I’ve started and stopped this article a few times now, mostly because I didn’t know how deep to dig into the world of the Dan Wesson M15 series. I was at an estate sale, saw an M15 for sale priced at $400, and snatched it up. At that point, all I knew about the M15-2 was that they were well-made, stout wheel guns with a good reputation, and you could swap the barrels at home with ease.
That was it. Oh, and I knew that $400 was a great price point for one of these. Then I went out and shot it, loved it, and wanted to do a review. It’s a seemingly standard .357 Magnum double-action revolver.
With that said, I always do a little research about the guns I’m writing about, and I found tons of information on what makes the M15 and Dan Wesson revolvers different. There’s enough to write an entire article, so I’ve simplified the things and tried to get it right the best I can.
Interchangeable Barrel System
I guess most revolvers have removable barrels, but that requires some specialized training and tools I wouldn’t know how to use. To remove and swap a Dan Wesson barrel, all you need is a simple proprietary wrench and a feeler gauge. They’re available on eBay for about $75.
The rifled barrel is a free-floating tube that locks into the frame. A barrel shroud sits around this barrel. A large nut at the front of the shroud is tightened, which pulls the barrel forward. This prevents barrel squaring and the stress associated with squaring the barrel.
When attached, the barrel has some longitudinal stretch that distributes stress along the entire barrel and shroud, not just the end threaded into the frame. This is supposed to resist barrel whip and improve accuracy.
Besides all those benefits, you can also swap barrel lengths. Dan Wesson sold kits with numerous barrels from 2.5 to 15 inches long.
Coil Mainspring
The Dan Wesson M15 series uses a coil mainspring instead of a flat mainspring. This isn’t unique to the M15, just a bit uncommon, and from what I read, the Colt Trooper also has a coiled mainspring. Both the M15 and Trooper were designed by Karl Lewis.
That allows you to use a variety of different-sized grips, which likely makes it easier to configure into a concealed carry gun with smaller grips and a shorter barrel. Additionally, I read that this is a more durable spring design.
Cylinder Latch
Most cylinder latches sit behind the cylinder. The Dan Wesson M15 takes a different approach. The cylinder latch is located in front of the cylinder. It’s located on the crane and is supposed to increase the structural strength of the frame.
It’s also surprisingly ergonomic. When you reload, your non-firing hand is already in a position to activate the ejection rod.
The M15-2 – A Gun With Generations
This again is model is the M15-2. There is also an original M15 that used a flanged barrel shroud that’s often called a pork chop shroud. It had a flared shape at the front of the muzzle, which some people found ugly. The 15-2 uses a sleek design with a hidden barrel nut.
The M15’s barrel shroud aligned with a recess in the frame. The M15-2 uses a roll pin inserted into the frame. The pin fits into the barrel shroud, which is reportedly made for more consistent alignment. The M15-2 introduced more barrel length options, giving us choices of 2.5, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, and 15-inches.
The M15-2 is the more common design and was produced in much greater numbers. After CZ acquired Dan Wesson, they produced the M15 with a new shroud type. I’ve sent CZ an email to see if the new CZ barrel will work with old guns because I really want a 2.5-inch barrel for my Dan Wesson.
At The Range
I warmed up with some .38 Specials and I delighted in how they felt like a mouse fart coming from the M15-2. The hefty gun ate recoil like I eat Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. ‘Pleasant’ describes it well. Shooting rapid strings was a breeze, and I think this thing loaded with some modern .38 Special +P JHPs would make it one helluva defensive revolver.
I’m really not a big revolver guy, but I’ve drifted into that territory recently. I’m not as good as I want to be, but I’m getting better. With the M15-2, I was able to land a double tap at ten yards into the nine-ring of a B8 target in just under a second. It took some practice and a few warm-up drills, but for a guy used to 9mm semi-autos with red dots, that felt fast to me.
I dropped in some Remington .357 Magnum rounds and let fly. The recoil increases, of course, as does some gas blowback. It’s stout with hot and heavy JHPs, but very controllable. In fact, this might be one of the easiest shooting .357 Magnums I’ve shot. The big grips and long barrel certainly help.
Even one-handed shooting with .357 wasn’t difficult, and the authoritative smack of .357 Magnum on steel is an incredibly pleasing sound. Hitting falling targets at the base and seeing them explode rearward should provide me with endless entertainment.
