The Ford's name comes up here often and I know I'm not the only fan of their services. I'm fortunate to live within driving distance of Crystal River, FL and have enjoyed getting to know the Ford's folks a bit over the past couple of years as they've refinished 6 revolvers for me during that time.

At times I've been reluctant to sing their praises too much since the wait is already running 5 to 6 months and I've had things in que or planning to put in que and I didn't want the rest of you guys gettin' in my way.() But I'm in a lull right now with nothing needing the spa treatment at Ford's so I'll let the rest of ya'll have at it for a while.

I'm not a serious collector and how refinishing affects collector value doesn't really interest me much. I like to find nice old shooters that are still in good mechanical condition but have suffered some poor mishap that has really hurt the cosmetics. If I can find something and buy it right due to the cosmetics I let Ford's work their magic and I end up with a beautiful revolver that I can shoot and enjoy and also feel like I rescued a fine revolver from becoming somebody's truck gun or boat gun or barn gun. I realize I have more money invested in these old guns than they're worth but I don't really care - I love how they look, how they shoot and the intangible value they have to me.

Since most of these examples fall into this forum (S&W Revolvers: 1961 to 1980) I'm posting this thread here. But the first gun is my old 1-liner K22 from the late 1940's This was a pawn shop rescue that turned out to be such a sweet shooting revolver I felt it deserved a better fate than to look like a rusty old wreck.





This 19-3 was another pawn shop deal. The owner called me and said he had an old Smith I oughta come see. I went right over and he brought out this 19-3 that actually didn't look too bad. Until you turned it over and saw that one side had been stored in contact with something that ate the bluing badly on that side. He didn't even want to put it in the gun case and sold it to me for cheap. Too nice a gun to let suffer so off to Ford's it went.



When I found this 4" 27-2 it was a nickel example with a lot of cosmetic issues from poor handling, cleaning solvents, who knows. It was wearing an old Pachmayr grip with some rust under the rubber. I've always admired the old "pinto" guns and decided to have Ford's do the Pinto look. They surprised me with a few unexpected touches - the side plate screws are nickel, the barrel pin is nickel and the cylinder stop is nickel. I didn't give them specific instructions but rather turned them loose to create a pinto as they saw fit. Here's what they came up with. (Not trying to faithfully copy an original, this is Ford's own interpretation.)





I have a thing for the 27-2 and I'm always looking for a "deal" on one. Often the "deal" is because the gun looks tired, has finish damage and has damaged stocks. Perfect!

4" 27-2



5" 27-2



8 3/8" 27-2



I don't have any before pictures for most of these as I just didn't think it important at the time. I'm kicking myself now for not documenting them before they went off to Ford's but it's too late now.

I've had nothing but the best experience working with Ford's. The rates are a bargain in my opinion and the work is first rate. On most of these I paid the extra fee to have the hammers and triggers sent out for new case coloring, something Ford's doesn't do in-house. The results speak for themselves. Actually these guns look better in person as my camera skills aren't so terrific.

Sorry to be kinda long-winded but I wanted to share my Ford's experience and post up some photos of them. I was thinking I had done 5 but putting them all together I see I have 6. FWIW if you have 10 done the 11th one is free......

Thanks for posting these guns. I have two there now, can't wait to get them back after seeing the great job they did on yours.

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Vietnam 1969-1971

I am curious to see how the right side of the K22 turned out.

Pretty well actually. The pitting is gone and the surface is level and uniform. They re-engraved the S&W logo but I lost the one-liner. It's now a no-liner. Keep in mind it's a refinishing shop and not a restoration service. I was amazed at what they were able to do with this one.

Thank you. I have about a month wait on my pre 19. It's my first time doing a re-bluing. I hated the condition it was in much more than the value aspect.
They did call me, on a Sunday, and asked about the logo. I'm glad I said yes. Never did ask how much for the additional work, I just want it looking good so I can shoot the ***** out of it.

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"from my cold dead hands" C.H.

