Engraved Nickel 29-2 questions

[valbehaved]

Hello, everyone;
I have an opportunity to purchase this early N-prefix 29-2, sn N61XXX, that has very nice and what appears to be original engraving.
Unfortunately, the gun was poorly stored in the clam shell case and as a result has freckling in the nickel finish as per pics and some remnants of the blue flocking on the finish and on the grips, that would probably come off with good cleaning.
A few questions:
Does this appear to be factory engraving?
If so, how is the quality?
Would it be worth properly restoring this gun(stripping the nickel, repolishing and renickeling)?
Asking price is $1100.
Thank you!

[valbehaved]

more pictures attached

[beagleye]

The question of price, I will leave to someone else. As for a stripping and refinishing, that's not a practical option. I would say some mother's polish, a toothbrush, some rags and some patient careful polishing are the best solution for the rust.

[g8rb8]

The stocks/grips are a relatively easy fix depending on how near perfect you want them. There's a reasonable chance they will clean up with a solvent strong enough to clean off the flocking but not so strong as to infringe upon the underlying finish. There are a number of organic or gentle adhesive removers that might work. If that's not good enough then refinishing the stocks/grips is easy. Remove grips from gun and starting with about 200 grit paper following the grain sand off the old finish working up to 300-400 grit paper for a smooth finish. Then refinish with Tung Oil, about 4-5 coats rubbed in. If the chip on the left grip bugs you that is small enough you can experiment with various wood putty products (a JB Weld product is very hard, durable, and bonds well) and then using appropriate artist marker blend the putty to the color of the wood and finish with Tung Oil (this may take a lot of experimenting to get the correct match). There is a very talented grip/stock refinisher on this forum but I cannot recall his name at this time. He'd likely be able to fix the left grip.

The nickel finish is another issue. The pictures are not detailed enough for me to get a great idea of the degree of the potential damage to the finish however based on what I see a metal polish like Flitz might make a tremendous difference and get the finish to a nice enough condition you'd be happy (?). Nickel is tougher and more forgiving than I had previously imagined and I suspect other owners of nickel firearms would agree (?). The one area that might be the hardest to fix is the matte area near the front sight where I see black speckles. Maybe the black speckles are superficial and would clean off? If they are deeper and need to be polished then I think you'll most likely end up with a shiny finish, after polishing, instead of the matte finish. I'm not sure how you'd get it back to the matte finish?

I looked at a Model 29 that had a finish issue on the cylinder that sat in a case at a dealer for a long time. I asked if they would let me try to polish it to see if I could get the problem polished out enough I'd be satisfied. Alas, I could not fix it to my satisfaction, but the dealer sold it that week so somebody liked my fix. Maybe they'd let you try too?

If the finish is not fixable with polishing, at least for me, at $1100 I'd probably not be interested in that revolver. If it needs a refinish to put it in the condition you'd be happy with I suspect it would be a neutral deal, monetarily, to get it refinished(?).

[Doc44]

Based on the style of engraving and the small S&W logo on the left side of the frame, I believe the 29-2 is factory engraved. It was probably shipped in 72 or early 73. The asking price is more than fair and before I would have it refinished, I would try to clean it up with Wenol or Flitz polish.

Bill

[Art Doc]

If that was offered to me at $1,100 it would go from the seller's hand into mine so fast there wouldn't be enough time to make a shadow on the table top. I bet it will clean up just fine.

[valbehaved]

Thank you, fellows.
Those are great suggestions.
I would try to put up higher resolution pictures for you to see the wear, but the files are too large and it has quiet a bit of freckling in the nickel that will probably would not come out.
If that is the case, does anyone have any luck with professionally refinishing a gun like this?

[Doc44]

"Freckles" in nickel will not usually polish out. If you send the 29-2 to Ford's Custom Refinishing in Crystal River, FL, it will come back looking better than new.

Bill

[RKmesa]

I agree with Bill - Looks Factory Engraved to me. One of the reasons that nickel is not my favorite is that every small mark, nick and corrosion area pops of the gun and begs for our attention. If I were to get it for a grand, it would be refinished, as none of the wear is "honest wear", just neglect and every time I looked at the nickel, I would be wanting to try and fix it...

[rct269]

Originally Posted by Doc44

"Freckles" in nickel will not usually polish out. If you send the 29-2 to Ford's Custom Refinishing in Crystal River, FL, it will come back looking better than new.

Bill

What he said-----each and every word of it!!

Ralph Tremaine