I bought this gun at a gunshow in October of 2011.





It had what you might call "Issues", but the lockup was good and I thought; "What the heck, I'll give this guy his asking price of $150, a rear sight can't be that hard to find."

When I asked him where he got it he told me that it had been hanging in his shed since he moved in, and he thought someone at the gunshow might want it. This was the only gun he had, and I happened to be there right as he set it on the table and put the sticker on it. Sometimes God favors the fool.

At the time I only had an inkling as to what a Registered Magnum even was. I thought the gun had a weird hammer, and didn't make much sense, but any .357 Magnum S&W with good lockup is worth $150. Later, when I had it out in the sun and was looking at the little REG in there, it dawned on me what I had, I must admit that I giggled in a most unmanly fashion.

Six months later I had the letter and a modified incorrect rear sight on it. This is the letter:



Fast forward to last year: I find a set of broken Pre-War Magnas. They are pretty bad but very nicely repaired by a man who does amazing things with wood. At this time I had given a lot of thought to what I wanted to do with this gun. While it is a prime candidate for refinishing I don't think I ever will do so.

I like a gun that shows that it's been places and used, and this gun has most likely been to Mexico, yet somehow ended up hanging on a nail in a shed in Southwest Washington state with some downright criminal butchery done to it's rear sight and top strap. But you know what? It shoots great.

Just look at this grin on my Grandfather's face:



That's the magic of a registered magnum right there.

So my decision was to get it back to shooting as it did when it left the factory, which involved getting a set of pre-war magnas and as I came to discover an incredibly elusive pre-war sight.

The Magnas were very damaged:



I would have left them that way had they not been such a hindrance to shooting. So when I had them repaired I made it very clear to the amazing guy fixing them that matching the wood was not a priority, this gun is to shoot, not to look pretty. I couldn't be happier with the job he did.

So that brings us to today, where I am so close to having this gun where I want it to be I can taste it. I found a Pre-War N Frame sight, not quite correct (I believe it should have some grooves below the blade and be more of a matte blue instead of polished), but close enough for my purpose right now.











So yeah, I need that screw. The one in there "works" but it's just an old buggered thing I found in a box of screws that clearly sticks up where it shouldn't. Any idea where I might find the correct screw? I'm kind of coming up blank on my searching.

Once I have that screw the Saga of the $150 Registered Magnum can finish another chapter and I can happily shoot it to my heart's content.

Well, it's not exactly a $150 gun any more, my total investment plus the letter is sitting at about $450 + whatever that screw brings me to. So pretty dang close to that mythical $500 RM.


Also I do have 2 Side notes/questions.

1) I've learned a fair bit since I last had this gun out. Should my Call Gold Bead front sight have, I don't know... a bead on it?

2) The cylinder is a bit sticky opening, I asked the question elsewhere and got a good reply, I thought I knew what the issue is, but fiddling with it some more since I got this sight has led me to believe that my issue is probably slight end shake. If I pull the cylinder back slightly it will no longer be sticky when I open it. It's a really small amount, but it does clear up that stickiness. I wouldn't say this gun had more end shake then most of my other guns, but I'm thinking that any end shake is probably more then it was built to have?


Edit:
Everything is together. Have the correct sight, screws, stocks that match it nicely. Basically the only thing at this point I would like to change about it is to find a set of nearly wrecked Ropers to put on it, that match the overall look of the gun. I'm going to keep it this way. It's a fantastic shooter and I love that the gun really shows what it has been through. When I decide I need a shiny Registered Magnum, I'll just get a second one.

Thanks everyone for all the information and help with this along the way.

Edit again; Dang it, I just realized (again, apparently I forgot) that the gold bead on my front sight is missing. Something more to fix!

Last Edit I think: See post #60 for what are the "proper" ropers for this gun, for me.

What a great story! I bet putting it back together bit by bit was almost as much fun as finding it.

Yes, the Call gold bead should be on the rear face of the front sight blade. I think it sticks out from the surface and the McGivern doesn't, or the other way around...

It sounds as though you have diagnosed the stickiness problem and how to fix it. I'm sure someone here can advise you exactly how to do this.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Truth be told the discoveries along the way about what was right for this gun have reinforced my decision to keep it as is and just shoot it.

