Detective Special 2012

A

Archer 9505

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I think that a three inch Colt Detective Special (3rd issue) is a near perfect carry piece for personal defense. That being said. I don't want to spend a thousand bucks and I don't want to take a discontinued old Colt Collector's piece and shoot the B'Jesus out of it. In your opinion what contemporary revolver is available today that is close to the Colt standard, i.e. 3 inch Barrel, 6 shot, steel frame, .38 +p.
 
None of the below are 6 shot. I'd look at a 3" model 10 police trade-in. They're out there. You could also just get a model 10 and grab a 3" barrel from Midway and have a smith swap it out for you. The GP100 comes in a 3" version in .357, but it's a much beefier gun than the smith 10 or the colt det. spec. The model 10 is probably all you're going to get. Are you sticking with the 3" for sure? If you're willing to flex a bit on that, there are 4" and 2" model 10s that are around much more commonly.

The detective special is a fairly unique gun and nothing out there quite matches it. The SP101 is a 5-shot, and roughly the same size, but heavier. The cylinder walls are thicker and the barrel has a full lug. You may look at them, though, as it opens up your versatility to .357, like the GP-100 would. 3", 6-shot, carry revolvers are harder to find than they used to be. Many go with either a 5-shot j-frame sized revolver or an auto. I'm one of the few out there looking at 10's for serious work, other than a range toy.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/614882/smith-and-wesson-heavy-barrel-s-and-w-10-8-3-blue
 
I've been looking for a similar revolver to replace my Diamondback. There's a market out there for 6 shot +P .38 with good sights and a good trigger. Waiting for S&W to make one.
 
As for me, I always felt pretty good packin' one of these Model 19s from S&W.

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Not a Colt Detective Special by any means, nor a Diamondback, but fine packin' guns. They are very light and easily concealed.

Bob Wright
 
"No a Colt Magnum Carry, stainless .357 Detective Special, is what I want them to come back with."

So do a lot of folks, but don't hold your breath; I hate to see folks turn purple.

Jim
 
KyJim said:
Aguila Blanca --

How many rounds do you have through the Armscor? How's it holding up?
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I have about 500 rounds (maybe a bit more) through the 4" and about 200 or 250 through the snubby. Both are like new, but that's certainly not a high round count. I didn't buy them to be everyday range blasters. The 4" was to have a .38 Special revolver for my wife to use, but she has backed off on wanting to learn how to shoot so the gun now gets used only when teaching Basic Pistol classes.

Coincidentally, though, I had the 4" at the range yesterday for a session with student. While chatting at the counter before my student showed up, I saw what looked like a familiar set of wood grips on the waist of another customer. I dismissed the possibility he might have an Armscor, because I'm the only person in the U.S. who knows about them. An electrician who is a friend of both that customer and of the range owner showed up (he was doing some work on the exhaust fan) and the guy hauled out the gun to show off. It WAS the Armscor snubby. He had just bought it from a guy at his club and brought it in to test fire. Supposedly had a couple of thousand rounds through it, and the guy said it worked great. Then the electrician chimed in with, "Oh, yeah, the Armscor. They're great little guns, I've had one for years."

Will they stand up to 10,000 or more rounds? I don't know. I know they are considered by Armscor to be "safe" for +P but not intended for a steady diet of +P. But that was true of the Colt Detective Special, too, so I don't consider that a negative. Now that the ammo companies have developed short barrel personal defense ammo, that's what I would use in the snubby, and I might even use it in the 4-inch.
 
Thanks. I'm interested in something reliable (no Taurus) but more for "banging around" with rather than for a lot of shooting. I have some other revolvers I can use for that.
 
Bill Jordan's Combat Masterpiece

As for me, I always felt pretty good packin' one of these Model 19s from S&W.
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Very Nice Bob. I am a big fan of Bill Jordan's Model 19 and the later model 66.

What do you feed them? I have heard that magnum ammo through the k frame 19/66 can over time (and many rounds) damage the forcing cone. A short coming that was addressed with the L framed 686. Feel free to dope slap me if I am way off base.

I think the 19/66 offers a viable alternative (albeit a little bigger and heavier) to my DS specs (3inch barrel, steel frame, 6 shot, 38 +p). Although I would have the same issue of shooting a discontinued collectible pistol.
 
S&W Models 64/10 or 65/13 (stainless/blued)

But both guns are appreciably larger and heavier that a DS.

Just get a DS with holster/bluing wear.
 
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Following the thought of the OP, I was happy to find a pair of S&W revolvers, pre-36 and pre-37 (Chief's Special and Chief Special Airweight) on GB, both with 3" barrels, and a seller willing to work with me on a payment plan. Got both of them, delivered to my door by virtue of ny C&R. Couldn't be more pleased.
 
Chewie146 said:
"The detective special is a fairly unique gun and nothing out there quite matches it."

Someone already beat me to it, but the Rossi is the only one (other than the Armscor and Taurus .38s) I know of that is a small frame 6 shot near DS clone ("D" frame or what I also call J-Plus) on the market, and is .357. (I'd shoot .38s and +P's in it mostly anyway in a (any) .357 snub).

A-B'ing the two at a LGS, the Rossi is amazingly spot-on in all dimensions other than being beefier in the frame just ahead of the cylinder--than the DS. Old school hammer-mounted firing pin and, last I saw, no lock, plus Taurus lifetime warranty IIRC. Actually a nice piece, especailly for the price. Some have reported early problems, most not. I'd check out out anyway. I won't disagree with the existing and future posts extolling a used K-Smith or Ruger Speed Six for most duty, but those are larger/heavier. But, if your criteria is "same as Detective Special,"--ie, small frame, six shot--and new, the Rossi/Armscor/Taurus route is the only way to go. If .357-capable is added into the mix, the Rossi is the only one I know of.
 
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I am confused and have been waiting for one of our Colt experts to chime in here. I read in a previous thread that the Armscor looks a lot like a DS on the outside, but is nothing like it on the inside. I am glad to hear that they hold up well, I am always looking for alternatives in the revolver market.
 
Mikey,
You're correct. Internals of the Armscor are nothing like Colt's. The only person I knew who bought one spent several hours smoothing up the insides and cleaning up a gritty trigger. He says it's a "good cheap gun" after 200 rounds in two years.

Another DS solution would be to find a DS barrel and have a gunsmith swap barrels on a Colt Police Positive Special like this one.
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But the one inch difference isn't that much. I've only carried the Colt once and it was very comfortable in an IWB holster with a forward cant.
 
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