Smith Model 19

N

Nightcrawler

New member
There's a used, stainless S&W Model 19 in a local shop for $299. It's a really nice looking revolver, and it's in great condition.

I don't know anything much about the Smith revolvers. Is the Model 19 a good buy? Is it strong? Can it handle a lifetime of heavy .357 loads?
 
If it's stainless steel, it's not a Model 19, it's a Model 67 (crap, I can't never keep that conversion straight).

If it's shiny and stamped Model 19, it's nickel plated.

In my opinion, the Model 19 is simply the finest combination of weigh, ergonomics, power, simplicity, etc. ever put into a .357 Mag. revolver. It truly has no peers, which is why I have 3 of them.

However, the Model 19, after lengthy service with full T&B (tilt & boogie) .357 Mag. loads, can shoot loose and require servicing. That's the reason why the 586/686 models were developed -- to add beef to critical areas to allow better service life with FTB loads.

Will a Model 19 rattle loose after a cylinder full? No. Will it shoot loose faster than a 586 or a Model 28? Yes, that's simple physics -- the same power levels in a smaller package wears the smaller package faster.

Is it still the finest .357 Magnum revolver ever produced?

Without question, yes.
 
f it's stainless steel, it's not a Model 19, it's a Model 67 (crap, I can't never keep that conversion straight).
Click to expand...

Close -- it's a model 66 if it is stainless.

I've got a 19 and a 66. Great guns.

M1911
 
The K-frame .357s are great guns. Not as strong as an L-frame (586, 686, 581, 681) or a Ruger GP100. They are a compromise between strength and carry size. They are perfect .38+P guns (they'll never wear out with those) that can shoot many .357s.

That said, most of us will never shoot enough .357s out of our guns to wear out a good K-frame (too darned expensive). It should last many, many, years.

Where the K-frame .357 really shines is if you may ever carry it. Much lighter and easier to carry than a 686/585 or Ruger GP100 (there is a price to the strength).

These guns are big enough to be comfortable shooting most .357 loads (unlike a J-frame), small and light enough to carry comfortably, strong enough to handle many years of .357 use, very accurate, very smooth (or can be), and handle well. They are great guns, like everything they're a compromise but a compromise that makes it a great general purpose .357. If I'd only have one .357 it would be a K-frame (it was for quite a while).
 
It just occured to me that you just bought your first handgun, a CZ 97, recently so you don't have a revolver let alone a .357 yet. GET THE GUN. Run don't walk and if it is in good shape get it!

Everyone needs a good revolver in .38 or .357 (or both).

The .38 caliber is probably the most versatile (probably even more so than the ever versatile 9mm). You have cheap .38 practice rounds (the only thing cheaper is 9mm), highly accurate and quite mild target wadcutters (almost as mild as shooting .22s, great for introducing new shooters to guns), good .38 defensive ammo and highly effective .38+P defensive ammo. With .38s you can get in a lot more shooting for the buck than you can with your .45acp.

With a .357 you can shoot .38s and you have alot of versatility with the .357 round as well. Relatively mild defensive ammo, strong defensive ammo, really strong hunting ammo. You haven't lived until you've shot some hot .357 ammo out of a good revolver.

A revolver simply has a degree of class that no autoloader has (and you know how much I love my CZs). There is something about the look and feel of a nice revolver. Also, they are simpler to clean and maintain than an auto.

At minimum a collection needs one good autoloader (you have it) and a good .38 or, even better, .357 revolver. Just be sure to check this thread (even print it out and bring it with you):
Jim March's revolver checkout
 
"Close -- it's a model 66 if it is stainless.

I've got a 19 and a 66. Great guns."


Thanks for the corrx. I can never keep that straight. I don't have any interest at all in the stainless guns, so it just doesn't stay with me.
 
Mike,

Like you, I find the 19/66 quite impresive. But the finest .357 ever made? IMNSHO, not even close. If you've ever fired an older Model 27 Smith, or a Colt Python, the 19/66 comes in a distant third. But then, that's just MNSHO!!!

And I must admit that I have a fondness for heavy .357s. The 27 was designed to carry a little and shoot a lot. The 19 was designed to carry a lot and shoot a little.

It seems to me that the price is just a bit high. I would think that about $250 would be top dollar for a used 19/66. Am I behind the times? (Sometimes, us old pholks don't keep up with the latest)
 
The model 19 "combat magnum" is a great revolver. I don't know about the price, but it is a very nice weapon. Watch-Six
 
"Can it handle a lifetime of heavy .357 load's?"
Click to expand...


