28-2 or Colt Trooper?
 

I have both but I have always wondered if you were just getting one. Which one? I know we are Smith and Wesson people here but does one out shine the other in some areas?

For the reason that Colt no longer makes or services revolvers I would and have bought the S&W Model 28-2. The model 28-2 are great guns all be it the ugly sister of the Model 27-2 which I also own.

I have owned a couple of both. I prefer the 28 for two reasons...the grip frame of the Colt is far less comfortable for me and I like the cylinder release latch better on the Smith.

Which vintage Trooper? There were the original Trooper .38 specials and .357s built on the same V mainspring frame as the Python, Trooper Mark IIs and Trooper Mark IIIs.

I strongly prefer the 28 over any Trooper. That shouldn’t surprise you. Look at the forum you found me on.

S&Ws displaced Colt’s V mainspring revolvers for good reason. Colt’s V mainspring revolvers went out of time from the normal wear of frequent firing. In contrast, the DA of S&Ws just got smoother.

I owned one Colt Mark II. Its DA couldn’t be made the equal of a S&W. I didn’t keep it long enough to learn how it would hold up over time.
Colt’s Mark IIIs were their 2nd failed attempt to recover market share. I haven’t owned one. You might find praise for Mark III as well as the earlier Troopers on a Colt forum

Incidentally, I wound up with my V mainspring Colt Trooper after job requirements forced me to replace my Officer’s Model .38 special’s 6 inch barrel with a 4” barrel. 6 inch barrels were stamped Officer’s Model, 4 inchers were stamped Trooper. They were the same revolver other than barrel length at the time.

Well, now, lemme think..........THE MODEL 28!!!!! IMO overall quality and durability FAR exceed the Colt. Less expensive most of the time too, you pay a premium to have a pony stamped on your gun.

I have not owned or fired the older Trooper and I hear they are comparable to the Python action,
I do have a 4" Trooper III in both 357 as well as .22lr that I have always put in the same category as the Model 19 ,
Weight and heft wise they may be somewhere in between the 19 and the 586 .

I have both 28-2 and trooper mark




As I said I have both. My sons got to talking about both Christmas day.
I like my 28-2 the best but both shoot well. The 28-2 is very rugged. Colt will repair revolvers, my 22cal diamond back went in last year,it took 16 weeks to get the revolver back. As I told my son's
Colt no longer produces revolvers so some will pay more,supply and demand, but the 28-2 is my pick.

I like the old model troopers. They are more like the model 19 or 66 than the N frame 27 or 28. They are lighter and accurate. If I was carrying daily again it would be the trooper. Now if I was actualy doing a lot of shooting with heavy loads it would be a N frame. I have both and carried the troopers far more.

Troopers are starting to go for stupid money. Scratch both itches, get a lightly used 28-2 and a Colt Official Police.:D

I have a 6in HP will have to add a 4in before the price gets out of hand.

The Model 28 is so much more handsome than the Trooper. IMO, the colts, are strange-looking guns. The other day, I was looking at a side-by-side photo comparison of a 686 next to a Python. The 686 has beautiful, classy lines, while the Python looked kind of cartoonish. Please don't burn me at the stake :) but I'll take a Smith any ol' day.

I own a HP that I just love, and I am always looking for another for the right price. I have looked at dozens of Troopers over the years and so far none of them have followed me home.
Don't get me wrong, I own about a half dozen Colts. They just don't talk to me like an old Smith does.

Ya forgot the really ugly Trooper Mk.V.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...rooper_mk5.jpg

IIRC , The Mk.III action originally started out with sintered metal lockwork parts which didn't hold up very well and were replaced with real steel.

I have both revolvers out on the desk. I agree the 28-2 just looks better. It also seems to feel better in my hand.

Just buy one of each...and add a couple of Rugers, Dan Wesson's etc. etc.

Here is snub versions of a 66-3 and 2 !/2" python together. I like em both.

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l3...l/IMG_9417.jpg

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l3...l/IMG_9425.jpg

Done!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...0120812_11.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...0120812_13.jpg

fyimo- you are incorrect about colt not servicing revolvers anymore. they are the best place to have pythons or any of that frame size repaired.

The mark III were made on their J frame. My favorite revolver of all I own is a lawman MKIII Snubby. However that is also the only Colt I own. My first handgun I bought was a highway patrolman and my duty weapon for years. I would buy the mod 28.


Scott Campbell
Remember wheel guns are real guns too
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Way back in 1979 I went to the LGS and looked at a Colt MkIII in .22 and a Smith 17 in .22. The Colt was alot more gun and the prices were equal. I went home with the Colt. I added a MIII in .22 mag and one in 357. Today the only Colt I own is a 1911. ALL of my revolvers are N frame Smiths with the exception of a K-22 and a 686.

