For a very good shooter grade 28-2, just gun, no box, non original grips, what is the pricing premium of a 4 inch vs 6 inch. Rough aproximation. I have a 6 inch, but I find the 4 inch more aesthetically appealing

The 4" will get an extra $100 +/- $50. The 6"ers are slower movers too.

4" guns do look cooler and have great balance, but the 6" gun is no slouch.

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My sgntr is mor thn 30 chrctrs

I agree, but I would drop the “-“ and go with $100 to $150 more for the 4’ over the 6” given equal condition.

I doubt anyone could put a specific dollar amount on the difference. We do know that in the vast majority of cases with classic revolvers the shorter the barrel the more popular, sought after, and pricier they are.

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No life story has happy end.

But I think the six-inch is the better choice in an N-frame and often a better value.

I think I've owned three, and three M-27's, all six-inch but one pre-M-27 that was 6.5-inch. I bought them in preference to shorter guns, but did have one five-inch M-27. The six-inchers shot better, with less effort. And gave higher velocity.

For four-inch guns, I like the M-66 better.

I think it's even more important to have six-inch barrels on .41 or .44 Magnums.

I prefer 6"/6 1/2" barrels.

M28 / m28-2 average here $695 in around 97/98% condition 6" barrel

M27 / m27-2 average here $795 in 97 / 98% condition 6" barrel

This is my online dealer.

Given equal condition throughout, including the stocks, in this region $150 ave. premium. But ya just gotta have both a 4" and 6" HP It's a requirement of any S&W revolver nut

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John

I retired (traded) my 6" 28s in favor of a 6" 686,.....which when I stopped handgun hunting morphed into a 6" 586 safe queen.....

But while I never use it one of my favorite guns is my 4" 28 with a set of Executioner grips and Pachmayr T-grip.....can't explain it .....but ....it's a gun I just like to know I own.......

Haven't seen any in LGSs for several years...... but the 4" was commanding at least a $100 premium.....really nice ones....$150 or more....

I just saw a 6" on an online site listed at $619... late 70's vintage with rubber not wood... just as a basis for comparison...

I had both and I liked the 6 inch for a range revolver and the 4 inch for home defense. That probably doesn't make much sense but that is how it worked for me. I still have the S serial number 4 inch but I sold the 6 inch if that means anything. The Model 28-2 has gone way up in price these past 3 years and I would put the difference at about $150 for the shorter barrel over the longer.

Good information on this thread since I have often wondered what the price difference was. I have picked up one of each this past year, both for about half price; but, I really like the 4 inch better. Mathematically, because of the size of the N frame when compared to a K or a J, it is pretty much a snub. That's why I like it. The 6 inch is pretty much for hunting for me.

Attached Images

M28-2 Pic 1.jpg (87.3 KB, 29 views)

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Dr. B

Thanks guys for the answers and sharing your perspectives. My 6 inch 28-2 is my second favorite gun, and I got it at a fantastic price. Number one is my 1983ish Colt Sporter with period correct bayonet. Nothing fancy about either, just quality workhorses with some historical significance. I bet most of the beat cops of old carried the 6 inch. But I still want a 4 inch. I have been such a good boy lately, and even tho my wife need not know, she wants me to be happy, and happiness is two 28-2s.

Exactly, just a big hunk of metal. Visceral.

What? Only two? Man, have I missed the target!

Well, only figuratively . . .

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

Only two??? Man, you're easy.
And FWIW, I prefer 4". Prolly $100 difference to me. Maybe more.

Just wanted to add a pic of my 4" Highway Patrolmen (surrounding their slightly more flamboyant 27-2 sister):



On the left is a pre-28 and on the right is a 28-2.

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My sgntr is mor thn 30 chrctrs

Nice group of Nframes there Clang. Though that nickel 27 is no doubt the bell of the ball, I'd take the 5 screw over it any day of the week. Twice on Sundays!

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Even older, even crankier....

As a practical revolver, the M-28 has a big, heavy cylinder that has more mass for the hand to turn, and they go out-of-time more than revolvers with lighter cylinders. When the M-686 came out, with stainless construction and a little more compact form (if with about the same weight), I lost interest in M-28's.

The Ruger GP-100 is also a very strong contender as the best heavy-duty .357. And, it too, is offered in stainless.

I am not a collector and would not pay a dime more for a five-screw gun over a four-screw one. Actually, from a design standpoint, the latter is a better gun. Collectors see matters differently. And they don't wear the guns, so a stainless one doesn't matter to them.

Maybe it's the lighting, but the left gun looks to be brighter blued. I have seen some M-28's that had almost a standard service gun blue. Most have the duller finish. But sometimes, one gets lucky and finds a brighter one.

I'd rather pay the difference and get a M-27 with nice blue and the checkering on top.

Because I find the M-28 hard to conceal, anyway, the six-inch barrel is preferable for the way I'd use a large .357, mainly outdoors. I did carry M-27 and M-28 guns occasionally in uniform as a security officer, but preferred smaller guns. My M-66-3 was easily the one most often worn.
But I didn't/don't pound it a lot with hot loads.

In official use, I think more four-inch M-28's were issued. Texas DPS used four-inch, as did Anchorage and maybe Alaska State Troopers and NYSP. Washington State Patrol used six-inchers, I think. Others?

In 1967, I bought a brand new 6" 28-2 for a field gun. Very accurate, and plenty of power. It found a dual use as a house gun back when I little disposable income.

In 1968, my dad approached me about what I would recommend for him for a house gun. I suggested the 4" Model 28 as it would be harder to wrest loose from him than the 6" variation, and would be more maneuverable in confined spaces. He charged me with finding one, which I did. I equipped both guns with trigger shoes to give a better single action letoff feel. They have remained on both guns since they were new.

Today I own both, as my dad is gone now. Here's a pic of the two guns. Early on, I picked up some worked-over rosewood smoothies for my gun at a gun show, and they fit me perfectly; they've been on the gun for most of the years I've owned it. Dad's gun has walnut targets that I bought at the same time as the gun itself. I still keep that gun in its original box with the papers, and a bill of sale that Dad drew up to transfer the gun from me to him. He was always meticulous about record keeping!



In more recent years I purchased another 28-2 4" (vintage of 1980) in excellent shape, as I've never fired my father's gun since he died. It's a nostalgia thing with me that the last time it was fired, he fired it when we went out to the desert to target shoot with both guns. This later gun was originally equipped with the targets you see here; the original box, papers and cleaning stuff have been retained.



I also picked up another shooter-grade-plus 4" at a gun show simply because it was a good price and the owner had tried to fit it with K-frame grips. I replaced those with Eagle smoothies, and it's a fine packing gun that I don't mind getting some use. This 1977 gun's Eagles have a palm swell in the Roper/Skelton tradition that make it very comfortable to shoot.



Aesthetically, I prefer the 4" guns, but the 6-inchers are probably more accurate due to the longer sighting plane, and they add some velocity to any load fired.

John

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