where a more full-sized gun isn’t on the schedule, this Smith & Wesson Model 642 Airweight has often tagged along with me, especially in hot summer months.

I picked up this 15-ounce piece of prevention back in 1997 and, while my typical everyday carry is a double-stack 9mm compact (alternating between Glock’s G19 and S&W’s M&P 2.0) this .38 special often pokes its head out of the safe for various uses. While not perfect, they do have their place and this one has been nothing but faithful for 22 years.

More on its journey in my column at Guns.com.

My ‘Less than two-pound’ EDC for summer carry

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Here we have a S&W Model 642 Airweight in a leather Bianchi #6 waistband holster loaded with five rounds of 130-grain Federal HST +P that altogether weighs 19.6-ounces. Sure, accuracy past 15 yards is not as tight as a full-sized handgun with a nice long sight radius, but I can still keep it center mass out to 25– and with a little practice so can anyone. As there are only five rounds in the cylinder, I carry a pair of Bianchi Speed Strips with another 10 rounds loaded and ready inside a repurposed Altoids tin for an additional 5.9-ounces. Why the tin? It is actually lighter than any speed strip wallet I have come across and holds the reloads securely and rattle-free. On the downside, if someone catches a glimpse and wants an Altoid they are SOL.

The light is a Streamlight Microstream which is just 1.2-ounces with the battery and the wallet is a Magpul Daka minimalist which, even when loaded with the same stuff as the regular leather pocket rider, only weighs 1.8-ounces. Finally, for those moments when something sharp is needed, a Leatherman Skeletool KBx multi tool joins the crowd for a downright skinny 1.4-ounces and haves the benefit of a bottle opener, which is handy for those craft beer emergencies. All up weight for a gun, light, holster, 15 rounds of ammo, knife, and wallet is 29.9-ounces.

More details in my column at Tac-44, here