Sure, if you have $1000.00 go out and buy a S&W Model 17 like Driftwood Johnson recommends
You DO NOT have to spend $1000 to get a S&W Model 17.
I keep saying that but some folks are not listening.
You have to hunt around, turn over a lot of stones, and sometimes you have to be in the right place at the right time.
Sure, you can go on Gunbroker and pay too much if you must have it right now. This 17-3 is one year older than mine. Mine still has the box and all the stuff this seller laid out. The only differences I can spot between this 17-3 on Gunbroker and mine is the style of hammer and the grips. I doubt if those are the original grips that came with the gun, mine came with Magna grips which I believe were standard for that model.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=509852005
Here is mine for comparison.
I paid $600 cash for this vintage K-22 from 1932. I am showing both sides to show that it has plenty of wear on the blue. And the grips are not correct for a gun that age. But it still shoots as true as it did in 1932. Interestingly enough, when I asked Roy Jinks to look it up he mentioned it was a Police Pistol Team revolver, hence the lack of any blue on the right side of the frame above the trigger. Somebody put a heck of a lot of rounds through this baby over the years. But what can I say, it was made in 1932 and still shoots fine today. Believe it or not, I actually bought this gun at an auction, where prices usually run high because of the competition. But this one came up late in the day and most of the bidders had gone home. When the auctioneer put it up for bids, there were no takers. None. I had been looking for a K-22 for a while, and this one was not perfect, but what the heck, I put up my card and won it for $600.
I ran into this used 617-6 at a local shop a few years ago. Again, $600 out the door. Not $1000. But you have to be persistent. You have to turn over a lot of stones. You ain't going to find that classic Model 17 for $500 first time out. But if you are persistent, they are out there.