Walked into my LGS planning on buying a beretta cheetah. Came out with this like-new combat masterpiece 15-3. Has box papers and tools.

Cylinder lockup is TIGHT. There's a little more endshake than I like to see, but I'd guess that it came from the factory like that. The ratchet star is crisper than crisp, with absolutely no peening.

Not a spec of pitting or even a mark on the bluing.

I'm going to really like this one.

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Yes you are. Great find.

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Mike
S&WCA #3065

Looks brand new! Congratulations on the find!

Congrats on the nice find! I've often convinced myself I can shoot M15s better than I can M14s. I guess it's a nice excuse to own a couple of both. Enjoy your new sixgun!

Not much I can say about a 15 that hasn't already been said. I am lucky enough to own a -2 and a -4 and once owned a no-dash. I also own a 67 no dash. So you could say I like the platform. I think you done good, no matter what you paid! Enjoy!

I paid less than 600. With box papers and tools, I called that a deal.

You certainly would have no problem getting your money back. Nice find.

Thank you for being up front with us on what you paid.Too often many here want to keep that private in case they want to sell it here down the road.

I'm with Targets Guy; you are indeed going to love it. I had a 3T's M15 awhile back, but can't remember why I let it get away. Been kicking myself about it, as I've become quite the fan of the .38 S&W Special, and have J's, K's and N's (and other makes) in that chambering, along with bullet moulds, die sets and buckets of brass, plain and nickeled. Enjoy !

Larry

I carried one for years as my issued weapon and really loved it.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

According to a site I found (another S&W enthusiast forum), the serial to this gun makes it a 1975 ship date. That's very cool; it's older than I am.

Mine is a 1971 date ,and as the others said...wow, what a shooter!..mine was a recent purchase.....no papers, generic box...$580....you got a great deal!

That's a really nice looking Model 15! What a "Let-Up" that must have been when you were expecting to find a Beretta!

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Dave Brown
SWCA #3279

Nice 1! I don't have a 15, but have a 67 no dash. You need 1 to keep your 15 company! Bob

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I have (2) -4's....one of my favorites, and the one that's shooter grade is the most accurate in my hands. I never fired the one that's LNIB

I have friends that turn their noses up at the model 15, bc its "not a magnum". I just laugh at their comments, and watch their expression as the steel plates fall and small, ragged groups appear on paper targets. Lol

These are great revolvers!

Yes, they are great. Let the naysayers turn their noses up at K frame .38s. That leaves more available for those of us who like the lower prices and not having to scrub crud rings out of .357s that get shot 99% of the time with .38s anyhow...

I'm going to address the endshake with some endshake bearings. The cylinder is very close to the forcing cone, though not yet touching.

I'm enthralled by how tightly the cylinder locks up with the trigger back. It really feels like a Colt Python.

A lot of time was spent putting this gun together.

Nice score! And yes one of the few better guns is the Model 67.

Ideally, you'll have a TRAINED ARMORER hammer the yoke on a mandrel to lengthen the portion that was shortened, presumably due to heavy firing. But shims are also said to work.

I probably wouldn't have bought a gun that needed endshake work, certainly not for $600.

Good luck on fixing the issue. Your gun seems to otherwise be a good one. We had those in the USAF, with target H&T . Frankly, I prefer the std. hammer and trigger, like yours.

If you don't shoot a lot of Plus P ammo, it should give fine service.

I know about both methods of correcting endshake. The factory and the amourer method of peening the yoke tube makes the metal more fatigued (and thinner), and therefore, less resistant to wear. Endshake will develop again. The endshake shims are made of a harder steel, and therefore resist peening better, and if you ask competition shooters, shims are the preferred method due to the 'permanent' fix it seems to incur.

The number of 38 special rounds needed to put a K-frame endshake out of spec would be in the 10's of thousands. This revolver has sharp and crisp ratchets, almost zero turn line, and locks up like a bank vault rotationally. There is zero wear on the forcing cone.

I'm pretty certain it came from the factory like this (I've had other LNIB S&W with similar endshake). Believe it or not, the new S&W's, while they are sloppily put together in other ways, seem to have less endshake NIB than the older ones. My guess is, they allowed for more endshake to prevent the gun from seizing up when cops fired a few hundred rounds in one go.

Out of all of the things I care about in a revolver, endshake is the most important, and it also is the easiest thing to address.

I finally got one last year. You just never see that M15 out for sale. I guess all the ones that are out there are being kept by their owners.

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Dr. B

Great score. It doesn't get much better than that!

I usually shoot my 15-5 (and it's stainless brother 67-6) better than just about anything else I own. They are fantastic guns.

Got a 98+% 15-3 myself about a month ago. Tight lockup. Sweet shooter.


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VCDL, GOA, NRA

American1776, I know your joy. Back in 1973, I sold my 15-3 to an Army buddy and have regretted parting with that revolver ever since. In January of this year, I was on GunBroker and won a bid on a 15-4 (1980 vintage) for 4 C-Notes. Since the seller was but a two-hour drive away, I went to his house and made the exchange in person. The revolver had its original box and papers but no tools. When I first looked at the gun with target trigger & hammer, I couldn't believe it. It was in pristine condition. I doubt it has ever been in a holster. It was like looking at a brand new gun!

A couple of days later my wife and I took my Combat Masterpiece to the range and it shot fantastic. My wife fell in love with the gun and declared it as her own. It now sits in the her night stand on her side of the bed. She lets me look at it from time to time.

Oh well. I had a Combat Masterpiece for a while. Enjoy yours!

Smith and Wesson Model 15-4 "Combat Masterpiece."






Thanks for looking at my wife's Combat Masterpiece.

God bless,
Birdgun

Birdgun, that is 1 fine looking 15! Does it shoot as good as it looks? Some really nice pictures also! Bob

I have a 67-3 that gets shot more than any of my magnum revolvers. It has the slickest trigger and impeccable accuracy. The OP has certainly secured a nice firearm.

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My Pre-model from 1954, just about my favorite shooter of all my S&Ws. .38 Special wadcutters are my favorite cartridge to shoot.

Seems that there are two types of M15 people. One set already has one or maybe more and the other set is out there looking for one. Mine won't win any beauty contests but works for me. i have J frames, model 10,model 14 and model 15 all in 38 special. My 357 is a Colt Trooper III. Frank

Can anything negative be said about a K38/15 ( especially through 15-4)?? I think not. Beautiful 15-3 you've got there

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John