Utilisation

From its philosophy of use, a Kit Gun is very often a revolver. It must indeed have above-average reliability, be able to fire even when wet or dirty. The use of a cylinder also makes it possible to guard against firing incidents linked to the ammunition: if a misfire occurs, it suffices to press the trigger a second time to fire the shot.

But the Kit Gun must also be light. Dedicated to being carried over long distances to be used only occasionally, it does not matter that it is less comfortable to shoot than a sports revolver. To do this, Smith & Wesson opts here for a “J Frame” carcass (the smallest of the brand) in its Air-Lite version in aluminum alloy.

The ammunition of the Smith & Wesson 317 Kit Gun is naturally the .22 LR. Available in a wide variety of loadings, the small cartridge has the advantage of costing little and weighing nothing. You can therefore easily carry a comfortable amount of it on your travels.

Moreover, in .22 LR, this Smith & Wesson 317 will be able to support a rifle in the same spirit. Ammunition will thus be pooled to further minimize clutter. It will be recalled for all intents and purposes that the .22 LR can be used just as well to finish an animal as to improvise a recreational session with the family, to hunt small game or to defend oneself from an assailant. Pure versatility.

Functioning

The Smith & Wesson 317 Kit Gun uses a lock that allows both single and double action firing. We can therefore press the trigger directly in a rapid reaction shot, or arm the hammer beforehand to better place his shot.

In single action, this trigger weighs around 1.4 kg (which is excellent). In double, we go to 5.4 kg (perfect for safe carrying) with a race that remains short and dry.

Like all modern Smith & Wesson’s, the 317 Kit Gun’s barrel rotates counter-clockwise and swings to the left side of the frame. It has 8 chambers, served simultaneously by a star extractor. The unlocking of the barrel is done by a square button to push forwards, located on its left side.

Features

To reach a weight of 330 grams, all steel has practically been eluded in favor of an aluminum alloy. This includes the frame, the barrel and even the barrel sleeve enclosing the rifled stainless steel tube. Cleverly, Smith & Wesson has also kept the crucial steel parts: extraction rod, firing mechanism, sights and unlocking control.

The Smith & Wesson 317 Kit Gun is compact, but it should not be confused with a pocket weapon. We will enjoy here a barrel of 3″, a length necessary to ensure a good pick-up of speed for the projectile, and a good exploitation of the sights.

The latter are also typed “varmint”: The rear sight has a V-shaped notch allowing you to shoot quickly, but is adjustable to shoot accurately. It will include a HiViz handlebar with green fiber optics, guiding the eye even in bad light. Off-road.

In the same way we will have here a real stick, capable of offering a complete grip to all users. It is made of hard rubber to lock the revolver in hand in all weathers.

In short, a weapon in tune with its purpose, even if it is not widely accepted on our side of the Atlantic. The sport shooter at 25 meters will of course find more appropriate things on the rest of our site, but this excellent Smith & Wesson production fully deserved its place in our catalog.