Saw a S&W model 27 commenrative issue of the .357 magnum in a local shop today. Had gold engraving on the frame saying 50th Anniversary 1935-1985. Was in a wood presentation box with a certificate saying it was one of 2500 manufactured. This beauty had a 5" barrel with a price tag of $625. An obvious collector's piece, don't know if I could keep from firing a few hundred rounds through it though. So far I have bought handguns in order to fire and enjoy them. Just wondering how rare a deal this may be and if the price is in line for a collectible? Would have to convince myself it is worth dropping 6 C's just to say I have one.
50th Ann. S&W 27
- Thread starter HondoBWH
- Start date
VictorLouis
New member
I agree with Frenchy
My budget doesn't allow room for safe-queens, which I feel that such a piece deserves to be.
If your's does, then I susect that 5-10yrs. down the line, the price won't matter too much.
My budget doesn't allow room for safe-queens, which I feel that such a piece deserves to be.
If your's does, then I susect that 5-10yrs. down the line, the price won't matter too much.Yes, it's been impressed on me by more than one dealer that shooting a commemorative lowers its value to that of a regular production gun. So, I never shoot this type of gun, if only because I don't want to throw my money away. Also, collecting guns as objects to be purely admired rather than used is a legitimate firearms hobby, although I can't say I've gotten into it.
Anyhow, since the value of a gun is what anybody is willing to pay for it, and since the 50th Anniversary S&W M27 would be worth $625 to me as a collectible--due to the history connected with the .357 cartridge and the fact that the M27 used to be the flagship of the S&W line--I'd go for it. But I wouldn't shoot it, ever, if the first cartridge would cost me nearly 200 bucks in resale value. I have other .357s to shoot anyway.
Anyhow, since the value of a gun is what anybody is willing to pay for it, and since the 50th Anniversary S&W M27 would be worth $625 to me as a collectible--due to the history connected with the .357 cartridge and the fact that the M27 used to be the flagship of the S&W line--I'd go for it. But I wouldn't shoot it, ever, if the first cartridge would cost me nearly 200 bucks in resale value. I have other .357s to shoot anyway.
Rather than put that kind of money into a commerative (think Franklin Mint)......I would rather add a bit more to the kitty and patiently hold out for an original .357 Magnum, registered, in less than perfect condition. Then I could have the real deal and a shooter in the same package.
Sam
Sam
Phil in Seattle
New member
Hondo, if you decided to not purchase that M27 would you mind dropping me an email telling me which shop it's at? I'd like to have a look at it.
Idovote@aol.com
Idovote@aol.com
The issue of shooting older guns or keeping them as "safe queens" came up earlier this week on another forum. In that particular instance, the revolver was a Smith & Wesson made in 1950. Reposted below are my initial thoughts:
Original poster - "So, what's the consensus from everyone? Should I turn this pistol into a Safe Queen or continue to put a few rounds thru it now and again? Gun has been carried and shot."
Original response - "Do yourself--no, do us ALL a favor and shoot it. A lot. That's what it was made for, some fifty odd years ago. Let everyone at the local range shoot it, too. And their children. Especially their children. Then when they ask why it FEELS so different than a new 686, or why it only holds 6 rounds instead of 19, and where's the safety, or the built-in lock or the injection molded plastic? --well, you'll understand what a priceless treasure you really have.
And why it needs to be shot, and shown, and shared.
See, it's not just a revolver, but a blued-steel or nickeled timepiece. A timepiece that vividly illustrates not only how much time has passed since 1950, but also how much times have changed. Back before gangsta rap, we didn't need 15 rounds. Back then, guns were tools, not talismans. They were arms, not amulets. Guns enriched us, not empowered us and having more rounds didn't make us more of a man. And it doesn't have a lock because, well, back then, we locked up criminals and not guns. Today, we do just the opposite. Back then, we protected ourselves; today we are protected from ourselves. The silky smooth action on a box stock gun? Glad you asked. We called that craftsmanship, back then. Back then, CNC machines didn't do the final fitting, files did. Files held in the skilled hands of people who mastered a precision trade, cared about their craft, their country, their families, and about themselves. Today, well...it's about tolerances. The small tolerances capable with computer aided machines and the greater tolerances of consumers who are satisfied as long as it goes bang when you pull the trigger.