Just like old cars. The most sought after is the original finish one that looks like it's fresh out of the showroom. But, if my classic car has a tired finish along with good bones, I'm gonna repaint it. Don't want to drive a ****** looking car just to preserve it as an "unrestored original". Guns are no different.

App an hour away for me too. I used to work much closer & go to drool on their showcase glass on my lunch breaks. The only gun I had them do was a 1957 Marlin waffle top/ black walnut stock 35 cal, it came out beautiful but I sold it as some Bubba had drilled thru the waffle pattern to mount a scope & I just couldn't look at it without getting PO'd, & I got my old Win 375 BB XTR back. That was app 5 years ago & they were turning away people & only doing walk ups. Wait time NOW, (thanks) a year (in gunsmith time). Nice pics. If you need other guns to help you reach # 10 I have a Ruger speed 6 & a mdl 10 I'd be willing to let you have done for me.

Fords..
First year RM.. needed a bit of work. They did it justice!!

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SWCA #2306
DAV in honor of POP

Mmmmmmmm... pinto

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50 Years of DSOTM

Fords hard chromed my P7M8 back in 2001 and did a great job. They removed the mill mark that came on refurbs and since the slide had to be shaved down, they had to re-engrave the date code and markings. They also hard chromed my 442. Don't have the p7 anymore as I traded it to Matt Del Fatti for his P2000 after I lost part iof my middle finger. Still have the 442 and its held up well. Best 110 bucks I ever spent.

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

If you have a cow pattie, you got a prairie muffin. There is no way to put metal back where it was. You can polish and buff all you want. It still is not factory original. I have six S&W around my house that are not factory perfect. They all function perfectly and I use them. They are loaded. The LNIB are locked in the safe. Any guy on this Forum can see a refinish. Nobody is being fooled. We all know what they are suppose to look like. If you have to feed the refinish guys, please do. They deserve a living. Just my thoughts. Come back cruel if you want. If you got a **** that shoots you got a ****. Save your money.

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Mike 2796
SoFo Bunch member

It's his $ & if it makes him happy it's $ well spent. Looking at the pics make me warm & fuzzy. Not a fan of the 2 tone, but love the 4" 27-2. Which treatment grades did you get? I was wondering If they could remove the owners manual from the speed 6 bbl. Any idea what the super ultimate grade service goes for, I know, more than the gun & if you have to ask you can't afford it. I've bought plenty of stuff I couldn't afford. YES it may be crazy but I think the speed 6 snub would make a dandy BBQ gun when all pimped out. Haters gonna hate & MAY be the same types that don't believe in cleaning guns either. To each his own.

Nice Ford's commercial after the recent bad press on this forum (re Python barrel screw up)

Thanks, appreciate you posting the pic. They did do a great job with those pitted areas. You now have a very nice revolver.

Clearly the OP is not trying to fool anyone. He didn't have before photos of the other revolvers, but I can see why he sent the K22 in even though I generally won't consider refinishing guns these days myself. But that one I might have if I didn't have too much money in it and it was good mechanically.

One thing I was curious about besides how well they took care of the pitting was how the sideplate turned out. My peeve with refinished S&W's is when the sideplate edges are dished and rounded off. Look at most refinished guns and that is the case. One thing that has always been remarkable on Smiths is the sideplate fit, even on the bread and butter guns. I hate to see that messed up. It doesn't have to be that way, so I was curious to see how Ford's did. The other photos appears to show some rounding on the other guns and on the K22 it is significant. Of course a lot of metal had to be removed to get to the bottom of the pits.

I confess that I have had a grand total of one Smith refinished. Back in 1980 I bought a M53 in Alaska that looked like the previous owner had kept it in a toolbox with the rest of his tools. A little rough but it was cheap and I was always intrigued by the M53. I sent it to S&W right after I bought it and asked them to do what they could with the finish and fit a 22LR cylinder. The photo shows how it came back. Note the sideplates edges look about like any other production gun. So it is possible to do it right.

