Picked up a 8” 48 today for $450 ... the catch is the finish is terrible. Appears to have been carried ever day of its life. Works great though.

I normally would leave things as they are but this one is so bad I’m thinking new grips and a refinish. Who could do a good job on this and what would it cost?

Pics please? An 8 inch would be a fantastic shooter. I'd be afraid to do anything to it regardless.

I wouldn't mind being seen shooting that one as is.

I would probably lightly polish it and rust blue it.

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Chris
SWCA #2243 SWHF #292

That's a great shooter grade revolver. Leave it be.

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Looks as if some farmer kept that in his barn to shoot rats with.

Maybe a boat gun?

I'd certainly refinish it. Call S&W for a price, or Ford's in Florida.

Frankly, I'd see if S&W can re-barrel to a six-inch barrel. Maybe they can shorten the current barrel. But I don't like really long handgun barrels. Some do.

I think you're probably looking at maybe $350 for a re-blue job. You might consider a hard chrome finish?

I hope you didn't pay much for this eyesore gun.

Nice sweaty piece. I’d say clean, ren wax and send’em down range. That’s a nice working girl...I’d have jumped on that for that price too

Just my personal opinion, but I don't look at finish from the standpoint of "percent".
I look for evidence of it being used as intended by a knowledgeable owner, as opposed to abused by some hack.

To me, your "new" 48 looks like it's been well used but not abused, really. Screws look good, cylinder bolt cuts are nice and sharp (no peening), and the ejector rod looks like it knocked out it's share of empty hulls. There doesn't look like there's any bad scratches or dings.
How's the bore?
I'd personally just leave it, out of respect for a well lived life!
And, it looks like its got a lot of life left to boot!

The cleaning and ren wax idea is a good one. Besides, you can always refinish later if you really can't stand it.

Nice score!

PS: I love the long barrel. With the 22 Mag, it helps tame the muzzle blast.

S&W does a very nice refinish for $223 total. 3 month turn time. just got one back. Talk to Rosa in Service.

Nice find, at 450$ you didn't get hurt, add a new blueing or nickle finish and she would be a beauty.

As for the long tube,mine is a tack driver.

That’s a very cool gun, and if mechanically very sound, I’d be tempted to have S&W refinish it, especially for $ 223. Then you’d have a very pretty new gun.

And I’d then practice at 50 meters.

My vote is keep it as it is for now at least but I sort of like not having to worry about every little scratch and spot on my working guns . As stated earlier that looks used but not abused so either way you will have a great gun. Congratulations let us know what you decide and how well it shoots .

If what you really wanted was a pretty, new looking gun why did you buy this one? Purchase price + refinish cost - loss of value by refinishing = economic loser. Use it or lose it. Refinish if you want but you lose money on it.

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For my tuppence worth...I actually love the way this old girl looks and would leave it as-is. I normally like as new revolvers but this one wears it's history really well and looks grand just the way it is. If is shoots well (and I suspect it does) then I would enjoy shooting her and be proud of the condition.

A unique and wonderful looking old revolver. Well done and thanks for sharing.

Cheerio,

Roy

Yeah i was trying to do this math in my head. In great shape it is probably and $800-$1000 piece. Maybe a little more or less. If i can get it refinished for $250 I would have $700 in it. It it worth $700 to anyone besides me at that point? Truthfully its probably never going anywhere while im still around so the money isn't that big of deal.

Thanks for all of the thoughts guys. I have never heard of ren wax and I will look in to it. I have wanted a keltec PMR 30 for a while but have heard several bad things about reliability. When I saw this one I thought it would scratch the itch for a 22wmr handgun. I shot it yesterday and what a hoot. I didn't think there would be any recoil with this thing but i was surprised. The 22 mag actually kicked a bit.

I have been on the hunt for a nice 48 all year and I've looked at 4 but none of them were worth the selling price, at least to me.

If you send it back to S&W they will likely go over it and maybe replace some parts if needed while they are doing the refinish... But - after paying the pawn shop plus the refinish cost, you could have held out for one in better condition at the end cost.

I have a model 48 with the 8 3/8" barrel in mint condition. Three years ago it cost me $1000. I baby it and protect it a little too much. Buy that style if you want one. A $700 refinished gun is not the same.

I would love to have a shooter for $450. I'm a shooter not a collector.

I'm an old fart at 69 and watch some the other old farts go in for cosmetic surgery. I feel the same way about refinishing sixguns. A gun is what it is, refinishing doesn't change that.

At the end, you still have a refinished sixgun. The factory finish is gone and it will never return no matter what you do.

Many people will not touch a refinished gun for fear it is covering up something bad.

The only time I could do it is when the gun needs a new protective coat. Renaissance Wax will normally take care of that for me. I like character more than I like refinished pretty. Your 48 has a ton of character, and history, the way it is.


Prescut
Please god don't let him cut that barrel.

I would spend the money on ammo and add a few wear marks of my own to that beauty.

Nice find. Great shooter. Clean, lube and have a blast!

I run into this all the time. For the money spent on refinish you
are better of buying a better condition gun. That way it's original
and will hold its value. Either that or clean it up a little and
enjoy shooting it.

Mine has spent enough time in my Jeep to look like that. Rode many miles in my jeeps while hunting on south Texas ranches. Difference is I carried mine in a zippered case. Real handy loaded with 3 CCI snake shot and 3 hp’s. With that long barrel the 22 Magnum is a real thumper.

''Twas mine, I'd get a refinish, TT, TH, TS at the same time, what a price you got! Put some money in it, the 8/ 3/8" isn't. Dress
so common. Theft is a crime. Dress it up

What is tt th to?

tt target trigger
th target hammer

Collector value is not a relevant consideration here. Making sure it is in condition that it will last the rest of the OP's shooting life is. Just as a matter of good practice, having it gone through by someone real savvy to make sure the innards are good to go is a reasonable act.

I am not a fan of the really long barrels in terms of portability, but that is subjective - I just want my handguns generally to be holster portable, and a 6" barrel is pretty much the upper limit. For this revolver, if I were using it for more than plinking, I would get some kind of chest rig, like the (I think) DD or D&D model, which looks like a good product for such a purpose. Also, in that usage pattern, I would go with a highly functional finish, such as hard chrome. I think Robar does that, AND has good smiths to check the gun out. (Freddie Blish is a friend of friends, and I would trust his word and his people on just about anything like this.) I'm not a collector, and the cosmetic appeal of a good blue, while undeniable, is not really consistent with my use for a working gun.

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