Research Help-1970's Handgun

The P210 was available in the U.S. in the 1950's, so it would have been around, though not common, in the 1970's. Later, a batch of Danish surplus guns was sold in the U.S., so there were more available.

Jim
 
am a fiction writer, and am currently working on a short story in which one character carries a revolver. This man is middle-aged, and has been a hobbyist collector for the past two years. Guns are a new interest for him, and he favors buying the newest, top-of-the-line models; the flashier the better. He lives in Virginia, and the story takes place in the June of 1986. He would have bought the revolver within the previous couple of months, and it needs to f
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Lots of fiction readers here as well! Don't see law enforcement, or department issued anywhere in this post.

With understanding your criteria......Colt Diamondback 38Spcl 4" Nickel, factory engraved should do it.
For those thinking LE, think BBQ gun instead. Sounds like what the OP was looking for to me.
Here's some info.
http://www.chuckhawks.com/colt_diamondback_classic.htm

Just noticed, too late! OP already made this choice. Where's the delete button? :D
 
For the second person, I'd go with either a Browning Hi Power which was very popular worldwide, especially Europe, or a Walther P-38.
 
For the second person, I'd go with either a Browning Hi Power which was very popular worldwide, especially Europe, or a Walther P-38.
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In 1982 I bought a Silver Chrome finished Browning High Power. It is finished in matte chrome with neoprene grips and adjustable sights. It may be a good candidate for the second character's sidearm.
 
How about a Korth revolver ? Very high end, exotic for a revolver. Made in Germany, that fits your European requirement.
 
A fully factory engraved Smith & Wesson Model 29 with genuine factory ivory grips.

Had one on consignment in the store where I worked in the 80s that belonged to a friend of mine. Almost had it sold to a couple of Tonton Macoutes who were looking for a "birthday present" for Jean-Claude Duvalier.

Totally impractical gun, but very flashy and very expensive.
 
The OP already made his mind, but the nitpicking me needs to say this again: Do you remember 1986?

Let us read again:
he favors buying the newest, top-of-the-line models
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...
and the story takes place in the June of 1986.
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The Diamondback was new in 1966. The 29 in 1955 (even if not by the number), as was the Python. They were old, very old news by 1986.
 
Quote:
at what range would it be nearly impossible for someone to miss a human-sized target.

A couple of inches.
No kidding.
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Exactly. I saw a guy (USPSA A-class shooter, for an idea of skill) miss a humanoid target placed at the far end of an open 55gal drum. It would be a lot easier to miss someone or something moving, trying to kill you, in a defensive situation.
Almost all entertainment errs in portraying how easy it is to hit things, anything, with a gun. People who have never fired a gun, squeeze off a round with their eyes closed, and hit someone about to split their skull with an axe, etc.
Much more realistic would be the person not knowing how to disengage the safety, then being surprised by the length or weight of the trigger pull, then triggering off eight or ten rounds and not hitting the intended target. Heck, that happens to cops, all the time, and they have at least a minimal amount of shooting skill and experience.
 
Old news?, but what does that mean to our collector?

micromontenegro said:
The Diamondback was new in 1966. The 29 in 1955 (even if not by the number), as was the Python. They were old, very old news by 1986.
micromontenegro is offline Report Post
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The OP stated the character was a collector with a two-year history. I suspect a 20-year-old Colt Diamondback would pique his interest greatly.

The only nit-pick I would introduce is the finish. As practical and as flashy as the nickle finish is, the Colt Royal Blue would have a gravitational pull on a collector's heart that (to my mine) would be irresistible.

In 1986 the gun was (and in 2014, still is) a classic, with a capital CLASS.
Just one man's opinion.

Lost Sheep
 
K.Benjamen said:
Also, with both of these guns, at what range would it be nearly impossible for someone to miss a human-sized target.
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Something in excess of 90 percent of self-defense and police shootings take place at distances less than 21 feet. Statistics for OISs (Officer Involved Shootings) tell us that police in actual shooting situations (that is, under stress) hit the intended target about 19 percent of the time.

So -- nearly impossible to miss? About three to five feet (that's "feet," not "yards").

And I believe you suggested that the collector protagonist had only been "into" guns for about two years. That doesn't correlate with the notion that he's a very confident shooter -- unless his confidence outweighs his abilities, in which case confidence alone will not assure a hit.
 
I personally believe he would have carried what was and still is the best looking gun ever made. The Beretta Cheetah.
 
For something that really stands out as weird, but very high quality in a revolver:

Manurhin MR 73
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manurhin_MR_73
There was also a 3" barrel F1 model.

Korth

The Korth would be the ultimate snob gun - super pricey. The MR 73 is apparently one of the nicest revolvers made, but wouldn't have broken the bank in '86. It was just rare in the US.

Otherwise nicer Colts, Charter Arms, Dan Wesson and Ruger DA revolvers would have been less common choices than a S&W, but guns like the S&W Combat Masterpiece would have had gravitas.

A S&W 25 that fired .45 ACP from moon clips would also be a little different.

For autos - Korth, HK P9S and P7, Benelli B76, Walther P4 or P5C and Bernadelli P-018 would also be oddball/snobby choices for automatic arms. The Bernadelli was a really nice gun, and a lot less common than an HK or Walther.
 
Lots of fiction readers here as well! Don't see law enforcement, or department issued anywhere in this post.
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You're right. It was in a follow-up post by Benjamin.

The character not described above is a park ranger at Shenandoah. He is off-duty, and would be carrying his personal gun. As he has a special connection to Austria, it is likely he would carry a European make. He is all about reliability and accuracy, and would have had the gun for at least ten years. For him I am favoring the Sig P210.
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Hence my consultation with an acquaintance who was a law enforcement ranger. I don't think that the National Park Service would allow for optional firearms. The Federal Government can be more bureaucratic than state or local. If the fictional character were allowed to carry a '70s gun other than a S&W Model 10 in 38 Special, it wouldn't have been a 45 ACP Browning Double Action (the import name for the then bottom magazine release Sig P220). The .45 ACP had a stigma around it thanks to the 1911.
 
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