It's funny, people talk about re-finishing a gun, and how it ruins the "Collectibility" of said gun.

I personally do not agree with that. Especially if someone like Fords or Hamilton Bowen does the refinish.

That Pinto gun for example. I would pay top dollar for that gun in a heartbeat, even with the refinish. I know they are only Factory original once, but saving a gun that needs saving is something I think is actually honorable. This generation of craftsmen honoring the previous generation of craftsmen has special merit.

I had this 1911 Refinished:



The Purists would have a heart attack.

But you know what? it had no finish on it, it just sat in my safe, and was unremarkable. Now, it has a nice set of Double Diamonds on it, it has a factory correct finish done by a top-notch 1911 shop up here by me. I think it looks great, and this old Stallion looks like it should. I'll put some rounds through it, and if it gets a little dirty and god forbid a scratch or two, that's all good too.

WOW,
Great pics guys!!
It's amazing the transformation those guns went through.
I personally think there is nothing wrong with refinished firearms..( provided it is done correctly)
Thanks for all the pics

The adversion to refinishing and how it affects collectability is valid to the true collectors who seek the NIB, unfired, papers and tools examples. I get that and that's OK if that's the game you enjoy. And sometimes honest wear is cool too. I have a lot of older revolvers with good honest wear and I have no plans to refinish any of them. For me it's these good guns that suffered an unfortunate turn of events that left them cosmetically marred that I'll invest in the refinish if I can buy them right to start with. Clearly not trying to fool anyone and have no plans to sell any of them. I'm just one of those who think life it too short to own an ugly gun and besides these old classics deserve a better fate than to look like they did. I agree it honors the craftsmanship that the previous generations put forth to start with.

As I understand it the aversion to refinishing is more of a North America thing. Families in Europe have been sending their Purdeys and Holland & Hollands back to be "re-blackened" as needed for years. Some of those guns are kept in families for generations (and new examples can easily cost over $200,000) and refinishing is just considered proper care of the family assets.

I think most all of us understand and appreciate what you had done to the former "boat anchors."
Threads like this bring out the troll in some folks.
I like reading every ones input, regardless.

As my "signature" reads on another forum; "LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO OWN AN UGLY GUN" ( with all due respect to serious collectors-I also own some I wouldn't touch)

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John

When the lady of the house starts showing her age the first thing we hear from her is maybe a ''new look''. Fords can give that special gun a ''new look'' and a lot cheaper too.

lts time to visit Fords in Crystal River with my 4digit sn '47 K22 Birth Year Gun that fell from the sky in Jan

I have a weakness for quality guns that have had a hard life and deserved better. Sort of like bedraggled puppies...I know they have a lot left to give with some TLC.

I've brought a few back from the brink and personally I'm very fond of them. The most recent was a somewhat scruffy 19-3. I let S&W attend to the mechanicals; it shot so well that I sent it off to Ford's. It took a while, but it looks just as good as those above.

I think God smiles when we "create" something beautiful. I know I like looking at it...

I, too, just bought a "scruffy" 19-3 last weekend. It has a 6 inch barrel. I shot it yesterday for 12 rounds (was in a hurry) and it printed about two inches at 25 yds. from rest. It shot high, left with 158gr. loads. I will try tomorrow to adjust sights and see if I can't get it centered. If I'm successful I wouldn't mind sending it to Smith for an overhaul mechanically. What is a ballpark fee for something like this?

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Kevin in Oregon

Mine had some endshake, a little bit of rotational play in the cylinder. Nothing too serious. I just thought it was worth having it looked over by the pros who might be able to address that plus any other issues they might find...I know my way around the innards of S&Ws but also have a keen sense of my limitations.

What I did not expect was that they would also address the moderate erosion in the forcing cone. Apparently replacement barrels for the M19 and 66s are no longer available; so I didn't even think to ask. Well, they turned the barrel back two full turns and recut the forcing cone to spec, giving me the equivalent of a NEW barrel. My cost was about $110 or so, which I thought was a darn good deal.