I figure when I can get enough money I'll buy one that's really nice too, and keep right on shooting this one.

For a while I was expecting to have to modify this pre-war K-Frame sight I found:



Compared to the N I just found:



But I was having a heck of a time trying to find someone who actually wanted to do the work somewhat locally, so I went back to scouring the internet for an N Frame sight. Edit: Found the sight! All good now.

It's a bit of a shame that it doesn't quite fit, makes me wonder if whoever messed up the sight in the first place also ground off a bit of that checkering, but it should be shooting correctly now I think.

The Call gold bead is flush with the rear surface of the front sight blade. The
McGivern gold bead is a semi-sphere, and so projects back from the rear surface
of the front sight blade.

You could probably find a good welder who could repair the front end of the
rear sight leaf. You'd probably have to get the sight leaf reblued after such a
repair, but that is not a big deal.

Mike Priwer

Ahh thank you, that's one question down.

I suspect the bead is under a layer of corrosion if it's still there, the face of the front sight is pretty thick with it.

That was my guess on the front sight. I'll bet you find gold under the crud.

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Living a dream - S&WCA #2364

Now that's a gun with character! I'm with you, keep it as is, and enjoy it. Good shooting.

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PTLAPTA!

"So yeah, I need that screw. The one in there "works" but it's just an old buggered thing I found in a box of screws that clearly sticks up where it shouldn't. Any idea where I might find the correct screw? I'm kind of coming up blank on my searching."

If the thread is correct, just alter the screw. If the head is too large in diameter to fit the recess of the sight tang, use the "poor man's lathe" to reduce it until it just fits. Gentley chuck the screw in a portable drill and secure the drill handle in a vice, upside down, so that the screw head is parallel to the floor. Turn on the drill, at a slow speed and reduce the screw head diameter with a Swiss file, checking often until the head just fits. If the screw now fits the hole, but is too thick to fit flush, turn the drill back on and gentley file until it is flush. Place the screw in a padded vice and and, using a jeweler's saw or an extremely thin file, cut a new slot. Polish with emory cloth, degrease with rubbing alcohol, and cold blue.

You now have a custom made rear sight screw.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

Totally cool story.
Congratulations on a nice score. If it would have been me, I would have casually asked the old Gentleman if I could poke around in his shed. That's the kind of story where somebody opens a door and there's a cherry '67 GTO under a tarp, just sittin' there.

Or maybe a 5" 1950 Target Model .44 Special......on the front seat of the GTO. Hey, I can dream.

Go take a look, then report back.


Jim

Wonderful story and dedication to your dream of restoring the function of that old RM - and maintaining its character. Thanks much for sharing,

Jerry

I think I need to go to the hardware store.

The annoying part is that I have to go out on a business trip for the next 8 days and will be away from my garage. Stupid work always interfering with the really important stuff.

Over many years, I have gotten pretty good at modifying screws to go places they never were intended for, and have even made up my own screws from whatever scratch I could find. In the process, I have accumulated lots of oddball taps and dies, most of which I haven't used, or maybe only once.

If yours originally shipped to Laredo, It's a very good bet it didn't take very long to cross the Rio Grande. Then as now, Laredo has been a major crossing point for things which go bang. I know, having lived there for awhile, over 20 years ago.

Sixgun,

Great find, great story and great resurrection so far.

For that sight screw, you might have better luck at an old gun smith. Gun screw thread count is usually finer than typical screw threads. Also I know several suppliers that sell old Smith screws or reproduce them, just shoot me a PM if interested.

The black staining on the cyl: is that rust pitting or just metal stains? If stains, try acetone. If that doesn't do it (ok nobody get their hair on fire now if you haven't tried it), Naval Jelly works well. Just don't follow the directions for using it to remove rust by leaving it set on the metal surface! Used carefully with a little on a rag, it will wipe away most metal stains. The beauty of it is, that it won't leave the metal shiny like 'mechanical' removal such as steel wool or very fine grit paper.

