Has anyone bought one lately? Any idea what today’s price range would be?

Whatever the one on gunbroker sells for is the value.

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Protocall Design

It was a fad for the guys with the ability to make money from the guys that had money. A Smython will sell as a conversation piece because it is no more or less accurate then the shooter. Had a buddy that wanted one for the longest time, found a 4” Python barrel somewhere for a song and had taken gun and barrel to his GS. He couldn’t tell me why he wanted it other then he just wanted it. Buddy had a heart attack and passed before he ever got it back. No idea if the GS did the right thing with the family...

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S&W factory revolver armorer

I do believe Ken has this one pegged. Just something to separate the less knowing from their money.

Nonsense. Back when they first appeared, it was a cost effective way to get a full lug barrel on a S&W revolver, almost always a K-frame. And a new Python barrel wasn’t cost prohibitive and neither was the work and there was a lot of competition for the work also.

I have Bill Davis “Cougar” and it’s pretty neat and it is in HEAVILY used condition, still a sweetheart and I’ll say it was worth the $425 I paid to get it.

Smythons and Cougars were the “Race Guns” of the PPC set. In order to get a heavier barrel with arguably more optimal twist rate and bore diameter, one could either start with a Douglas unturned barrel blank or a Colt Python barrel. It was a different time and these guns are not much more practical today than Buffalo Rifles... they just don’t have the same applications they did during their heyday. They are neat parts of history, though.

Froggie

We don't want to forget that the Python barrel was also a choke bore barrel. They were tighter at the muzzle and were very accurate.

Stick that on a S&W with the superior action, and you had a gun that could shoot...

A few years back, I picked this N-Frame Smython up from the classifieds for a little under $1.2K. I definitely bought it for the cool factor...

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Since such pieces are custom conversions, there is no way to value them other than overall condition of the piece and how much money are you willing to spend. Sort of like the kit car scene of the 80's and 90's. A Pontiac Fiero with a fiberglass replica body to look like a Ferrari 308. It's not a Ferrari and it is no longer a Fiero, how much is it worth in used condition depends upon how badly you want one.

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VCDL, GOA, NRA

Wow, I never knew about the “Fierorrari” when it was being made. I wonder what the market would actually be for one now.

I never had a Smython, but I did have one of Fred Schmidt’s “Short Cylinder” PPC guns... one he built on a Model 14 with Douglas barrel and Aristocrat rib and carried to matches as his demonstrator. Like the Smythons, it was a very specialized gun and had a relatively small niche market by the time I sold it.

Froggie

By the way, it's a Smolt, not a Smython.



Just stirring up trouble.

Once upon a time, I had Smolt fever, but got over it.
I looked at it as a way to get a heavier barrel, not any imagined superior accuracy.

What I would really like to have is a 4" full lug K38, but they only made a few and they are high dollar collector's items, not shooters like my PPC friend's 6" full lug.

Hmm, "less knowing". What does that mean? I've had a few Smolts and Cougers (Ruger Security-Six with a Python barrel) over the years and currently have two Smolts and one Couger. My luck with Pythons hasn't been the best (had a new one out of the box go out of time in the first couple of rounds fired), plus the prices on the older models are crazy (in my opinion). I've had a 6" stainless Smolt on a Model 66 and a 4" stainless Couger both built in the last couple of years. Price has been right about $1400, which included the cost of the gun, barrel (Which isn't cheap anymore), and labor. The 4" Smolt built on an older Model 15 cost me about $450 to do, but that was many, many years ago when barrels were cheap. The ones I've sold over the last few years were priced about the same (between $1200-1400), basically getting back what I had in them. The guns shoot great (not sure if they're any better than a Python), but I do prefer the S&W and Ruger actions to the Colt (easier for me to smooth up, and are more durable). Plus, my local smith that built them does phenomenal action work (that's also reasonably priced) on both S&Ws and Rugers, and built these guns for Bill Davis Company back in the day. I'll admit they are a bit of a cult thing, but I think they look cool, balance beautifully, and shoot great. Just my "less knowing" opinion of course.

I shot a lot of PPC back in the late 1970's and early 1980's. I shot
a full house Ron Power with custom bull barrel. These were around
but no interest as no way could they shoot with a Power gun.

Well, somebody (several somebodies actually) must think they're worth a few bucks!
This one ended at $2500 with the reserve not met!: Smolt Smython Custom Revolver Smith & Wesson Colt Python - Revolvers at GunBroker.com : 892313510

The "buy it now" price on the new auction is $3500... which, in my humble opinion, (and as much as I'd like to have one) is freaking insane.

I made a 4" Smolt using a J&G gunsmith special 10-7 frame. Used a ball detent for the yoke. Just another fun project gun to me.


I have a 6" nickle Python barrel on the way. I don't have any L frame 357s or nickle guns but several spare model 28s. Maybe time for a Hard chromed Smolt

That was back in the 1980's. I was in college and still had a chronic case of Magnum PI fever combined with an acute Miami Vice infection. I loved the Ferrari's, Maserati's, and Lamborghini's being featured, but there was no way I could afford anything more than my 1972 Ford Gran Torino Sport (looked almost exactly like the one used in Clint Eastwood's movie "Gran Torino"). At that time, the Fiero was a cheap and easily obtainable sports car and several companies were making fiberglass body panels that you could put on the Fiero chassis to turn it into a European sports car knock-off.

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VCDL, GOA, NRA

I have 2 Smolts. A model 19 that I had built by Alex Hamilton and a model 65 built by Davis in 1982 that I bought a few years ago. I have a .22 Diamondback barrel that has been sitting on my shelf for a couple of years looking for the right finish challenged model 17 or 18. I have never seen a .22 Smolt so if someone out there knows of one I would like to see it.
So, yes, it can be a "fever" one could catch!
Mike

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Mike
S&WCA #2470

I have a 6" Cougar (done by Austin Behlert). It's a fine shooter and a good looking piece. Just the opinion of a "less knowing" man.