Value of a USAF model 15

26betsam

26betsam

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Greetings from South Florida,
Looking at a lettered USAF Model 15-2 on GB.
Standard wear, rarely shot with standard holster wear. Question is what is the going value now days?
I carried one as a pilot in the AF and would like to own one but I have a half a dozen 15's so it's not like the world will end if I don't have this one.
Thanks in advance, all the best
Kevin
 
I carried 38 M&P's in Viet Nam and would like to have a U.S. Army marked example. The Army had thousands of them, many of which were stored at Ft. Rucker for years. If I had thought about it back then, I could have claimed I dropped out the door one day and put it in my hole baggage to be shipped home. I would have had to do as Statement of Charges and had the hundred bucks or so deducted from my pay. Oh well, too late now.
 
Greyman50 said:
Had the chance to buy several in RVN. Knew they were " hot" so no deal. Knew guys that bought them and sold or traded before they DEROSed. IIRC most were around $50 or less.
Click to expand...
Yea, there were so many weapons floating around. You could get what ever you wanted. Dave, I can't remember If I told you about one of our door gunners who got busted for mailing AK parts to his uncle. He later told me he had already sent three before he got busted. He got an Article 15, lost a stripe and had to do some extra duty.

He was a door gunner!!! What were they going to do? Bend his dog tags and send him to Vietnam??
 
I carried a USAF Model 15 for years. I’d love to have a legit one, but I don’t think a lot leaked out into the public sphere. (Check out those Target grips! I took them off a Model 19 and the Armorer didn’t care.)

IMG_7926.webp

I had a chance to snag one from an F-4 crash scene, but I’m not a thief and turned it in.
 
Malysh said:
Yes I am.
My choice. I wouldn't pay that much money for that model gun.
Regardless if a couple of buyers had more money than brains.
Click to expand...
Well good for you sir ,this obviously this is not something that you appreciate or understand the true value.

Just because it’s financially feasible for you to collect such an item doesn’t mean it’s not worth it to a collector.
 
I have a couple of USAF revolvers in my stash. I picked up my M-13 (USAF nomenclature) at a pawnshop after work one day. Didn't know what I had until I got home. I think I paid $85.00 for it. Had it verified at a Tulsa show back in the day when the SWCA crew stayed at the Best Western. Picked up my M-15 at a San Antonio show for $700.00 Jumped on it, even back then I knew it was a bargain . It was Roy Jinks lettered and had a statement from the General that owned it when He retired, stating he had carried it in Vietnam in '66. He had retired locality. Picked up many military used firearms locally. Central Texas has a lot of military bases that I think supplied most of them. If another popped up for $2000ish I would jump on it, They are not getting any cheaper. I bought my first registered Magnum for $1500 from a retired Secret Service officer and look what they go for today.
SWCA 892
PS I just looked up a USAF M-15 in an old Blue Book copyrighted in 2019 100% $3,625.00
 
26betsam said:
Greetings from South Florida,
Looking at a lettered USAF Model 15-2 on GB.
Standard wear, rarely shot with standard holster wear. Question is what is the going value now days?
I carried one as a pilot in the AF and would like to own one but I have a half a dozen 15's so it's not like the world will end if I don't have this one.
Thanks in advance, all the best
Kevin
Click to expand...
Hey Kevin, how did You carry .38 Special reloads, when carrying the revolver ?
 
Funny thinking about it there was just a box of GI 130gr. Nothing on the shoulder holster. We did have a 12 round loop of tracers for signaling. I was in B-52's and FB-111's so the weapons were stashed away in the alert aircraft. If the BIG one went down we'd holster on the way to the Russkiland.
 
As a lowly ground pounder, my 12 spare rounds of PGU 12/b were loaded into “zip strips” (Bianchi Speed Strips) which always had the tabs pulled off, then stuffed into leather dump pouches. IMG_3424.webp
 
OP, I had bid on the GB listed USAF model 15, mainly to make it easier to find it for the final sale realized price. But I own three already, so I will step aside on this one. I would love to see a fellow USAF former officer get it. IMO, this one is a good example. The only negative is the finish wear. But that is balanced by the nice package of S&W historical information it comes with. Plus it looks absolutely correct. The S&W provenance alone adds $100+ to the value. I think that revolver can/will go north of $2,000. These are just not showing up very often, even on GB. Pristine examples are an easy $3500-4500. The only thing that might keep it below $2k is the economy, a lot of collectible firearms are not going as high as they were a year or two ago. Anyway, good luck!
 