The front sight blade corrosion can be removed with fine grit paper wrapper around a hard flat surface. Avoid sanding the Call Bead. Finish up with 600 grit which will leave a brushed, non-relective surface. Then touch up with OxPho Blue from Brownells. Now go back and polish the Call Bead with silver polish on a Q-tip.

Once you find someone to Tig weld a little metal on the front end of the rear sight, he can also run a small bead of weld in the gouge in the top strap checkering. File the bead down flush with the top of the checkering. Count the lines per inch of the checkering and get a matching checkering file from Brownells. Carefully follow the checkering lines with the file, first one direction and then 90 degrees to the first direction. In this case the checkered surface is a blessing. You'll never see the repair.

The horizontal lines in the rear surface of the rear sight can also be cut with a checkering file by only filing in one direction. When I count the lines on my S&W sight, I get 10 lines per 1/4". That's a standard checkering size; get a 40 lines per inch checkering file. If you're lucky, that might be the same size as the top strap checkering and you'll only need to buy one file! By the way it's also the correct size for the lines on a S&W 'Boughman Quick Draw' front ramp sight and it's a #1 checkering file at Brownells.

Hope you find these tips useful. Have a safe trip and we look forward to a progress report when you return!

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Jim
S&WCA #819

What they said. I can't offer any help repairing the damage done in the past, I can only enjoy the story and pictures. Thanks for sharing.

SixgunStrumpet,
What you don't realize is that the carved notches on the original grips were put there by a former owner denoting each "bank job" he did using the RM.

In all seriousness, the look on your Grandfather's face while shooting the RM is worth 10x your investment!!

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Miss My Buddy crsides!!

Actually those post war magnas were very cleverly carved to loop a pinky under the grip if you are right handed.



Despite the heresy of messing up such a nice set of stocks I find I really do like them, especially after doing a bunch of SAA shooting.

I came to the same conclusion, to wrap the pinky. Even if you replace them since they are post war, I'd keep them with the gun because of their matching 'character'.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Sort of, the set of grips that were actually on the gun when I bought it were that set of Herrett's on the right in that photo. You are right in that they are in character for the gun, and they were actually what I had on the gun until I found the set of pre-war magnas for it. They went straight on there as soon as I got it home. Those modified magnas were just something I had picked up in a $5 grip bin at a gun show.

Frankly I hate these Herett's, sometimes I take a passionate dislike to things like Hi-Point firearms, Sean Penn, lima beans, and those grips. They look terrible on the gun, they don't fit my hand at all, and I just don't like them. They've sat in the bottom of my grip drawer for the past 2.5 years until yesterday when a friend of mine was asking if I had any spare N frame grips for him to try out.

As I type this I am looking at those Herretts and the set of bone grips in a box that I am about to go mail to him.

I've nothing to add other than I have been enjoying your thread. It sure keeps hope alive for finding an RM!

Didn't we run into each other at a shop in Bothell? I remember a similar RM story......

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Even older, even crankier....

i like those bone grips

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Kris
OGCA, NRA LM

thank you for sharing

If it was DJ's most certainly.

I'm kind of hard to miss, big red beard guy.

Yup, you were talking to a newbie and I joined the conversation. We should do coffee sometime, drop me a pm if you like......

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Even older, even crankier....

Nice to see local guys finding great stuff at gun shows! I had kind of given up, especially with the nonsense of the past 8 months.

Great story and great gun. I'm way more impressed with what you've done than the guy who cashes out the 401(k) and buys a 99% RM + box and tools for several grand. No offense to those guys here on the forum, but...

Whenever I get back from being on the road I will send that PM A10.

As far as the local gunshows go: I haven't been to one in months now. I was suffering serious withdrawal symptoms, it's part of why I have picked up some guns off of gunbroker, and part of why I have been focused on fixing this one. The shows have just been so terrible with the current gun control craze that I can't bring myself to go to them, and I used to be a serious junkie (anyone who used to frequent the WAC shows would probably recognize me easily)

Honestly I have quite a few projects and gun related things I should do, but I sort of save them up.

I figure as soon as I get married I won't be able to buy guns like mad any more, so I better buy a lot of them now and worry about fixing them up later, when I can't buy any more, because: married.

Say What?

