You've got the "pinned barrel" figured out. "Recessed" means it has a counterbored cylinder so that the cartridge rim is flush with the back face of the cylinder, and the back face of the cylinder is nearly flush with the frame opening.
Strength-wise, the S&W revolvers all have a letter designation frame size. The 19 is a "K" frame, as is the 686. The 27 is an "L" frame; a bit heavier and larger. The 29 (Dirty Harry's .44 Mag) is an "N" frame - lots heavier.
The K frame guns will not withstand a steady diet of full-house loads - they will eventually loosen up from the pounding. For a medium .357 load, they will withstand many thousands of rounds with no problem. There may be some flame-cutting on the topstrap if you shoot it a LOT, but that can be prevented with a replaceable piece of shim stock fitted around the topstrap at the forcing cone.
The Old vs. New debate on the S&W wheelguns will go on forever. My perception is that the old ones were better fitted and better finished; it didn't just have to be "good enough" - it had to be as good as they could make it.
Strength-wise, the S&W revolvers all have a letter designation frame size. The 19 is a "K" frame, as is the 686. The 27 is an "L" frame; a bit heavier and larger. The 29 (Dirty Harry's .44 Mag) is an "N" frame - lots heavier.
The K frame guns will not withstand a steady diet of full-house loads - they will eventually loosen up from the pounding. For a medium .357 load, they will withstand many thousands of rounds with no problem. There may be some flame-cutting on the topstrap if you shoot it a LOT, but that can be prevented with a replaceable piece of shim stock fitted around the topstrap at the forcing cone.
The Old vs. New debate on the S&W wheelguns will go on forever. My perception is that the old ones were better fitted and better finished; it didn't just have to be "good enough" - it had to be as good as they could make it.