Truthfully speaking, NO it cannot handle a lifetime of
heavy .357 load's. That is why the L-frame 586/686 were
put into production; as the company was seeing more and
more K-frame's battered by HOT .357 magnum loads.
At any rate, the hottest of loads will eventually wear out
any handgun design; but I would take my chances
with a Smith & Wesson 586/686 or a Ruger GP-100 series,
if I wanted to shoot a steady diet of HOT ammunition.

$299 would be about the right price for a NIB Smith model 19.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member
 
Read my criteria list again, Griz.

Models 27/28 are a lot heavier and larger, but they are wonderful guns. I've got a ca-1938 pre-Model 27 apart on my workbench right now respringing it for a friend.

Colt Python is a LOT uglier, as in ugliest cow patty ever to plop onto a dealer's shelves. It's ergonomics also leave a lot to be desired when compared to the 19.

Given the criteria I laid out, the Model 19 is da' bomb.
 
C'mon Mike, tell us how you really feel about the aesthetics of the Python. Most people find it very attractive, but all opinions valid when it comes to personal taste.

Are we thinking that guns should last forever? They are mechanical devices, remember, and will eventaully wear out or break. Fact of life. I use my guns hard as I want. If they break or fall apart I replace them. If you just want to look at your guns and not use them, fine, they will last forever in the display case. As for me, I shoot full loads in my K frame Magnums and always have. So far so good.
 
Sounds like it is a 66.
If so, do some research, lot of variations in that model and most are not worth that kind of money unless like new.

Sam
 
The Model 27 is a fine gun, but an N-Frame is a big hunk of steel for six rounds of .357 Magnum. They shoot pleasant and are hell for sturdy, but less than ideal for CCW.

The Python...hmm, the only one I've seen recently was a Python Elite at the local Gun Emporium. After playing with it for a little while, I couldn't see trading my Model 19 straight up, much less shell out $900 for the snake. Pythons are OK, but they're not quite on the same level as a 1970s or early 1980s Model 19.
 
A Python is more of a curiosity piece.

I wouldn't trade MY 4 inch 70's era M19 for a Python.
I can hit targets with my eyes closed with it. It knows where I point. In other words, it is a natural pointing gun.

The only guns that will not wear out with a steady diet of magnums that I know of are Rugers. Even N frames which are strong as all getout, CAN shoot loose.

Not that I hate Pythons. I just don't think they are worth anywhere near the going rate. My Trooper MKIII fills a niche that a Python could, but probably won't.
 
Lots of talk about the price being high but...

It could just be my area but in the last year or so all those $250-$300 VG or better Model 19's and 66's are flat out GONE. Used to be you could'nt walk into a pawn shop or gunstore around here without finding at least a few nice deals on S/W revolvers. Now it takes some real searching.

Might be the trigger locks, S/W's politics driving the market for used guns, hi-cap mag prices, maybe with 9-11 the people finding old revolvers in drawers are just leaving them there instead of selling them, maybe just "tactical" burnout. I don't know but I do think somethings driving up the prices of these guns. Taking a look at Gunsamerica prices lately is re-enforcing my opinion on this.

JMHO, but I'm getting the vibe that if your feeling froggy toward older wheelguns it might be the time to jump on good deals.
 
"I also have 5 Colts."

I've got (or had) 13 Smith & Wessons, and 1 Colt.

The Colt was traded for a Smith & Wesson to restore proper order and balance to the universe, and because all of my Smiths kept beating up the inferior Colt product. :)
 
I own many Smiths, and over the years have probably owned upwards of 50 of them. I usually keep to around a dozen favorites.

The last 20 years have always included a Model 19.

Always a four incher. I've owned 6 inchers, but to me they are not what the Model 19 was meant to be.

It's the Magnum that Bill Jordan thought a Duty Weapon should be.

But I've never owned an M66, although a snubby almost came home with me a while back.
 
don't walk, run and go pick up the 19. i just picked up an early 70s model 19
with a 6 barrel for target shooting and it's made my 1911s jealous as the've
been locked in the safe since the revolvers arrival!!!!great fun to shoot
 
The Model 19 in all its variations is a great carry gun. I had one 6 incher that I had rebuilt three times after a steady diet of maximum but not excessive handloads. Mine went 2,000-2,500 rounds between rebuilds. You can expect about the same service life if you shoot factory .357 ammo. Any good gunsmith with S&W experience can service the gun, so it's no major problem to get it back into firing condition. If you stick with light to moderate loads, the gun will last indefinately.
 
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