In 1959, the factory engaged Siegfried Rentzschke as one of their engravers. He worked for the factory for less than a year, but during that year he turned out some of the most beautiful Factory engraved S&Ws ever engraved.

In 2012, I acquired my first two-tone (pinto) engraved 3.5" 357 Magnum from a member of this forum who is also a local collector and all around nice guy. In the following years, I acquired a few more. Then in September 2014, I had the chance to acquire my first Rentzschke engraved gun from another forum member. It was a stunner and I believed it to be a one of a kind. It is a 4-screw non-model marked, beautifully engraved pinto 3.5" 357 Magnum.

Here's a couple of photos (SN S186815, shipped July 22, 1959 to Oshmans in Houston, TX):





[link to a complete thread on this gun: SPECTACULAR Engraved 357 Pinto - S. Rentzschke Style

Then, much to my surprise, another Rentzschke engraved 3.5" pinto appeared. A forum member purchased it at auction, and at a later date, graciously allowed me to add it to my herd. This one is a 5-screw pre-27 with SN S150790 that shipped April 23, 1959 and also shipped to Oshmans in Houston.





Surely, I thought to myself, these have to be the only two 3.5" pinto .357 Magnums engraved by Rentzschke... BUT THEN several months ago, a third one appeared at auction. The photos were not very good, but I knew that this one had to come home with me. Prepared to win it at any cost, I threw in my bid an waited for several weeks, ultimately winning the auction and adding it to my collection. SN S186811 is a 4-screw, model marked 27, that shipped on November 15, 1959 not surprisingly to .... you guessed it ... Oshmans in Houston, TX. Here are some photos of this beauty...























Owning these three Rentzschke engraved 357s and one more (a 6" blued gun that shipped December 17, 1959), makes me wonder just how many guns Mr. Rentzschke put out in his S&W one-year tenure. Regardless of how many, the talent shown in his work really is some of the finest engraving that was turned out by any S&W factory engraver. In one of the letters, Roy Jinks describes Mr. Rentzschke as "the finest engraver to work at the factory since Gustav Young". I very much agree. Interestingly, after Rentzschke left the factory, while doing some freelance engraving, he went back to school and eventfully ended up teaching economics at Springfield Technical Community College.

As always, I welcome any thoughts, observations and comments. I would love it if someone else had a Rentzschke engraved gun that they were willing to share.

Thanks for letting me share,

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Very nice , Richard. Those are beautiful.
I was reflecting the other day about collecting and how much I enjoy the "hunt". Those are three nice trophy's you've bagged!

ah, that brought a tear to my eye...

Well that settles it---there's quality, and then there's QUALITY!

Ralph Tremaine

That is the triple crown, Richard......Ben

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Cogito, ergo BOOM!...

Richard, As the Pawn Stars say, " A gun is no good unless it will shoot !" So, where's your range report for these beauties ? ( be sure your ammo & targets are also engraved ) Ed

Good Golly Richard

That is a Spectacular Trio

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"Acta non verba"

A little garish for my personal taste but truly a work of art.

Richard, this is another of my "can it get any better..." posts.

The cylinder on that last one is beyond elegant.

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Wrangler of stray Chiefs
Bob

Wow! Those three are outstanding! I’d love to see your fourth example of Mr. Rentzschke‘s work!

Great post Richard! Love the history of these three and backstory of an engraver turned Econ teacher.

Thanks for sharing them!

That part made me curious if I'd met him, since I once had work at that school and across the street at Milton Bradley.
His Alumni paper from Illinois Carbondale showed he was there at that time, but didn't find a photo of him.


Sent from my motorola one 5G using Tapatalk

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Slava Ukraini!

Those are spectacular Richard! Any chance we might get a little closer look at them in June?

Jeff
SWCA #1457

Richard, there is only one word that captures my experience at seeing these marvels: GOBSMACKED!



You have all the material you need for a very successful coffee table book on engraved S&W handguns. I know I'd buy it. By the way, I SECOND Jeff's motion!

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Guy
SWHF #474 SWCA LM#2629

Thanks for posting!

You took some beautiful close-up pics. They really show off the detail in those guns beautifully.

Richard,
Congratulations on finding and putting together such an outstanding grouping and thank you for sharing them. You have an eye for beautiful and balanced engraving.
I would speculate that each of the pistols represents several hundred hours of time and you have four of Mr. Rentzschke’s works. You have to own the bulk of his production at Smith & Wesson. What a fantastic quest.
BTW, if you publish a book please put me on your list of purchasers.
Jake

Your revolvers are breathtaking! While I don't own an engraved revolver, I certainly appreciate the engraver's skill and artistry. I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's something fascinating about an engraved firearm. At one extreme we have a basic tool; at the other an exquisite piece of art. The mix is intriguing.

In a way, it's like the first time you really notice the girl next door. The girl you grew up with, a tomboy maybe. Then one day she grows up and and you see her dressed for a date. Inside she's still a down-to-earth girl next door, but she's become a lady. I see these engraved masterpieces in a similar way. Breathtaking. Makes your heart skip a beat.

Here are a few photos of my "fourth Rentzschke" - SN S197454, a 6" barreled Model marked 27 that shipped December 17, 1959 to John Hayes, in Bedford, MA.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Richard, Don't do that to me before I take my morning meds! That's just not right!

Beautiful, a dying art. Thank you for sharing.

