I have seen a lot of Smith & Wessons advertised as "Talo Edition". What exactly does that mean?

Also if I have a new in the box Mountain Gun [Model 29-8] is there any code on the box which signifies Talo?

Thanks, John

I have the Talo 29 Mountain Gun. It came with special wood grips and a real nice bright blue finish. It probably varies with the model as to what exhancements they do. However it is basically the same except for the minor tweaking.

Talo is a distributor. just like lipsey's or lew horton. they get special runs of guns and sell them. sometimes with just very minute changes, like the wooden grips on the mountain gun.

I contacted TALO about their current 686 plus 3 inch. They told me the only difference between it and a regular 686 plus 3 inch are the wooden grips.

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Fair winds and following sea

On Talo's Website, they show a 4" Factory Engraved Model 500, Has anyone seen this model, Can't seem to get any information on it.

Thanks for responses. Now one more question.....I have someone who wants to trade a 586 2 1/2" for this Talo. Both are in 95-98% condition.Both in original boxes.
Deal or no deal?

I would think the MG would be worth more than the 586, maybe $100 or so. You could compare retail prices to get an idea of the relative worth.

John

I bought this revolver new in July of 2010. Is this a so-called "TALO" gun? If so, how can you tell? Does it matter at all?

Thanks

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1) it doesn't matter to the level of nimrod shooters like me TALO or not, but that is speaking only for myself;

2) The design of the wooden grip looks a little different than others I've seen.

Some collectors make a lot more out of these little differences than non-collectors can keep up with. Those 'little differences' can make a lot of difference in $$$.

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Dum vivimus Vivamas

Not sure what if any differences other than the grips, but both my Talo 629 amend 686 were cheaper then regular versions.

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Tim, USAF Ret.

My next Talo handgun just showed up today, a Ruger GP100 Wiley Clapp Talo edition......... it is a thing of beauty, if it shoots as good as it looks......... well lets just say I'll be even more pleased............ here are some picc's for your viewing pleasure.







thanks for looking.........

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Tim, USAF Ret.

I purchased a 686 "Talo" edition and the only difference was the grips, which I had to remove because they were too small. After about 50 rounds the blood appeared on my hand. I bought a pair of target grips and couldn't be happier. I'll save the grips for resale...

I bought one of the TALO 3-5-7 series 686 plus revolvers. 3"/5"/7" barrel, unfluted cylinder, and TALO stocks. I bought the 7" as a range gun.

I believe the difference is usually just the grips. I am fairly certain you can buy the grips through Altamont for $50-$60.

I would jump on that deal. The 2 1/2" 586 is hard to find (assuming pre-lock).

The grips would appear to be the correct Talo\Lew Horton grips. I have not been able to find those grips anywhere else. I purchased the 3" 686plus from LH recently and also picked up a custom built 686plus with the grips and gold trigger, hammer and other parts.

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Jack C

How much..... pm me please..

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Jack C

Grips? $65 at Ahrends on line

I don't want Ahrends, I want those Talo grips you are saving for resale...

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Jack C

Something to go with these... where do you buy these grips...

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Jack C

Talo's will go with the gun when I can find a decent 686 or 586 w/o the "hole" They DO make the gun look special and maybe a few more $ in trade. Mine happens to be a 3 inch.

TALO is a distributor of firearms. It is a consortium of 3 or 4 smaller distributors that got together and decided to become 1 bigger distributor to compete with the big boys. The name is from the states the smaller distributors are in, just can't remember which ones off hand. Texas, Alabama and Lousiana ring a bell though. You can look it up if you are really that interested though. They frequently have "special editions" just like Lipsey's and others. The distributors call up the manufacturer, request a LARGE order of guns that are somewhat different than factory then put their label on them. Check out the Ruger web site and they have dedicated section to "distributor" models. Alot of the time there are minimal changes - such as grips, sites, barrel length, etc. Occasionally it will be a special caliber - 44spl, or a convertible type firearm. They will usually command a small premium over the factory type firearm. There is really no performance increase in these guns, most of them being cosmetic only.