Someone please post a history of Colt MK #s
 

If my memory is correct, between 1980 and 1982 I owned an 8” .22 LR Colt MK II. I bought it in 1980 or 1981. It is only its Mark number I’m unsure of. I think MK IIs had sintered metal parts and replacing the sintered metal with better steel was the most important upgrade in the MK IIIs. I had indeed forgotten all later MK numbers. I haven’t been following Colt revolvers since selling the long tom .22. The only Colt revolver I own is a 1910 Officer’s Model Target .38 special. I just think it's neat because it's my oldest revolver. So can one of you Colt lovers tell us about Colt MK IIs evolution into MK Vs?

I found a gun show this weekend so will look for a 4in HP. I guess I would look at a 6in.

"So can one of you Colt lovers tell us about Colt MK IIs evolution into MK Vs?"

Colt redesigned the lockwork of the MK III by changing the length and location of the coil mainspring. The gripframe was also modified.

Some time back in the 1980s I tried out a nickelled 4" Mk. III Trooper. Fortunately I did not own the gun. The DA was typical Colt in that it stacked and did not compare to a decent S&W. Swapping in a spring kit did not help at all. The stocks were crude and clumsy in my opinion which also did not help. I had Craig Spegel work up a set of stocks; again, none of this made it into something it wasn't. And, as noted, some of the lockwork parts were made of "sintered/powdered" (?) metal. The trigger snapped in half while dry firing.

On the plus side, the nickel finish looked purty and the SA was usable.

I would rather have a loose, battered, and abused Model 10 Smith than any postwar Colt DA revolver. With a M28 in the equation--no issue at all IMHO.

I would also take a Ruger GP-100 over a Python...

I'd go with the 28. As in the Colt flavor, I prefer a Python. Apples and oranges, I know, but.............My 1968 4" Colt Python was a piece of functional art. The only reason I sold it was because I was offered crazy money for it. I wish I had kept the gun. And Bat G....., You get you some Pythons and I'll trade you GP100's two for one.......

Wow... what did that Python ever do to you that you put those grips on it? : ) Just kidding. What you gain in a short, concealable barrel seems lost in the grips.

I've stood at this crossroads before and always came down on the side of the 28. Colts look sexy to me until I hold one and roll the cylinder open. They just feel fragile, except for the Anaconda, which should really say 'Redhawk' on it.

66-3----------:)
 

That powerport is a sweet piece of machinery, Feral!!!!!

I have one of each and I prefer the Model 28 hands down. Many good reasons listed previously and all are valid in my book.

The endless Colt v. S&W debate.

IME most prefer the S&W system. Most prefer the shrouded ejector rod.

I shoot either equally well. I own both and like them all. The pre-Mark III Colts have the Python internals and are very smooth. The barrels are taper bored and shoot lead very well.

Highway Patrolman...

http://www.fototime.com/A85AFDB0BA25D4C/standard.jpg


Or Trooper?

http://www.fototime.com/7FF1135D1829836/standard.jpg


I say... YES!

Thanks. Not to worry, I have the original grips back on that nickle python. I switch around. Got the box and ingridents too as I bought it new around 1971 for HALF PRICE! Back then that equaled out to $165s. Theres a story to that one.

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l3...l/IMG_9410.jpg

I also have this 4" python. Not to, worry I also have the original grips too. For no particular reason I have shot it very little. I carried mostly colt offical polices or my .357 trooper for 35 years on my guard job.

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l3..._9408-Copy.jpg

I also have this 27-2 I bought new around 1970. It had no options. I sent it back to smith and got the works including my name engraved in gold. Seems that part of it was $66s back then.

http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l3...Wm27N13491.jpg

Saxon nice photo's of both S & W and Colt. I to feel the S & W looks and feels better in . Looked for my 4in today at a small show. One 6in, poor shape. A few black rifles, $2,000. Not selling.

Sir, if I had to pick between the two, it would be the 28-2. I prefer its DA trigger action and shorter trigger reach. I do like the old original Troopers, though. A buddy of mine has one, and it's a good, accurate gun. It's also lighter than the N-frame Smith.

In theory, the 28 should be the more rugged, durable gun. It has simpler lockwork, a shrouded ejector rod, and a latch at the ejector rod tip, all of which the original Trooper lacks. That said, my buddy's gun, which he shoots often, hasn't developed any timing or lockup problems, and since he doesn't go around bonking people on the head with it, the ejector rod is still straight. If you've got long fingers, the old Colt is still a good choice.

The Mark III and newer Troopers, including the King Cobra, don't impress me. They're adequate guns, but not in the same class as the Highway Patrolman or the original Trooper IMHO.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

Ron H
 

Ron H I got both of the revolvers out and I think the trigger reach is the reason I like the 28 better. The 28 just feels better in my hand.

I also have both, a 6" Trooper III and a 6" 28-2, and it's hard to pick a "better" one between the two....Mk. III Colts are very tough guns and don't have the relatively " fragile" lock work of earlier Colts. Both guns will last a lifetime or more with sane loads and proper care.