Here's another recommendation sure to make the collectors faint. Take that Holy Grail $75 screwstick, bore a hole in it, and put in on your keychain. Look for any reason and every opportunity to take it out in public so people will ask, "What it THAT?" "Glad you asked", you say. Tell them it's the key to a time machine -- that just turning it between your fingers reminds you of a time in our past when the only people that feared Americans with guns were either criminals or would-be dictators. It really used to be that way. And we all NEED to remember. Show them the precise knurling. Let them feel the texture and admire the deep blue. Get them interested in learning more about that period in our history when Americans were proud, and independent, self-reliant, and free.
Turn it into a safe queen? Please! I don't even understand the term. What's the point? So your treasure will appreciate in value by what, one, two thousand dollars max? It's MONEY. They print more every day. And all those bills look alike. What you have purchased with relatively little of that folded paper can make something worth far more than more folded paper. It can create memories. Each unique, each unforgettable. Every time you use it. Every time someone else holds it, closes the cylinder, or works the action. Don't just shoot it, USE it, at every opportunity. Wring all of the memories out of it.
While you still can.
Because if ALL of us don't do all that we can to introduce our gun-fearing culture to our gun-defended heritage, not one, and I mean NOT ONE of those treasured safe queens is really safe at all.
God bless. "
To this, I would add that my comments apply equally, if not more so, to engraved, rare or ornate guns. For example, one of the members in the Smith forum has several engraved K22's. Fully covered with engraving and inlays, they are breathtaking and truly make the K22 worthy of the title "masterpiece". With one of those revolvers and a case of .22's, I believe I could attract more women and children to the shooting sports than the NRA in six months of television commercials. These revolvers have the attraction of a Faberge egg, overcoming the natural or instilled reluctance of some to handle implements they mentally associate only with grim and, often, lethal purposes. Those that are otherwise rare or special likewise generate greater interest because they come with a story to tell. The wear and tear experienced through teaching a thousand women and children basic marksmanship with an engraved and ivory stocked K22 can be measured in three or, at most, low four figures. The long term significance of changing the public's perception of our hobby, our sport, and the very instruments whose existence and ownership gave rise to Constitutionally protected rights is, at least in my mind, priceless. Very, very few guns that would b encountered outside of museums are too valuable to shoot. However, I can think of several freedoms that are too priceless to lose, or fail to protect out of concern for a couple of C-notes.
Original poster - "So, what's the consensus from everyone? Should I turn this pistol into a Safe Queen or continue to put a few rounds thru it now and again? Gun has been carried and shot."
Original response - "Do yourself--no, do us ALL a favor and shoot it. A lot. That's what it was made for, some fifty odd years ago. Let everyone at the local range shoot it, too. And their children. Especially their children. Then when they ask why it FEELS so different than a new 686, or why it only holds 6 rounds instead of 19, and where's the safety, or the built-in lock or the injection molded plastic? --well, you'll understand what a priceless treasure you really have.
And why it needs to be shot, and shown, and shared.
See, it's not just a revolver, but a blued-steel or nickeled timepiece. A timepiece that vividly illustrates not only how much time has passed since 1950, but also how much times have changed. Back before gangsta rap, we didn't need 15 rounds. Back then, guns were tools, not talismans. They were arms, not amulets. Guns enriched us, not empowered us and having more rounds didn't make us more of a man. And it doesn't have a lock because, well, back then, we locked up criminals and not guns. Today, we do just the opposite. Back then, we protected ourselves; today we are protected from ourselves. The silky smooth action on a box stock gun? Glad you asked. We called that craftsmanship, back then. Back then, CNC machines didn't do the final fitting, files did. Files held in the skilled hands of people who mastered a precision trade, cared about their craft, their country, their families, and about themselves. Today, well...it's about tolerances. The small tolerances capable with computer aided machines and the greater tolerances of consumers who are satisfied as long as it goes bang when you pull the trigger.
Here's another recommendation sure to make the collectors faint. Take that Holy Grail $75 screwstick, bore a hole in it, and put in on your keychain. Look for any reason and every opportunity to take it out in public so people will ask, "What it THAT?" "Glad you asked", you say. Tell them it's the key to a time machine -- that just turning it between your fingers reminds you of a time in our past when the only people that feared Americans with guns were either criminals or would-be dictators. It really used to be that way. And we all NEED to remember. Show them the precise knurling. Let them feel the texture and admire the deep blue. Get them interested in learning more about that period in our history when Americans were proud, and independent, self-reliant, and free.