I was just workin ya... Can't fault a guy for trying. Just in case someone wants to pou pou the Talo guns as just being a set of grips... try finding those grips without a gun attached... I'm in the market for the Talo and Lew Horton 3" guns... at the right price of course..

Thanks Phil, hope I didn't aggitate ya..

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Jack C

Turbo...I didn'think the grips were special...I WILL sell the grips for.... about...$650... and I'll throw in the gun!

Hahaha, that's great... so got some pics? Is it the same gun as the first one in the pics I posted?

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Jack C

Looks pretty much the same (except mine appears newer, Probably the camera,) and I have the 7-shot. I "gave " a 1980's 686 to my son who uses it for a house gun (has a 4 in. barrel) . I might sneek in his house someday and switch the suckers. Maybe he won't notice.

Good father, I need a 629-3" Talo or Lew Horton...

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Jack C

another comment on talo grips-I heard they were made for Talo by Altamont and the grips are not sold by Talo, S&W or Altamont to the general public. The bay bid site usually has a pair someone is selling.

I came across a 629 3" talo NIB today for $749.
I'm going to pick it up on payday. I've never shot the .44mag in 3".
Can't wait.

While it may be only grips occasionally or most of the time, enhancements can be significant as well.

With the 586 Talo L-Comp, you have with the Talo a 7 shot .357 S&W blued, with a compensated 3" barrel, action tuning by the performance center (though not a PC gun as so many falsely assume, see S&W web site), it is milled for clips, it has a tritium front sight, and a number of normally MIMS parts are steel forged. From the S&W current web site, "First Blued, Seven-Shot Mid-Size Revolver Offered by Smith & Wesson". You also have a very steep MSRP that is $1,300ish.

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Didn't realize Talo did these, but I'm certain that the first M586 L-Comp was for Camfour....... And.. definitely from the Performance Center...

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.............SmithNut

It's definitely a Performance Center product, and their statement that it is the first is probably "technically" correct, but this is not the first production of this product, it was for Camfour some time back.

I'm curious about the picture they used, it shows a hammer mounted firing pin, so an old pic for sure, I would be very interested to see what they use currently, my guess is a frame mounted version along with the lock.

Here's the S&W website information, details in the text (lower right panel) that it is a PC product and the 170xxx product code is another giveaway.

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.............SmithNut

I have a talo 686 and the grips that came on it are very comfortable. They have a shield design engraving but they were so dark you couldnt see the woodgrain. I have a thread about trying to lighten them up but if i can find where to by grips like it has in a lighter color i would have a new set in a heartbeat.

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This is my Talo 642 and it is a PC model. I can tell you that this is definitely a PC gun as I had a 442 and there is a tremendous difference. I guess not all Talo guns are cosmetic only. That said the wood grips look nice but tore up my hand so now it wears a Houge compact grips.
Hope this helps, Frank.

Heldberg,

I have a Talo 637 with the exact same wooden grips you have on your 642. After shooting about 100 rounds, it ripped off the webbing of my skin between my thumb and the index finger. So, I was going to get the Hogue Combat Gribs but I discovered that they are no longer making them. So, today I was call Smith and Wesson in order to order some synthetic rubber grips but I forgot to do it. What was the reason why you decided upon the Hogue Compact Grips over Smith and Wesson's rubber grips?

After giving my Son my 629-2 last January, I recently felt the need to own another .44mag. After seeing this 3" 629 Talo, I went for it. I didn't expect Target Accuracy out of a 3 inch barrel, but it shoots very well. I reload so ammo is tailored to my needs. I have since picked up a M69 which is also a great shooter.

Here is some information on the TALO Distributers.

TALO Distributors Inc

Rule 303

This is an old thread.. I hope it's not been a bone that has been chewed and spit out..
I just got a 357 Talo 2 months ago.. What a great shooter.. Anyone know how many talo ordered ?? What the cut off ? I have tried to find it on their web-site and can't find out anything...

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