3" 649-1, did S&W make this?

C

Carmady

New member
I've searched and found nothing that says anything about a 649-1 with a 3" barrel.

There seems to be a recent 3" 649, but that's a .357 with a full lug barrel and non-fluted cylinder.

This is a .38, and it looks polished, too. The listing has a bunch of pics, but the only one that shows the stippling on the backstrap is the pic of the grip frame, and you have to look for it.

I'd like to know if S&W ever made these (disregarding the stippling).

Any sightings?
 

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I'm sure 3" bbl Bodyguards were produced.
I've seen pictures, such as the one you posted.
I think that one may be nickle-plated.

The Model 49 Bodyguard is the first handgun I wanted.
I still want to fill that niche after almost 30 years!:)
 
3" 649-1, did S&W make this?

In the Standard Catalog of S&W 4th Edition they show production dates for the 649 as 1985- 1998, but no listing of a 3 “ gun. Doesn’t mean it wasn’t made just not listed in this book.

Thanks for sharing this very interesting revolver.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Here's another weird one, from Armslist claiming to be a 640, but has AIRWEIGHT on the right side of the barrel. It looks like a regular stainless steel frame to me.
 

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Maybe it's an early 642 instead a 640. That's the only pic from the listing.

An article says the 642 no dash was introduced in 1990, and the 3" barrel was discontinued in 1992.

I think I read S&W used different finishes on the early SS Airweights.
 
That is a 640 made in 1994 it is rare from what smith and wesson books they say it has a
standard stainless steel frame 3 inch barrel marked airweight .
 
Well I don't know about yall but I like a 649 and one with a 3" barrel would be a neat addition. Thanks for sharing the picture.
 
That is a 640 made in 1994 it is rare from what smith and wesson books they say it has a
standard stainless steel frame 3 inch barrel marked airweight .
Click to expand...

They must have used the leftover 642 3" barrels for those 640s. I was thinking it was made from mixed parts by someone.
 
I once saw a Smith 1955 target in a pawn shop with a 4" barrel for a decent price. I passed on it to try to find out more info on it. People with more knowledge said they didn't make one. When I went back it was gone. Come to find out Smith made a handful and they were worth big money. You just can't tell.
 
That looks like a custom gun to me. The wider trigger wasn't standard, and the backstrap appears to either be checkered or have horizontal grooves in the picture with the grips removed. My guess is someone built up the gun that they wanted from factory parts. Very cool piece.
 
Smith made 3” J frames during that time periods, a 3” heavy barrel would be no big chore for them if a small special order were requested by a customer. I have a 3” heavy barrel model 60 with a square butt which was never cataloged and came from a special order of 100 pistols. Unfortunately I lost the box many years ago.
 
BusGunner007 said:
I'm sure 3" bbl Bodyguards were produced.
I've seen pictures, such as the one you posted.
I think that one may be nickle-plated.

The Model 49 Bodyguard is the first handgun I wanted.
I still want to fill that niche after almost 30 years!:)
Click to expand...
No nickel plated S&W models ever started with a 6 model number. Model numbers starting with a 6 are stainless steel only.

Yes I think that gun is rare enough and worthy of spending the $75 for a factory letter.
I own a 649 no dash and a 649-1, both 38 Spl. Superb carry pieces and both with 1 7/8" barrels.
 
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