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"We deal in lead, friend."

I had a lot of respect for your judgment in buying and fixing up this shooter RM (way better idea to me that buying some display model), but you just ruined it.

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NHI, 10-8.

Great story and a nice find Sir, Congrats!

GREAT story Strumpet, just wonderful, thanks for sharing.

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Bill
Dis B. Leaf

I'll join everyone else and say a great story, a great gun and good for you for putting it back to work.

Oh, and good for you for not asking if you should have it re-blued, or hard chromed or otherwise ruined. It's got great character and tells its own story as is.

Dave

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RSVN '69-'71
PCSD (Ret)

I think that Roy Jinks may have misspelled the name of the store owner. Probably should be Zuniga, not Zungia. Just a guess, based on having seen a lot of Zunigas and no Zungias. May be a typo.

I'd certainly restore the gun as much as possible, but it's yours, eyesore that it is...

Was there rust in the action?

Nah, that very first picture is basically the extent of the rust. There's a bit of very very light pitting here and there on the cylinder mostly. The bulk of the corrosion is on the front sight with a patch of it right under the hammer as you can see in the first picture.

I've spent a bit of time with some brass wool and elbow grease to clean it up. Just slowly and carefully removing a bit more of it every time I have it out.

The thing is that I don't really think it's an eyesore personally. I really like how it's worn, I mean lots of guys have beautiful and nearly pristine, or restored and fully pristine Registered Magnums, I'm the only guy with one that looks like mine.

If it were heavily pitted and really messed up that would be something else, but it's remarkably free of pitting or corrosion at all really.

I appreciate a really nice RM as much as the next guy. So much so that when I have the money I'll be dropping it down on a second one, a pretty one (If anyone happens to have a 5" Registered magnum with a Lanyard ring, Magnas, a grip adapter, Baughman front ramp, and an Ambidextrous King Cockeyed hammer in the box you should sell it to me, I promise to love it forever).

I am impressed with your ability to find two prewar rear sights. They are tough. I am also impressed with your willingness to handle its problems with out a lot of kvetching.

Here is a picture of a rear sight on a registered magnum.

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Luke 22:36

Actually, I'm happy as a clam about having to do simple fixes to a gun like this. The thing is I'm a very hands on learner, I don't really retain information unless it's very real and in front of me. A gun like this is amazing for a guy like me.

I really wish I were a handier guy, but I do not have the knack for really doing serious wood or metalwork. I never really have. I do however have a knack for tracking down rare or unusual things. Which leads to your point on prewar sights:

I now have found three prewar rear sights as of a couple minutes ago:



My sincerest apologies to anyone here that I may have beat out on the auction.

My hope is that the sight fits my Registered Magnum since it appears to be the right one, but I have no measurements. Also, that I can swap the sight blade since this one seems to be a round notch King companion to that front sight.

Furthermore I'm not entirely happy with the sights on my King Modified .38/44 outdoorsman:



So I also hope that I can use that front sight from the auction on this, and the sight blade on this, because I adore how that sight picture works on my target M&P, which I think has the K Frame equivalent of that sight set in the auction I just won:



I'm not entirely sure what sight blades fit into that King ramp on the Outdoorsman, or how it might shoot if I did swap the sights in such a way, but it seems like it should be a fairly simple job to do with the right screw drivers, and something I could reverse.


I love old Smith & Wessons.


Edit: This came in while I was typing

Very good, thank you, looks about like the one I just bought do you think?

[QUOTE=SixgunStrumpet;
Very good, thank you, looks about like the one I just bought do you think?[/QUOTE]

Sixgun,

Yes it does: grooved rear surface and two elevation screws.

Some are of the opinion that the grooved rear surface on pre war rear sights is specific only to the RMs. Does anyone know for sure?

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Sixgun,

I was bidding on that sight early on! BUT It was in case you had not came across it. Had I won it, I would have contacted you last night at auction end and offered it to you. That should be the correct sight for your RM! P.S. Do Not throw away that King Paper bag.......

