Found this at a local gun auction this past weekend. Quite a sweet piece if you ask me. I believe it to be a Jovino 25-5 45 Colt, 2.75" conversion. To my knowledge it has every feature of the other Jovino guns I've read about. Please post other Jovino work if you have one. Thanks.
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Nice looking gun. Don't think I've ever seen a nickeled Jovino gun or one with a jeweled hammer and trigger. Pretty cool and unique.

I do not have a Jovino gun but I do have a Behlert 25-2, very similar set up.

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Don't kiss smiling dogs!

Well I assumed it was a Jovino, but having checked out a few Behlert snubs on the internet (thanks to your post), it could very well be his work? Especially after I found this:
Behlert 25

Wow! did you take a look at the rest of that gallery? There are some really nice Behlert guns in there...including a very nice snubbed model 58 !!! if it was not Magna-Ported, I would be in love It looks tough though).

Thanks for sharing that link.

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On the Oak Savannah

Austin was actually pretty fond of Mag-Na-Porting. I have seen a few of his revolvers that were finished ott that way.

Although this one wasn't snubbed, it was given all of the rest of the treatment Austin Behlert would give to guns, including porting. A 25-5



bob

If you look at what Behlert, and Jovino, and some others did back in the day, and look at what S&W is finally offering now, it is easy to see that S&W is only about 30 years behind the times...

I have been carrying N frame 44 Mag and 45 ACP/AR 4" and up revolvers since the early 1970's.

I always wanted one of the shortened "B", or "J" guns, but just never found one to buy.

A couple of years ago I got a 325 NG...
After shooting it, and carrying it, I now know I should have bought one way back in the day...

They are big, fat, short and stocky,but still pretty compact, handy, concealable, and hit like the Hammer of Thor.

In short a Mod 19 2 1/2" on steroids...

I really like a 2 1/2" Mod 19, the only thing I do not like about it, is that its bore does not start with a "4"...

The barrel profile on that nickle 25 is not the typical Jovino shape.

Looks more like a Behlert



or one of the numerous other gunsmiths of the day that were copying him.

No matter who made it.........how does it shoot?

Do the Jovino or Behlert guns have makers marks on them?

Some Jovino guns were marked "Effector" but I think they were the ones with full length ejector rods. Some Behlert guns were signed but it seems that the majority of guns produced by both of them and other 'smiths of the time were not labeled. That's why the history you get from previous owners is important with these guns since there's really no way to trace them backwards. In my gun's case, I am the third owner. Per the testimony of the gentleman I bought it from, he bought two guns, mine and a matching blued version, from the original owner who had the guns built by Auston Behlert.

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Don't kiss smiling dogs!

I'm hoping to find some more information about the gun from the seller's family, but with the help of the forum and some other websites it appears to be one of Mr. Behlert's creations. Does anyone know if S&W ever shipped guns direct to Behlert for work? I've heard that S&W had shipped a few guns direct from the factory to Jovino to do work, which is about when the "effector" name and stamp began appearing? Everyone have a general consensus that this is a Behlert gun? If yes, what might this do to its value, what price range do you think its worth?

Didn't get the opportunity to shoot it today, but it has a tight lockup and super smooth action, probably nicer than my PC revolvers.

Thank you everyone, please post pics of your favorites.

Sounds like we have Behlert & Jovino to thank for getting S&W to produce snub big bores.

Here is my S&W 29-4 with a 3" barrel.

I don't believe so. It is also hard to positively ID a gun as a Behlert without the makers mark on it. When I chatted with Mr Behlert about my gun he said he did not keep records and could not remeber very many particular guns. IIRC he made a lot of these snubs for pin shooters in the 70's, mainly on the east coast.

The last few years of his life he was embraced on the internet ( pistolsmith.com) and was given a section of the forum to talk about his experiences and guns he made on there. The section is still there, but sadly, after he passed away the pictures he had posted went away. The posts where he chats about his life are still there though and is worth a visit or two to read, IMO.

Austin Behlert - Pistolsmith

bob

I'm not normally a big fan of nickel, but I certainly like this one. It looks serious! Please post back after you get the chance to shoot it.

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Proud anachronism

It really is hard to tell when they did not mark them. Here is a pic of my 25 and its marked Mag na port custom. Here are two pics of my Behlert, marked on the barrel as one of his.

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