Retired W4 said:
Yea, there were so many weapons floating around. You could get what ever you wanted. Dave, I can't remember If I told you about one of our door gunners who got busted for mailing AK parts to his uncle. He later told me he had already sent three before he got busted. He got an Article 15, lost a stripe and had to do some extra duty.

He was a door gunner!!! What were they going to do? Bend his dog tags and send him to Vietnam??
Click to expand...
Yea we talked about it at the last show, crazy. Lots of " stuff made it home".
 
When I rotated from Phu-Cat and I took my footlocker whole baggage down to be shipped, When I walked in the Sgt just started to band my footlocker and I ask why he didn't customs inspect it. He told me it wasn't required since I was being shipped concurrent overseas to Spain. I could have put my AK47 that I had in the barracks in and smuggled it. Just as well, I probably gotten in big trouble.
SWCA 892
 
Looking back and knowing that most " inspections" done by dogs were looking for dope could have brought " more stuff home". However closer to DEROS I got was moved around and would have been tough to mail" stuff home". Would have mailed my Gerber home with few " other things" but ended up giving them to an ARVN Lt. I worked with.
 
I got my entire Pioneer stereo home in my hold (as in the hold of a ship) baggage, including amp, turn table and 2 77's and 2 88A speakers. It took two trunks. It took 3 months for that ship to make to the west coast, plus the time it took to truck it across the country to Ohio. Every thing arrived in good condition, including my Chicom Tok, which was tucked neatly among the stereo equipment and clothes, etc. The statutes of limitations have expired, so there!!! Our gun platoon was able to dispatch it's previous owner, an NVA officer, so that I could be it's care taker. Matching numbers, except for the magazine. EDIT! EDIT! After all these years I thought it was hole. Well I happily stand corrected. All that Navy stuff confuses me, like it sounds appropriate, to me, that it would be called a hole. It least that's what I invision when I think about that part of a ship.
IMG_0332 (2).webpIMG_0333 (2).webp
 
Last edited:
austintexas said:
I have a couple of USAF revolvers in my stash. I picked up my M-13 (USAF nomenclature) at a pawnshop after work one day. Didn't know what I had until I got home. I think I paid $85.00 for it. Had it verified at a Tulsa show back in the day when the SWCA crew stayed at the Best Western. Picked up my M-15 at a San Antonio show for $700.00 Jumped on it, even back then I knew it was a bargain . It was Roy Jinks lettered and had a statement from the General that owned it when He retired, stating he had carried it in Vietnam in '66. He had retired locality. Picked up many military used firearms locally. Central Texas has a lot of military bases that I think supplied most of them. If another popped up for $2000ish I would jump on it, They are not getting any cheaper. I bought my first registered Magnum for $1500 from a retired Secret Service officer and look what they go for today.
SWCA 892
PS I just looked up a USAF M-15 in an old Blue Book copyrighted in 2019 100% $3,625.00
Click to expand...
$85 for an M-13 Aircrewman!!! You hit the jackpot on that one.
 
A few years ago I had a 4" Mod 15 I put in an on line auction. There was no reference at all to USAF, and clearly no markings and it was well shown with about 20 photo's. I was amazed when it brought $2500. I still feel it was a couple of guys and several bottles of something involved in the bidding.
 
26betsam said:
Funny thinking about it there was just a box of GI 130gr. Nothing on the shoulder holster. We did have a 12 round loop of tracers for signaling. I was in B-52's and FB-111's so the weapons were stashed away in the alert aircraft. If the BIG one went down we'd holster on the way to the Russkiland.
Click to expand...
Was the 12 rd loop sewn to a survival-vest ?
 
No they were just on loops that I guess the plan was in the Buff to put them in one's flight suit zippered pocket.
In the FB-111 we were in a capsule so the crew would arrive with everything plus the kitchen sink.
 
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