Hello,

I'm about to buy a gently used 457 with 2 holsters and 5 magazines under 400.

I can't find much information about this model. Can anyone shed some light please pros/cons appreciated.

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Fu Rin Ka Zan

Just bought one about a month ago. I love it. Great gun.

Two holsters and 5 mags included and it's still under 4 bills??? You need to change "I'm about to buy" to "I've bought!"

I have two 457's and am very happy with them. Never had a FTF/FTE no matter what ammo I've run through them.

If you do a search here, there has been quite a bit of discussion of this model. I have one and am most impressed. You just need to be sure the magazine is completely locked in place.

great price on a great gun. Its one of my favorites. Conceals easily, shoots accurately, digests everything. Can't recall much in the way of negative feedback about them, ever. Only wish mine was one of the seemingly fewer SS models made but I like blue too.

The Model 457 must be the most under-rated firearm ever. I have two of them. Never, ever any hint of a malfunction, which is the single most important attribute in a defensive pistol.

I don't know why these are not more popular than they are.

I have carried my 457 almost daily for the last 3 years. Great CC gun. At 400.00 with 2 holsters and 5 mags I don't know how you could pass it up. I seen one at a gun show a couple of weeks ago in fair shape with 2 mags for the same price.

Thank you everyone, I've committed to the deal.

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Fu Rin Ka Zan

I agree the 457 is great and under-appreciated. I picked up an excellent condition 457 from a local dealer a month ago for $279 out the door price! When I went to pick it up after regitering it on my permit he said "here you go" and handed me the factory box that had the paperwork and 3 spare mags. I was thrilled. He said the guy traded it in for a Glock 26. I am fine with Glocks, but these S&W metal guns are a great bargain. The polymer craze is good for those of us that appreciate metal I guess.

Factory box and paperwork, three spare mags, $279 out the door? I am SO freakin' jealous.

Just goes to show you. Wanting a Glock makes you stupid.

I got pretty much the same deal, 2 holsters, 5 mags, and the stainless version for $425. My first Smith and Wesson firearm. Love it!!

I did an extensive and very thorough article in 2000 comparing this gun to three other popular compact .45s. You can read it here:

Up Close and Personal: A Comparison Of Four Popular Lightweight Compact .45 Semiautos

Hope this helps.

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

Paladin85020,

I saved the link to your comparison and then lost it when my computer crashed. Thanks for the repost.

P.S. The 457 is the only .45 ACP that I will conceal carry.

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Regards,
Russell

Hello Gents,
I'm still here... I'm pleased to report I'm very happy with the model 457. It's a bit of a chore breaking it down for cleaning,a stiff spring plus I have neuro muscular issues so my grip strength is no longer what it use to be. So lining up the moon and starts correctly can be a bit trying at best. LOL

Accuracy of this 457 is awesome,and easily eats my handloads,and Factory Gold Dots are the bomb.

John, that was a great article you wrote,thanks for the link and your research.

Now I need to decide on a carry system for my 457. I made a Yaqui loop for it as I've been getting use to it.But its time for a regular belt holster and a conceal holster.. Any suggestions?

Tal~

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Fu Rin Ka Zan

There is absolutely no standard Glock that I would consider in trade for or as an equal to my 457S in terms of reliability, accuracy, handling, shootability or durability.

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" I said, good DAY! "

Has anyone purchased an Alien Gear Holster fro their 457?

The Alien Gear Holster is OK, but I'm not impressed. The AG went to the holster box and I went back to my well broken in Tucker Gun Leather Texas Heritage. Great quality and quick delivery. The 457 is not on their list, but the 4516 is the same size.

just bought a blued 457 with case, 5 total factory mags, case/paperwork, box of factory ammo, and holster - $480. Looks like it was a safe queen. Very much looking forward to range time this weekend.

Thanks to Paladin for that great pistol comparison! I just got a nice condition 457 also!

Recently purchased the S&W model 457. I noticed that several members here have one or two. I am wondering if it is possible if someone is willing to send me a copy of the owner's manual. Would greatly appreciate it.

http://www.marxcollector.com/S_W/S&W...ire_pistol.pdf

Thank you very much

I've got two of them , one is the Zander Sports model . I don't shoot that one , but my other one shoots great . It's no PC gun , but it does it's job , and does it well . My one sits in my bedside bureau , but comes out to go to the range regularly .