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Kris
OGCA, NRA LM

I thoroughly enjoyed reading your story and all the followup posts from you and everyone else. But I have to say, that if that was my pre war registered magnum, I'd buff it out to a mirror polish, then have it hot tank blued in the old S&W bluing style. You may not have bad rust pits now, but if you don't get rid of the shallow pits that ARE on it, they will only increase in depth if you don't get rid of them. Rust is insidious, if you don't get rid of it and get down to the bottom of the pits beyond where the rust is, and refinish it as a preventative against future rusting, it WILL get worse. I understand yours and others liking that worn and "been there" look, but that's what I'd do if it were mine. But it's your revolver to do with what you want and if you like it that way, then more power to you. Best of luck on this project, I've enjoyed reading it immensely.


.

Oh, I don't think there is any danger of that bag going away. I've been enamored of King products ever since I first saw a picture of a Registered Magnum with that little mirror on the front sight.

Heck, I even bought one of those king sights with the mirror in it just because I thought it was too neat not to. I never could figure out what it was for, and I never really planned to fit it to anything anyway.


I'd always assumed a good coating of Breakfree CLP + the Dehumidifier in my gun room would do the trick.

Does anyone have any experience with Renaissance wax? I've heard that it's pretty amazing stuff but it seems like something that usually only gets applied to objects that aren't going to see any further use, could it protect some of the surfaces of a gun that gets shot on occasion?

My buddy Fredo Batali uses renwax and swears by it. He just rewaxes after he's been at the range....

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Even older, even crankier....

This is an interesting thread, to say the least. It is very impressive that this RM has been brought back to a near-original state. Would any forum members out there be interested in showing their heavily used (not abused) RMs, TLs, or other S&Ws? This has been an enjoyable sideline for me, and I have a few of these hanging around with the safe queens so near and dear to the heart of the avid collector.

Should be able to click all of these images and get a huge version:






The sight arrived. I swapped the blade from the previously posted N Frame target sight (which matches the sight on my .38/44 Outdoorsman and has the S/N on it of 40395) and I think, maybe, just maybe I'm finally there on correct parts.

Interestingly enough the sight has the number 9952 stamped on it:



I had thought that the Serial Numbers were stamped there, but 9952? Would that have just been a very early Registered Magnum?

"But I have to say, that if that was my pre war registered magnum, I'd buff it out to a mirror polish, then have it hot tank blued in the old S&W bluing style."

Older S&Ws weren't hot tank blued. They were baked in an oven, using a process that was referred to as Carbona bluing.

See post # 9 in this thread:

S&W Bluing Methods

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

As a follow-up to my previous message, I will attempt to post a couple of pictures of my RM REG 5xx which justly deserves a respite after obvious heavy yeoman's service. This RM is entirely original, right down to the grips (medallion plating all but worn off) and grip adapter. Mechanically, it is sound and shootable.

I would have to say that this is the most well used piece in my collection of mostly original and near-original S&Ws and Winchesters. Probably it deserves a factory letter.

Attached Images

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I don't think so because RM #s began at #45768 in the N frame # range.

More likely it was the gun's assembly #. Occasionally I've seen these used on sight parts.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

I thought it was too low to be a S/N, thanks for the confirmation.

My understanding was that you would usually get build numbers on parts that didn't have room for a full S/N, guessing that's not a rule.

It's interesting that you would have a build number, would there be some RM out there with that same number stamped on it somewhere?

The build numbers must repeat because the longest one I've ever seen was only 5 digits. You may just find that same # on the rear sight blade as well. My two triple locks have the serial # on the sight tang but the build # on one rear sight blade (being a much smaller piece to stamp). And the serial # on the other gun's rear sight blade, but it's only a 4 digit serial #.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

I can't recall specifically (I've only taken a few of my RM sights off - those small screws bugger so easily), but I think that the sight may have just the last 4 digits of the serial number, which if that is the case "9952" may be for SN 49952 or 59952, both of which would be in the pre-war 357 SN range.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Got it, making sense now.

This old pre-war K Frame rear sight I have has a number of 1497 on it, even though the other N Frame sight has 40395.

Richard is on to something ! I only know my one TL rear sight blade has the build # because it matches the build # on the sideplate, yoke and frame of the gun.

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Jim
S&WCA #819