This is my first post and it is a question.
I have been lurking for some time now. I am a new S&W owner (19-3 and 36-no dash) and would like to add a 610 to my collection. I have seen a few posts where people hint at the difficulty of finding a 610. Additionally, they are listed few and far between on various gun boards. I am interested in one with a 5" barrel so that I could hunt with it here in Ohio.
Why are used 610's so hard to come by?

Thanks

Because all of the Leprechauns use them while riding Unicorns. Good luck in your quest. They didn't make very many.

And welcome to the forum!

Edit: I like the 10mm cartridge in a revolver. If you find a 610, prepare for an outlay of $$$$.

610's were tough to find even before the current gun & ammo shortage, now they will be next to impossible to find. The 610 like a lot of other S&W models (think model 58 or 696) were not big sellers while they were in production, so S&W stopped making them. Lately they seem to have found a niche market, which makes them difficult to find.

I think I can locate one in my Range Bag in the truck.

Seriously
Not a great deal of them were made. Most folks who have one got it on purpose, and have kept it. My Situation.

I also have a 310 Night Guard.

Save your money, and keep looking, one will show up sooner or later. Mine may be for sale one day when I pass away. Do not get it to deer hunt with!

NOTE: You will be ahead picking up a 629 with 6 or 8-3/8" barrel. Adding a Weigand scope base, and a 30mm UltraDot. The 44 Magnum has much more knock down power.

I do handgun hunt for deer. I hunt with a 480 Ruger Super RedHawk w/30mm UltraDot. I have Hogue Tamer grips on it.
2011 I tagged an 11 point and a full size doe on my antlerless only tag. In 2012 I tagged a good 8 point with a wide rack, and passed on filling my antlerless only tag. We lost several deer to Blue Tongue, so I decided not to take a doe.

The 10mm is a little light for deer in my opinion. Get a 44 Magnum.

Bob

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ICORE MO2908

I just found one about 20 feet from here in my safe. But that doesn't help you out much.
As was mentioned, most 610s were probably bought for a purpose. Someone specifically wanted a 10mm revolver. They didn't just wander down to the local gunshop and decide between different .357s, .44s, and 10 mils.

I've taken a couple deer with Glock 10mm's, and I don't feel it's light for the job. But I also grew up hunting large-dog sized Oklahoma deer. It will do the job just fine. But overall, there are better handguns for the task. Kind of like, in the grand scheme of shooting deer, there are much better tools than any handgun. It's all relative.

610s get rare and valuable for a while, then Smith cranks them out for a couple years and the market returns to normal. We're probably due for another run anytime now. Then the prices will go back to sanity, except for pre-lock versions. Of course, I've been claiming we're due for more 610s from Smith for a year or two also. Take it for what it's worth.

The three inch ones are a little difficult to find, but the five inch ones are not difficult to find at all. That is as long as you have excellent credit ratings and a banker that will loan on one, or as long as you won the lottery recently.

What is difficult is to find one at a reasonable price, and I have been looking for a long time with no luck. The last and only three inch I saw was on Gun Broker and the auction started at $1500.00 and I don’t think it came with any extras. The five inch ones are a little lower with sales in the $1200.00 and up range.

Reasons Are Pretty Clear

1. They did not make many of them.
2. They are excellent revolvers.
3. They shoot 10mm and 40 S&W.
4. They are not making any more of them.
5. There is nothing else that is comparable available.
6. Both collectors and shooters want them.
7. Basic Supply and Demand at work.
8. I don't see them getting any less expensive or any easier to find.

Good luck in finding one at a reasonable price.