Under 4 bills is a no brainer- almost a steal.
I got mine with two mags and a LH Tex Shoemaker holster and double mag holder for $335, picked up a third mag for $25, and sold the holster and mag holder for $50. So I'm at $310 for the gun & 3 mags. If I could get two more mags and two holsters for less than $90 I'd be a buyer and be right where you're at.
Do it. You won't regret it. The 457 is the slightly downgraded version of the 4516 as I understand it. Mine is the best shooting of my four 45ACPs and the only one that is DA/SA. Slightly smaller and more concealable than my commander-sized 1911 too. What's not to love?

Funny how 6 year old (and even 10 year old) threads keep circling back for new life in the semi-auto forum... ... but I guess that's what we get for liking old, obsolete all-metal pistols.

Yes, and it also explains the purchase price of anywhere near $400.00 because I think that today, one would be fortunate to get that pistol for at least $600.00 and I wouldn't even feel bad if I had to pay 7!

I’m pretty old and obsolete myself these days. My love for similar pistols shouldn’t be surprising. :-)

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Hello Cleveland, Rock and Roll

Well, hopefully not $600-$700... ... unless you are in California or some other heavily-restricted state.

But yeah, $400 OTD today with all those extra mags and holsters would be pretty sweet!

Two for sale right now.. $400 Both are excellent in the box.. one has extras...

200 mile road trip for one 350 for the other..tempted, but pass.

I paid 500 and change a few years back for a black 457, LNIB. But I wanted forged parts and roll marks. So I was willing to pay the tariff.

These days, ANY sub 500 model 457 is a good buy. Just look at the asking prices for the plastic guns. Make mine a metal framed 457. Regards 18DAI

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7 +1 Rounds of hope & change

Heck I use to drive 140 miles one way to get to the ranch to do some work, and then drive home.


Go get it..

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Eccentric old coot

I have a Zanders edition 457 with factory labeled box and 2 mags.
The Standard Catalog of S&W 4th Edition say's 2 times value for Zanders.
Mine would be shipped to the new owners FFL so fast I'd make Buds look slow.

The real world prices I've seen for the couple of Zanders I've seen locally doesn't support the SCSW estimate. They seem to go for about what a regular 457 goes for.

To see anything close to that price, I think it would have to be ANIB with everything from the factory.

Right after the first of the year I bought a nice 457 and box with two magazines for $349.00. I was out of town the day it showed up on the FFLs website and wasted no time in calling and putting a hold on it over the weekend.

That was less than a month after missing out on a 457 with three magazines from the same shop. There must have been a long line of regretful non buyers for that gun because the owner called and left a voice mail asking if I was really going to be because he had several interested parties.

I was and wasted no time getting up to the shop when it opened in Tuesday.

For what a 457 is, I considered that a bargain price. I think of it as either an alloy framed version of the 4516 or maybe a non rail version of the 4513TSW. Great guns.

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Can open, worms everywhere.

You guys know how I feel about the 457 -- same as many of you, that it's undervalued for what it is, and a fine shooter. Having said that, I sense some softness in the market for them right now. Maybe it's part of what we're seeing in general in guns recently, so it's probably not specific to the 457. But now's not a good time to be selling one, IMHO. They seem to languish on GB, and prices have been well below four bills for those that do sell. Kinda surprising. My 457S was for sale here for a while, and I finally just took down the ad. That's at least a $500 gun all day long, but the market says no at the moment. An S model sold on GB with box for just a bit over $400 recently. That's crazy.

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Ukraine -- now more than ever

I would agree with that statement. I picked up a Zanders 457 off gunbroker a little over a month ago. It was a buy it now @ $299 with 2 mags - $30 shipping (+ 3% cc fee) and $15 to my dealer and I was just over 350 for it. It is a shooter condition gun with wear to most of the frame edges and considerable blue wear on the slide, but mechanically is excellent.

WOW, guess I really did well on mine - I just bought it a few months ago in the spring.

Here is one of mine.

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John 1:17
NRA Life Benefactor

Allow me to join "the 457 love-fest." This is my favorite in .45.
It just fits my hand nicely and it doesn't beat up my shooting hand.

My 4566 on the other hand ends up bruising the web of my shooting hand if I fire more than one mag through it. Admittedly part of the problem is simply the tendency to bruise easily as one ages. Consequently I have to glove up to shoot it.

Mine, with boxes, love em and shoot em!! My 11 yr old really likes to shoot them.

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