Richard, congratulations on another stunning addition to your collection! I’m glad you got that one! 🤩
-Karl

I love all the non relieved presentation stocks.

… oh and the guns aren’t so bad either

I agree Richard - some of the finest scroll work I have seen on factory guns!

Bob

Well……..I have to say……..WOW!
I like the 4th M27 the best. The way everything just flows from one area to the next these revolvers is amazing.
But the 4th one under the barrel to me is mesmerizing. Pretty sure I will be visiting this page again and again just to admire it.

Richard.. you do it EVERY TIME..

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SWCA #2306
DAV in honor of POP

Do you sit around, looking for the differences in the 3? At a glance, they're the same pattern but not quite the same.

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Just Say No - To Social Media

RKmesa, If you get the urge and the time can you indulge us with some family photographs of all three kids together? It would be great to see the three guns lined up showing the same features together.

Yes. I have spent significant time looking at the similarities and the differences.

It is fun to compare them to each other. Here a few photos that help (in SN order top to bottom and left to right)...









Enjoy!

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

1960

Thanks for posting the photos of those fine works of art.

Thank you, RKmesa!

This is really interesting. Certainly, the 3 guns are of the same spectacular style. It's fascinating to zoom in and look for the differences. Some are subtle while others less so. I spent a long time comparing the pictures and kept finding the variances. Somewhat like the online challenges to "find 8 differences between the sketches." Only you gave us three items to compare and they're works of art.

Thanks again for posting the photographs!

--Krogen

Engraving like that is stunning. It makes me wonder if the inspiration for such work come from the patterns frost makes on windows?

Kevin

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Unshared knowledge is wasted.

Always a treat to see your collection pieces, Richard

Robert

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

An interesting aspect to me is that all four have orange front sight inserts. This would constitute a rather early appearance of that feature, would it not?

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SWCA #590
"Colligo ergo sum"

Truly, masterpieces created my a Master.

How many hours would it have taken a Master Engraver to complete a gun such as these three beautiful pieces? Also, did S&W have these guns worked up on speculation or only by Special Order?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Spectacular - even as someone who doesn't normally go for engraved handguns, THESE are IMHO what engraved pieces should aspire to - but so rarely do.

Truly a beautiful trio, sir - enjoy in good health.

“Prepared to win at any cost,,” Words of a true collector. Please pass the Awesome Sauce!

As I was reading all of the comments I was formulating my response as well. Then I read this and there are no words that I could add that are not listed above.

So I will just say DITTO x 100 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

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James Redfield
LM #497

Actually, the red ramp front sight insert was cataloged in 1952. It quickly became a popular feature. Many of my early 3.5" 357 Magnums have the red ramp front sight. This is a page out of the 1952 (later edition) Catalog:


Note that the earlier first printing of the 1952 Catalog featured the Blanchard Red Ramp, a short lived chevron shaped insert that became entangled in a use dispute and was replaced by the S&W Red Ramp that that became common.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Richard,

Thank you for clarifying the differences. I read the fliers twice and could see not difference until I read you explanation.

Kevin

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Unshared knowledge is wasted.

RK, with those guns going to Oshman's in Houston it appears that there were some well heeled gun buyers in Texas who didn't want to order similarly gussied up Smith & Wessons from Rex Firearms in NEW YORK CITY. :-)

Beautiful guns. I also find Mr. Rentzschke's engraving coverage of the cylinders to be interesting. It's as if he was saying to the owner's "go ahead and shoot it, that's what guns were made for".

Ed and Walter:

Both S150790 and S186811 were definitely carried. There is holster wear (particularly on S186811) that shows the gun was well cared for, but owned by a person unafraid to strap it to his waist. Both of them appear to have been fired, but not a ton.

I wish I knew anything about the original retail purchasers of these beauties. Particularly the ones that were carried and used.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

I have to learn to stop clicking on your threads unless I have a bib on. Beautiful, absolutely beautiful.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

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NRA Benefactor Member

You have an awesome network of enablers and an awesome collection of the finest engraved guns I have ever seen.

Just for Fun and a little easier comparison of the differences and similarities - here are the high res photos posted next to each other in SN order.









Kind of fun to compare and contrast.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Thanks again, RKmesa. Do you have a favorite one? I'm sure that's like asking parents of triplets which kid is their favorite . . . .

Each of them is a favorite - but what I really love is all three of them together. As such, I'm working with Glenn Dean on a custom case for the three of them... I'll keep you all posted as the vision progresses.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

I’ve been on this Forum for almost 15 years and of all the S&W’s that have been posted that I’ve seen over that time, these three are clearly my favorite ones. Just being the current caretaker of one of them would be an honor.

I feel very fortunate to have the collection I have, and each time I add another gun I say to myself “this is the last gun I’m gonna buy”. Of course I know that isn’t true. But, if I had a chance to add one of these, it could be the last gun I’d need to buy 😉.

As always, outstanding Richard! And thank you for sharing these, and the rest of your breathtaking collection.

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Rick
SWCA #2727 , SWHF #435

Thanks Rick. These three really are special when it comes to factory engraved guns. I feel very lucky to have landed them. One of my regrets is that I did not get to personally talk with Mr. Rentzschke before he passed several years ago. That would have been a fun conversation...

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

I too love the seamless work on the barrel. The layout and execution is amazing, and the scroll on the front sight base is a wonderfully classy touch. Here are a few more photos of the barrel.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan