In my view, "Combat Magnum" is purely a marketing tag no doubt brainstormed by S&W's white-collars in a conference room. I doubt that Bill Jordan had any input in the naming of the adjustable sighted, 4" .357 Magnum K-frame that he was instrumental in creating. I'm pretty sure that he could have cared less what it was called, as long as it was produced and did the job for which it was intended.

As a matter of firearm semantics, "Combat Magnum" would mean that the gun in question (a revolver in this case) is/was/will be wielded in "combat", and is chambered in a designated "magnum" caliber. I posit that the type of sights don't matter a whit, nor does what is roll-marked on the barrel.

That being said, I further posit that most "Combat Magnums" should, for the sake of accuracy and reality, be called "Range Magnum", "Target Magnum", "Safe Queen Magnum", "Night Stand Magnum", "Bear Magnum", "Why Did I Buy That Damned Brutal Thing Magnum?", etc.

Hey, it's only a name... it doesn't make the gun any more lethal because of it. It's the person squeezing the trigger that does.