Lead on Steel
The rear sight is adjustable for windage and elevation. It’s easy to make adjustments, and the sights are robust. The ramped front sight is orange and sits atop a handsome ventilated rib. It’s kinda like a stout Colt Python that’s not quite as pretty. The big six-inch barrel provides a nice, long sight radius.
I fired a string of six .357 Magnums at 15 yards in double action in four seconds, and almost produced a great group. I had one flyer that made me want to kick myself. The other five landed in the heart of a Sage Dynamics thoracic target, so I guess I’d win the fight.
At 50 yards, I could hit an IPSC-sized piece of steel with ease. Even in double action, I was going six for six most of the time. With single action I could almost always hit a reduced 33% sized IPSC target. I hit more than I missed, but the front sight covered most of the target.
Did I mention that I love the trigger? The LCR used to be the best stock trigger I’d ever handled, but the M15-2 knocks it off its throne. The double-action trigger pull is short, light, and smooth. The single-action trigger feels like I’m pressing a button rather than pulling anything approximating a trigger. Combine that with the huge grips, and you’ve got a revolver that’s very easy to shoot accurately.
My only complaint about the M15-2 is its short ejection rod. I was sitting there ejecting empty cases, and the rod is so utterly short, I didn’t fully press the cases out. And it hit me. Duh, it has to be short so it can use a shorter replacement barrel without a problem. I guess that’s a sacrifice you have to make.
A Total Blast
The M15-2 might have become my favorite revolver, unseating a Ruger Security Six. It’s just so much fun to shoot, so easy to control, and extremely accurate. The M15-2 is also flawless in reliability. Pull the trigger and the gun goes bang. Dan Wesson may have never made the same splash as his ancestors, but the M15-2 is a wonderful handgun, and I can only hope CZ brings them them back some day.
Travis, you made out like a bandit on that deal. Welcome to the Dan Wesson world of revolvers!
Towards the end of the covid brouhaha, I had CZ-USA do a 4 inch barrel & shroud for my 445, so it’s likely they can do 357s also. It came with a black steel ramped front sight—no red insert parts available at that time, may be different now. You can give it a dab of paint, or get replacement front sights on ebay and elsewhere that will come with a variety of insert colors. They are very simple to swap out, held in place with a tiny Allen screw that locks it against a roll pin. Remove the screw and the sight pops out of the channel.
The new ones were sent out with a multi-tool and .002 feeler gauge, so anybody who finds a used DW revolver should ask about them.
korean war vet dementia cost me a security six, i’d rather have my old pal back.
this is one helluva nice ‘volver.
It looks like CZ / Dan Wesson no longer make revolvers. I can find parts, but no complete guns.
Is that the case or am I just not looking at the right place on their websites?
I believe you are correct. IIRC, CZ-USA bought Dan Wesson back in 2005 and soon began to favor the 1911 business at the expense of revolvers. Wheelguns were dropped completely around 2018, although they still make parts available. I don’t know whether they service them. I was able to get that 4” barrel & shroud by sending an email to CZ-USA, and it was forwarded to a helpful lady in their company who was able to have one made. That was in the summer of 2022.
Hawkeye, can you post the address of the person who could arrange getting a barrel / shroud made?
For years, I wanted a Monson-made DW pistol pack (carrying case with the weapon, numerous barrels, and all the tools) in .41 mag (they made these for a few years in the early ‘80’s, but are now scarce as hens’ teeth).
But a friend of mine found one online, which I was able to purchase. Then I had the best wheelgun smith in Texas do a trigger job on it. Great shooting hand cannon, but I would love to get a 4” barrel for it.
My first gun was a Dan Wesson .357 magnum. this was back in 1977 – 78, timeframe, and even then, it was an amazing weapon.
I think the model you have there is actually a 15-2 VH. That is the Ventilated, Heavy duty barrel. I had the 8 inch version, then a Pistol Pack with the Western and Pachmyer Grips, Belt Buckle, along with all the barrels. That was a great gun that I mistakenly loaned to my Brother-In-Law for Sheriffs Academy. I have not seen it since his sister, my now ex-wife, started dating around. Another lesson learned…