While doing my pawn shop checks I ran across a S&W 19-3 snub. I probably wouldn't have been too interested, but the price was right despite there being about half the blue missing. I thought it was a great candidate for a cerakote refinish, but now I feel I may be destroying an honest classic by doing so. It is very tight and all original.

Should I cherish this classic as is or refinish this girl to become a carry piece?

As is or cold blue. Please....no Cerakote.

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Get off my lawn!

It's only original once.

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Eccentric old coot

Truer words have never been spoken.

The worn original finish can look kinda cool and have character. Doing a custom finish can be fun. It's not like it's the last 19-3 around. I vote for original in this case.

I personally find more beauty in character than cerakote. It's yours though so do what makes you happy.

I couldn't agree more with the no cerakote thing. If you want to spruce up the gun, it's yours to do as you please, but if it was my gun, I'd either leave it alone or send it back to Springfield - and hope for the best.

There's no reason not to keep the original finish AND make it a carry piece. The worn nature of it will go nicely on a carry gun. Enjoy as is, and we need pics. I love snubbies.

Leave as is! - NO Ceracrap!

I'd have no problem with "spraying" it and depending on where you live and how you carry, it may make sense, but if it's a "carry gun" anyway, does it really matter if the finish is perfect ?

Now:


This is what I am thinking I could make it look like.

I'd keep it like it is,but that's me.The second look, looks good too.

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Life is short,live it fully.

I'm having a hard time from the picture seeing where the bluing is half gone. That said, and having just picked up a 4" Model 19 in a pawn shop today myself, I have to say I find picture #1 more visually appealing than picture #2.

Just curious, if you wouldn't mind saying, how much did this baby set you back?

For once the picture does it better justice than it may look in person. It looks like it was rarely shot and spent twenty years in a sock drawer. To be honest, you guys probably won't believe me but it was $350 OTD.

Great price! And that one definitely doesn't need refinishing. As is, it's worth more than you gave for it. Spend money to Cerakote it and it'll be worth about what you gave for it. But it's yours to do with what you want. As others said, it's only original once. If you refinish it, that's one less original out there and it should bump all the other originals up in price just a little.

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Get off my lawn!

Wow, that was a great price. Spend some money on a nice holster, shoot, carry and enjoy.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

$350.00 American? Leave it alone. It's been stolen.

My 19-3 is factory nickel, but if I had yours, I'd
1 - leave it as is
2 - touch it up with Brownells Oxpho-Blue Cream (oil it first and it won't be blotchey) or
3 - have Ford's nickel it. Nickel is great for carry.

In that order.

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Jeb

Another vote for "as is". If you just have to refinish it, don't paint it with Cerecote or similar product, go hard chrome, Robar's NP3 or H&M's black nitride, or simply re-blue. NO PAINT!

Better yet, I'll give you $425 and relieve you of your headache.

Leave it as is.

Jeeper, before you do anything, try giving your new revolver a good deep cleaning and two THIN coats of Res.wax or Johnson's and Johnson's wax.
Whatever you do be sure to enjoy that guy.

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Always Stay Strong!

Man, that gun ain't even broke in. I'll give you $375 for it, just to keep you from paintin' it.

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Eccentric old coot

I was in the slap a coat of Ren Wax on it and leave it alone group. But, the "after" pic is kind of cool looking. Buy another one and have it both ways.

Leave, clean it, carry it! Just my 2 Cents!

I'd agree, heck, I'd pay 450 for one like that but wouldn't look twice at a cerakote job. Just my opinion though.

Report to the hoosegow! You stole that beautiful piece of S&W History! Leave it as is and do what Old Bear said. Shoot, carry it and enjoy!

You mean you want to make it look worse than it already does?
If you want to ruin it, I'm sure there's plenty of people here who would take it off your hands and give it a loving home.
Seriously, if you feel like you just HAVE to re-finish it, and the price was that right, send it back to the mother ship for a re-blue. We'd all be much happier, especially you.

I for one can not stand that matte look!!! cerakote looks simply awful to me. Leave it nice- like it is. Buy some plastic gun if you want something to cerakote. Just my humble opinion though.

If it were mine it would stay the way it is and taken to the range a lot.

I'd shoot only 158gr lead out of it.

Do not paint it!!!!

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NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

The "flat" finish you posted does look nice with the finished hammer and trigger. I would probably lean towards a plating process rather than paint.
I own several 2.5" M19's, M66's M586 and M686's. They're some of my favorites. Most of their finishes are beautiful originals. I have some "snubbies" other calibers that are "hard chromed" and some with stainless finishes "highly polished" with added customized "laser" etchings on the side plates.
Some of these had poor original finishes that didn't really have that "attractive" worn character to them. So, I re-plated or polished them for a new clean look.
That's me...not really the norm out there. I do what I like...they're mine.
None of these were rare or hard to find types. They were all fit mechanically, but cosmetically needing a facelift. So...I guess you can say, I saved them and gave them a new look.
I added some new grips to finish them off...Culina..(my favorites) Ahrends or Hogue G10's on the flat hard chrome finish. I also have a selection of beautiful factory grips that I swap around.
A couple quick pictures of some .44's. The top went to Magnaport w/hard chrome finish. The second I polished (it was ugly), complete action job, frosted the cylinder indents and added the laser engraving, w/Culinas. The bottom M19 factory finish with some Culinas.
.44 Magna port.jpg

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IMG_1426.jpg

Have fun...it's yours

After weighing all these opinions I believe the only reasonable option is to leave her in unmolosted glory. I said I normally wouldn't have bought it but couldn't pass up a deal. I can look at a blued gun and it will rust.

Try Ren Wax or Rust Inhibiting Grease. So far I've just tried the RIG, but I have a Taurus revolver that rusts pretty aggressively, and a thin coat of RIG stopped it dead. I do have some Ren Wax and put it on a couple of guns, and it worked beautifully, but I haven't tested it for rust prevention.

I have the opposite problem. I bought an similar 19-3 snubbie except mine looks barely fired so I'm very hesitant to carry it.

So I just bought a M29 so the M19 can stay beautiful and in the safe.

It's hard to beat original...

Attached Images

DSCN1975.jpg (58.7 KB, 25 views)

This refinish was done by the factory, I am really pleased with it.

My EDC 19-4..... mine has a lot of hard earned character.....
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Clean, Ren Wax

That 19-3 doesn't too bad as is, I'd say it has "character". I wouldn't have hesitated to buy it at that price and carry it as is. My 19-3 snub is near mint, which is why I don't carry it. The nice thing about a gun with "character" is that you don't hesitate to use it.

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Wheel guns are real guns.

I like guns w/character b/c they're great for carry and regular range time.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

You got nice deal,leave as is shoot and enjoy.

Jolly good show ol Chap.
Like others have said, clean it up, wax it, ( I used car wax on my duty gun for 13 years.) shoot it, and repeat.

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Eccentric old coot

What was the cost for a factory reblue?

I have recently started using Johnson's Paste Wax and I am keeping my fingers crossed that it keeps the rust away on some of my other handguns.

It was done about 10 years ago and I recall it was about $100 with LEO discount. The gun was in way worse shape than the one you have but mechanically it was almost unfired. The photos really don't do it justice. It came back like a new gun. It's just my tastes, but I'm not a fan of Cerrecote on revolvers. At any rate, these guns are great to shoot and make nice trail guns. Have fun!

Precision Gunsmithing | Smith & Wesson

I need to try this Johnson's Wax thing. Sure would be cheaper than Ren-Wax if it works as well.

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Jeb

Cerakote is for Tauruses and Charters.

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LIVE FROM THE DAWGHOUSE