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My wife owns a 642 and I own a 640. I used to own a 642, but traded it with a forum member for the 640. Both are good pistols. If you’re only going to ever shoot .38 Special, get the 642, as it is a lot lighter than the 640. If I were to buy another .38 or .357, I would not buy a “hammerless” (enclosed hammer) design like eithe of those two. The double action on those pistols is not that great, if you’re into triggers, and they can be a little stiff for people with weaker hands. My wife stopped carrying her 642 for that reason.....it was too hard for her to shoot it well. She now carries a G43, and before that, a Kahr CW9, and finds both of those pistols MUCH easier to shoot than her revolver. I also own a M&P340 in .357, which is another enclosed hammer J-frame, but with a Scandium frame. It is REALLY light to carry, but the trigger pull is still about the same as the 640. I keep it as a “throw it in a pocket for a walk to the mailbox” kind of gun. But if I were to buy it again, I would buy the exposed hammer version, just so as to have the option of single action fire if I wanted it. These pistols are so stubby, with such a short sight radius (and such minimalist sights anyway), that well placed aimed fire becomes more difficult than it would be if you had single action available to you. They are fun to shoot, but I would use mine more often for plinking and casual shooting if it could be thumb-cocked. You can always bob a hammer to make it more snag-free on the draw, and I just don’t see myself shooting from inside a pocket or something, so I don’t find the enclosed hammer to be that much of an advantage - at least within the context of my life.