After that I HAD to go all the way and ship it off to Ford's. As of now I have about $600 into the gun and would do it again.

I try to buy the nicest guns I can. I took care of even my LE gun with 50K through it. Still looks good. Would never refinish it unless it just got ruined. I don't believe it hurts a shooter quality gun like a 19 etc to reblued. In fact you could make a few. I know I would pay more for it. I see all of these pre 27's that look like new. You can't tell me that most of them aren't refinished. I just bought my first 26-2 3.5 and it's like new from 72. It's original and prefer it that way. I am getting a pre 36 today that might be a little rough I would consider refinishing. Is Fords that much better than S&W. Hard to tell much from pics. I have a classic 29 4 inch that had some issues. Smith looked like they dropped it in the floor. I sent it back and with the repolish and reblue one of the nicest blued guns I have and I have a few. So what makes Fords better?
JR

I don't think of Ford's as automatically being better than S&W but I do agree the Ford's Master Blue is different than the factory bluing I've seen. I've never had the factory refinish a gun so I can't speak from personal experience or ever held an example of each at the same time for comparison. Certainly the factory can turn out some beautiful work as well. In my case it wasn't a decision to choose Ford's over S&W for refinishing because it's hands down better. Rather I simply love their work, their prices are very reasonable, they're within driving distance so I don't have to pay high shipping to send off a gun and I can handle the turn around time. As a bonus they're very nice folks and have an interesting shop filled with all kinds of wonderful things (if you're a gun nut.)

As an aside, the last time I had two guns in getting refinished and I asked Larna if they would hold the first until the second was done and I would come pick up both. No problem. My schedule got busy and when the second was finished I couldn't break free on a week day to drive there and back (3.5 hours each way) so Larna offered to meet me there on a Saturday morning when they're normally closed to let me pick up the guns. We took our time looking everything over, chatted and I even got a tour of the place and was shown where all the steps were done and got to see all the different parts that were in various stages of work. Very cool.

Some things I didn't know - they do the nickel plating for the Cimmaron SA revolvers. They also do the the plating for Magnum Research's Desert Eagle pistols. So it's not just RE-finishing going on but also some original "factory" finishing too.

Rumor is they also do work for the US NAVY at the Sub Base too..

Part of adding to their wait time is their contract with Magnum Research to do all the Desert Eagle finishes except the gold tiger stripe/nitrate gold.My nickel Eagle is by far better than any Smith or colt that I have owned or seen.

I just picked up my Colt Police Positive Special from them this week. I am very pleased with the work they did on it. The turn around was exactly four (4) months to the day. Very good folks to deal with and they will definitely get my business again if I need something refinished.

I appreciate your pictures, especially the before and after shots. I have a hard time rebluing a piece that just has honest wear but when it comes to something rode hard and put away wet with less than 50% of the bluing left on it...I can see a good reason. I have a nickle plated 32-20 that has some pitting at least as bad as the .22, I was considering sending it off to be reblued, the Pinto thing kinda got my interest. Its collectibility factor is very low so I feel I am harming nothing in any historical sense.
One of the things I learned while restoring a couple of old trucks is that there are some amazing things being done by machinists that really have their act together and are up on the latest welding techniques. One of the things I was shown by a local guy was "spray" welding, he could actually build up a severely worn original piece and then turn it down to its original specs. I wondered if this technique could be applied to some heavily pitted handguns, granted you would loose all of the original roll marking and stampings but from what I understand many of those can be redone. Its possible that is the kind of techniques a place like Turnbull uses to bring stuff back from the very dead. It is a very expensive treatment but in many respects well worth the money. It is used on very rare automotive pieces much the way folks have been restoring old brake wheel and master cylinders by removing all of the pitting and then hard chroming to bring it back to proper specs, once that process is done you are not going to have to fool with them again, ever. Show us more before and after shots...