How accurate is the Smith and Wesson Governor?

Governor

Model GOVERNOR®

Caliber 410 2 1/2"

Sight Night Sight (Dovetailed)

Optic Ready No

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State Compliance

SMITH & WESSON

State Compliance

Please check with your local FFL dealer to understand the specific state-level restrictions that may apply.

Sight

SMITH & WESSON

Sights

A2 POST SIGHT
A durable and adjustable square post sight that mounts directly to the rifle barrel.

OPTICAL SIGHTS
Sights that can be mounted directly to the rail of a rifle (or a scope base). This includes red/green dot sights that project an illuminated dot in the center of a glass sight, as well as magnified rifle scopes.

Black Ramp Night Sight (Dovetailed)

Reset Options

Weight: 29.6 oz.

Length: 8.5

Width: 1.75

Height: 5.5

Overall Dimensions

Product Features

Massachussetts Compliant!

Versatile. Lightweight. The Smith & Wesson Governor revolver puts six rounds of customizable response under your control. Load with .410 2 1/2" shotshells, .45 ACP or .45 Colt - alone or in combination with the included moon clips* - and hit your target in every situation. Plus, it's from the leading expert in revolver manufacturing over the past 159 years. Now that's confidence.

*Each Governor® is packaged with (2) 6 round and (3) 2 round moon clips for use with .45 ACP.

A moon clip is a ring-shaped or star-shaped piece of metal designed to hold multiple cartridges together as a unit for simultaneous insertion and extraction from a revolver cylinder.

ALL BACKED BY OUR SMITH & WESSON LIFETIME SERVICE POLICY.
Availability subject to applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations, and ordinances.

Specs

SKU 162410

Model Model GOVERNOR®

Caliber 410 2 1/2", 45 Colt

Capacity 6

Length 8.5

Front Sight Tritium Night Sight (Dovetailed)

Rear Sight Fixed

Action Single/Double Action

Grip Synthetic

Cylinder Material Stainless PVD

Barrel Material Stainless Steel

Frame Material Scandium Alloy

Barrel Length 2.75" (6.9 cm)

Weight 29.6 oz.

State Compliance MA,MD

ALL BACKED BY OUR SMITH & WESSON LIFETIME SERVICE POLICY.
Availability subject to applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations, and ordinances.

GunSmarts

Even a moments delay in an actionable response can result in your demise.  Most Bug Out scenarios usually occur in

• Smith & Wesson Governs Bug Out Vehicle Defense
• The Case for Wheelgun Work
• 3 Problem Solvers .45 Long Colt, .45 ACP, & .410
• A Holster For The Governor

Smith & Wesson Governs Bug Out Vehicle Defense

Your hope against hope is to slip through several rural communities bypassing any marauding souls looking to

The Case for Wheelgun Work

Have you ever tried to engage a long gun inside a vehicle?  How many times did the muzzle get buried in that soft cushiony roof lining material?  How about the buttstock hanging up on the center console, steering wheel, shift lever, or seatbelts?  What about the range of motion?  It isn’t much better even with a collapsible tube stock is it?  What about covering the zombie slipping up the far side rear fender?

From inside a vehicle wielding a long gun either shotgun or rifle is a tough proposition even for the well trained,

For our purposes we are going to accept the overwhelming proposition that the handgun is the way to go for immediate self-defense deployment from inside or either side of a vehicle.

The next debate is which handgun, and which caliber.  Any handheld firearm you, your spouse, kids, or other traveling companions can use effectively with confidence is a best bet.  That could be a six shot revolver in .38 Special, a Glock 17, Kimber 45, or a Desert Eagle in 44 Magnum or just about anything in between.  Skip the .22, and .32 for this action.  Consider a .380 with defensive bullets as a bare minimum for this work.

However, for your consideration I offer up another recommended firearm option that I have personally adopted for my in-vehicle close range defensive out the window handgun.   This is the new(ish) Smith & Wesson Governor.  Read on.

3 Problem Solvers .45 Long Colt, .45 ACP, & .410

The Smith & Wesson Governor is a six shot, cylinder loaded revolver.  It can be fired either single action with a cocking of the external hammer, or double action by simply pulling the trigger.  The most unique aspect of this firearm is that its chambers can handle three distinct rounds, the .45 Long Colt, .45 ACP, and the .410 gauge 2.5-inch shotshells in any interchangeable combination the user wishes to load them.  This defines awesome firepower!  The Governor also comes equipped with cartridge clips to hold multiple rounds that can be loaded at one time.

This flexibility option fits perfectly into a Bug Out vehicleself-defense scenario.  With an adversary approaching your ride with a menacing look a couple blasts of Winchester .410 PDX1 Defender loads with three plated defense disks and 12 BB’s would likely divert their attention.

If not, then follow up shots with PDX1 45 Colt, 225 grain, bonded jacketed hollow points ought to change the course of events.  Winchester also makes this defense load in the 45 ACP as well with a 230 grain, bonded jacketed hollow point bullet.

Another appropriate ammo selection would be Hornady’s new Zombie Max 45 auto loads using their new 185 grain, Z-Max bullet pumping out a muzzle velocity of 1000 fps.  This bullet design is an ideal choice for close quarter’s encounters.  The ammo box even offers instructions on the back panel on how to recognize zombies.  I think if you become threatened during a Bug Out that you will know who the bad guys are.

The Governor is manufactured with fixed sights the front with a Tritium Night Sight dovetailed into the barrel and the

The revolver itself is manufactured from a Scandium alloy used in the frame with a stainless PVD cylinder.  The gun’s weight is only 29.6 ounces with an overall length at 8.5 inches, height of 5.5 inches and 1.75 inches wide.

A Holster For The Governor

Holster wise owners of the Governor need to look to the Hunter Company’s basic leather hip holster #1145 made specifically to fit this firearm.  Couple that with their #145 cartridge belt to make a great combination.  The holster is a thumbsnap model that securely holds the revolver with a slight forward cant.  Slip this on their own belt that has loops to hold both .45 Colt ammo and .410 shotshells.  Hunter leather is top grain and well stitched for long term service.  This set up will work well for any prepper’s needs.

Things can get tense during a Bug Out roll scenario.  There is no way to know what perils might arise on any highway once the citizenry begins to realize that things are not normal.  At some point if your escape distance to your secure camp is lengthy you will have to stop even momentarily for relief.

You may encounter friendly folks looking for help, or gangs looking to steal your stuff or mess with your person or passengers.  You will have to determine which and be prepared to defend yourself as necessary.

For me, being able to deploy a handgun out the window or near the vehicle is my choice of response.  The Smith & Wesson Governor gives me the option of three different effective rounds offering close quarters defense as well as two rounds to deploy solid hits at some distance out.  This makes the Governor the chief executive of my state of affairs.

All photos by Dr. John J. Woods

John J. Woods, PhD, has been outdoor writing for over 35 years with over 3000 articles, and columns published on firearms, gun history, collecting, appraising, product reviews and hunting. Dr. Woods is currently the Vice President of Economic Development at a College in the Southern United States. Read his full interview here.