SAFireman
Member
Well after quite some time looking, I finally found one of my grail guns. Some of you good folks may have seen my WTB ads looking for Jovino, or Behlert modified Smith & Wessons. I came across this on a website for a fairly large firearms dealer in Houston. I called and asked a lot of questions, then made an offer to purchase. It was subsequently accepted by the seller and shipped to my local FFL.
For your review and entertainment, here is a Smith & Wesson Model 58 EFFECTOR in 41 Magnum.
The EFFECTOR trade name was given to big bore snubbies tht were modified by the Jovino Gun Shop in New York City, NY. Most of the EFFECTOR line was stainless steel and most started life as 6" revolvers. The barrels were cut down to a minimum length for ease of carry and concealment. At this time, Smith & Wesson was not producing short barrel large bore revolvers, they soon saw the error of their ways and began producing 3" barrel N frames on a regular basis.
A few of the standard hallmarks of the Jovino's - changed the grip frame to a modified round butt profile. Smith & Wesson did not have a standard profile for the N frame, so they got fairly close to the K frame size, but had a few differences, but most stocks could be modified to fit. The hammer was re-shaped into a 'teardrop' shape. The trigger was radius-ed and polished. The action was smoothed. Early guns (most prior to the EFFECTOR) had the barrel cut down to the end of the ejector rod, then had a ball-detent added to replace the locking device at the end of the ejector rod.
Since the Jovino modifications generally affected the gun's finish (except for SS), the guns were refinished. Some were refinished in high polish blue, some were nickeled, and some were hard chromed. I believe the finish on this gun is hard chrome, but I welcome your opinions. It is somewhat dirty / yellowed like you might see with nickel, but some of the less dirty areas have a more blue tinge, which is what leads me to believe it might be hard chrome. Also, the lack of rub marks, and finish loss that you would see in a satin nickel are noticeably absent.
For the longest time, all of the EFFECTOR marked guns that I had seen were cut down in length, and all had an ejector rod shroud. This Model 58 EFFECTOR has no shroud, and the barrel has not been cut.
The hammer has been profiled, and the trigger was replaced with a wide, smooth, target version that has been radius-ed and polished. The grip frame was modified, but it does not appear to be the standard profile that we associate with K or N round butts.
Here are some photos of the gun.....I will begin another post regarding the stocks in the next section.
For your review and entertainment, here is a Smith & Wesson Model 58 EFFECTOR in 41 Magnum.
The EFFECTOR trade name was given to big bore snubbies tht were modified by the Jovino Gun Shop in New York City, NY. Most of the EFFECTOR line was stainless steel and most started life as 6" revolvers. The barrels were cut down to a minimum length for ease of carry and concealment. At this time, Smith & Wesson was not producing short barrel large bore revolvers, they soon saw the error of their ways and began producing 3" barrel N frames on a regular basis.
A few of the standard hallmarks of the Jovino's - changed the grip frame to a modified round butt profile. Smith & Wesson did not have a standard profile for the N frame, so they got fairly close to the K frame size, but had a few differences, but most stocks could be modified to fit. The hammer was re-shaped into a 'teardrop' shape. The trigger was radius-ed and polished. The action was smoothed. Early guns (most prior to the EFFECTOR) had the barrel cut down to the end of the ejector rod, then had a ball-detent added to replace the locking device at the end of the ejector rod.
Since the Jovino modifications generally affected the gun's finish (except for SS), the guns were refinished. Some were refinished in high polish blue, some were nickeled, and some were hard chromed. I believe the finish on this gun is hard chrome, but I welcome your opinions. It is somewhat dirty / yellowed like you might see with nickel, but some of the less dirty areas have a more blue tinge, which is what leads me to believe it might be hard chrome. Also, the lack of rub marks, and finish loss that you would see in a satin nickel are noticeably absent.
For the longest time, all of the EFFECTOR marked guns that I had seen were cut down in length, and all had an ejector rod shroud. This Model 58 EFFECTOR has no shroud, and the barrel has not been cut.
The hammer has been profiled, and the trigger was replaced with a wide, smooth, target version that has been radius-ed and polished. The grip frame was modified, but it does not appear to be the standard profile that we associate with K or N round butts.
Here are some photos of the gun.....I will begin another post regarding the stocks in the next section.