Turn it into a safe queen? Please! I don't even understand the term. What's the point? So your treasure will appreciate in value by what, one, two thousand dollars max? It's MONEY. They print more every day. And all those bills look alike. What you have purchased with relatively little of that folded paper can make something worth far more than more folded paper. It can create memories. Each unique, each unforgettable. Every time you use it. Every time someone else holds it, closes the cylinder, or works the action. Don't just shoot it, USE it, at every opportunity. Wring all of the memories out of it.
While you still can.
Because if ALL of us don't do all that we can to introduce our gun-fearing culture to our gun-defended heritage, not one, and I mean NOT ONE of those treasured safe queens is really safe at all.
God bless. "
To this, I would add that my comments apply equally, if not more so, to engraved, rare or ornate guns. For example, one of the members in the Smith forum has several engraved K22's. Fully covered with engraving and inlays, they are breathtaking and truly make the K22 worthy of the title "masterpiece". With one of those revolvers and a case of .22's, I believe I could attract more women and children to the shooting sports than the NRA in six months of television commercials. These revolvers have the attraction of a Faberge egg, overcoming the natural or instilled reluctance of some to handle implements they mentally associate only with grim and, often, lethal purposes. Those that are otherwise rare or special likewise generate greater interest because they come with a story to tell. The wear and tear experienced through teaching a thousand women and children basic marksmanship with an engraved and ivory stocked K22 can be measured in three or, at most, low four figures. The long term significance of changing the public's perception of our hobby, our sport, and the very instruments whose existence and ownership gave rise to Constitutionally protected rights is, at least in my mind, priceless. Very, very few guns that would b encountered outside of museums are too valuable to shoot. However, I can think of several freedoms that are too priceless to lose, or fail to protect out of concern for a couple of C-notes.
I'm likely returning to a gunshop that I know in the Southern Ca. area to buy a 50th anniversary M27, his price new in the box though is 550 which should make right about 600 out the door after taxes and DROS fee.
I bought 125 years of S&W anniversary 25-3 from the same guy for the same price and it's going to be one of my shooters, very well taken care of but it will be one of my shooters.
I figure I'm going to be the only one in my family that will likely be able to actually enjoy the gun and understand the tradition/value associated with this gun. Having it sit there in a case and look pretty for 10-20 years(if not a whole heck of a lot longer) isn't likely to bring me as much pleasure as being able to shoot it during the same period of time. I'd rather it become a cherished family keepsake that has additional meaning and tradition associated with it other than that of a collectible "look but don't touch" gun. When and if I have kids it will likely be that they view this 45LC 25-3 with the same type of respect as I hold towards my grandfather's old 38/44 Outdoorsman.
If I get the 50 years of the model 27 anniversary gun it too will likely be a shooter. Only reason I can come up with for not wanting to buy it is that I'd prefer a 6 1/2 inch barrel that mimics what my 38/44 Outdoorsman has, that and I'd like to have whatever model 27 I get be a -2 type. But I may just end up getting this 27-3 50 year anniversary gun because more guns is better than less guns
I bought 125 years of S&W anniversary 25-3 from the same guy for the same price and it's going to be one of my shooters, very well taken care of but it will be one of my shooters.
I figure I'm going to be the only one in my family that will likely be able to actually enjoy the gun and understand the tradition/value associated with this gun. Having it sit there in a case and look pretty for 10-20 years(if not a whole heck of a lot longer) isn't likely to bring me as much pleasure as being able to shoot it during the same period of time. I'd rather it become a cherished family keepsake that has additional meaning and tradition associated with it other than that of a collectible "look but don't touch" gun. When and if I have kids it will likely be that they view this 45LC 25-3 with the same type of respect as I hold towards my grandfather's old 38/44 Outdoorsman.
If I get the 50 years of the model 27 anniversary gun it too will likely be a shooter. Only reason I can come up with for not wanting to buy it is that I'd prefer a 6 1/2 inch barrel that mimics what my 38/44 Outdoorsman has, that and I'd like to have whatever model 27 I get be a -2 type. But I may just end up getting this 27-3 50 year anniversary gun because more guns is better than less guns