You Walk Into A Gun Store in 1978...

I would have got the long Smith. I had already owned a Colt and upon disassembly was not impresses with the mechanism. Had found that the S&W had a much sounder mechanism.

Yes, I would have lost out in the future. But, then having graduated from computer sciences school in 1969 and not sticking with that kind of shows you my ability to predict the future at that point. LOL. But, then again if I had stuck with that I would have never seen the Bearing Sea a sheet of ice with a volcano stick up out of it puffing smoke, the dump at Dutch Harbor, spend lots of summers in SE Alaska, met my future wife, had a bunch of great S&Ws. Life has been good and I would have never really regretted pickling the S&W over the Python.
 
3.5" 27, I've had 3 Pythons over the years. They are overpriced today with inferior triggers. I have more rounds through them than any other handgun likely in access of 100K and I have no desire to ever fire one again. And yes the trigger had been extensively reworked on one in particular; ever wonder why every top action pistol shooter built their guns on K frames when the revolver was king? It wasn't because of cost btw!
 
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I bought my first center fire handgun in October of 1978. I was making $4 an hour working on a survey crew and thought I was rich!

I wanted a 4" 19 real bad. I wound up with a 6" Ruger Security Six. Still have it. Wanted it in 4" but the 6" was what the store had. They also had a bunch of Smith and Wesson branded ammo that I shot a lot of .... Still have one box of that put away with the Ruger.

As to the question at hand, I would have chosen the 3 1/2" 27.

I wasn't smart enough to buy Apple stock either!
 
I walked into the Ivanhoe Gun Shop in Watertown Square in Watertown, MA in 1971 looking for a Model 29-2. I came out with a Colt Python with a 4-inch barrel($115.00 on sale!!) since the shop owners told me they had not seen a 29 in several years. Over the next two years I bought several S&Ws from them. They had a 27-2 with a nickel finish in the case that sat there for at least a couple of years and was still there when I moved back to Montana in September 1973. Times have really changed since that model with the short barrel has been a hot item with collectors for quite a few years now.

Bill
 
fyimo said:
I'd have bought the Model 27-2 with the 3.5 inch barrel in a heart beat.
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I didn't buy a 4" NYSP Model 28 when they became available because I couldn't see a use for a 4" revolver. CCW was almost unknown, outside of a few states. The uses I had were for range shooting and hunting; for those, a 6" was a better choice.

Probably the only case of "woulda, coulda, shoulda" that I beat myself up about.
 
One of my friends bought a 6inch stainless Python in 1978. I saw it quite often and always lusted for one like it. Now I like the royal Blue even better, and I can't afford one. So in 1978 I would have the Python.
 
Back then I was a young newby cop who saved up and bought a Model 57 six inch for duty carry. I had it cut to four inches (yeah yeah I know) since the four inch was virtually unobtainable. Even with the 210 grain Remington lead SWC round it was a handful to qualify with. I was a pretty good shooter back in the day but competing against others shooting 148 wadcutters in their Model 19s and 28s left me pretty depressed. I managed to score a four inch Model 19 a few months later and regained my confidence.

Sadly, I remember 3 1/2 inch Model 27s languishing on gun shop shelves in the late 70s and early 80s. The K frame magnums were the "in" gun to have and the appearance of the Model 66 became the gun to carry. The N frames were pretty heavy to pack off duty. All the cool cops had a four or a 2 1/2 inch 66 for both duty and off duty carry.

By the early 80s the auto craze was in full swing and most of us carried Colt 45 autos or S&W Model 59s as primary or "backup" guns. I remember an Anchorage cop shop owner urging me to buy a couple of the new fangled Model 547s from the stack gathering dust in his display case. Who would ever want a 9mm revolver when you needed a 45 auto at least to survive the shift. They were on sale for $189.00!

Knowing what I do now, I would be all over the Model 27 3 1/2 inch for a keeper gun. I would put the four inch Python on lay away and put it under my bed until today and sell it on an auction site with the proceeds going into my traveling to New Zealand fund.
 
Or...Ask the store owner if he's got any old Smith boxes, diamond insert stocks or knurled SAT's hanging around. Buy all of those your bank roll affords.
 
Frank237 said:
Or...Ask the store owner if he's got any old Smith boxes, diamond insert stocks or knurled SAT's hanging around. Buy all of those your bank roll affords.
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Good call...... by 1985..... buy the store's "Big Box-O-Grips" from all the Pachmyar grip buys!!! $5 a grip or $100 would get you the whole box w/ 30-40 grips......
 
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BAM-BAM said:
Good call by 1985..... buy the store's "Big Box-O-Grips" from all the Pachmyar grip buys!!! $5 a grip or $100 would get you the whole box w/ 30-40 grips......[/QUOT

Now the same guys who tossed them are buying them back on line for $150.00 a set.
Click to expand...
 
Laketime said:
BAM-BAM said:
Good call by 1985..... buy the store's "Big Box-O-Grips" from all the Pachmyar grip buys!!! $5 a grip or $100 would get you the whole box w/ 30-40 grips......[/QUOT

Now the same guys who tossed them are buying them back on line for $150.00 a set.
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Good thing I'm a saver. :D I replaced a lot of factory grips with Pacs back in the 70s-80s. . I always took the grips home and mounted them and then put the stockers in the original box.

I have a space above my gun safe just loaded with stuff like that and boxes rifles & shot guns came it. Same if I did some trigger / hammer work took the stockers off and put in new parts.(no spring kits in those times)
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There were several shops around "the Burgh" that had "The Big Box-O-Grips" behind the counter or out front for shoppers to "root through".....

One day about 10-12 years ago, I went to look for original grips for (something).... at 3 or 4 shops; I got......

"Some guy came in last _______ and offered me $( IIRC $100-150) for the whole box......ya I sold all of them...... most were in there for years!"
 
I was never a fan of Colt revolvers. In the very early days of my LE career (ca. 1972) I decided to move up from my pretty gold trimmed Pre Mod. 10. The LGS gave me a choice, at the same price, between a brand new 6" M28 or a good used 6" M57. Being young AND stupid, I of course chose the M28. So much for choices.
 
Never a Python fan,,I'd have taken the 3.5" 27.
I did stumble once and buy a used Diamondback in 38sp 4" . Had that for a short time,,about 2 days.
Cost me around $250 IIRC
I traded that straight accross on a Model 1910 Mannlicher Schoenauer.

It's not that I don't like the old style Colt DA,,I do.
I just never liked the looks of the vent rib and the full length lug on the Python/Diamondback bbl. The O/Police was more my style or their Model 357.
Vent ribs don't belong on pistols and rifles...
 
It's a no brainier in 1975 it happened the 6" 357 magnum in blue the Colt Python the best 357 magnum ever manufactured came home with me.
Don't flame me there's no screws to come loose. I'm sorry I sold it but I worked 3 months per year in '84, in '85, in '86 I had little kids that ate like me. There mouths came first.
 
iPac said:
That made me laugh. Have you actually worked on and understand the mechanics and design of both those firearms? I understand just about every comment on here is personal opinion and this IS the Smith forum, but don't claim a gun mechanically inferior unless you can actually make a case for it. I could plead a pretty good case as to why it is the other way around.

I would take the Colts any day. Better design and more attractive. A little action job to eliminate the stacking and you have the superior trigger between the two. I will give it to S&W though for having the original 357mag.

Beautiful collection OP!!!
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Absolutely correct. Many get their jollies badmouthing Colts because of the alleged "timing problems" - but without having a shred of personal experience to substantiate that. And History has clearly shown that the Python has become a far better investment vehicle than the S&W.
 
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