2" Combat Masterpiece?

[Aircrewman]

Muley Gil and dwalt are absolutely correct...... absolutely. BUT, I will still find one some day, I will be a 15-2, it will be blue, it will have a diamond service grip panel, it will be gorgeous and it will be mine!!!!

I wish that I had never sold the one that I had when I carried it off duty while working at the Mens's Central Jail in Los Angeles..... I will never know how I could be so ignorant at age 22........

 

[Texas Star]

The mod 15 is the only one I've owned that I can shoot the 2" as accurately as the 4".

Why not just carry a 2.5-inch M-19/66 or one of the rare three-inch M-66's and have both stainless steel and .357 capability when needed?


BTW, while in the USAF, I knew a couple of fellow Air Policemen who'd carried those short M-56 guns at a base in Washington, I think Fairchild AFB. They complained bitterly about how much harder they were to shoot than the four-inch barreled version.


Muley Gil's point about how hard a K-frame snub is to holster was well made by holster maker Chic Gaylord in his, "Handgunner's Guide", published in 1960.


I think Gen. Lemay thought the snubs were more prestigious, like detectives using snubs over longer barrels partly as a privilege of rank. And frankly, many in the AF like to see themselves as sort of executives, not as combat troops.

 

[Texas Star]

Here's one from around the time frame turnerriver posted ...

I think Steve McGarrett would approve!

GF

Hardly an endorsement. Jack Lord and the McGarrett character were both anti-gun. I don't know about the new show, showing Australian actor Alex O'Laughlin as McGarrett, but he uses auto pistols, anyway.

 

[Texas Star]

Does one shipped to the SEALs count?

Might the Navy have issued these to investigators or intelligence agents? ONI had some round-butt M-19's, with four-inch barrels.


This seems an odd choice for SEAL warfare.

 

[BUFF]

When I was sworn in in 1981, my department's issue gun was the Combat Masterpiece / Model 15. Detectives and plain clothes assignment deputies got 2 inchers and the unwashed mass of uniformed patrol deputies got 4 inchers. The department didn't own enough to issue one to everybody so personal arms were approved.

Many detectives hanged onto their 2 inchers when they went to a uniform assignment. Uniforms included the big black duty belt and holster. These guys just bought holsters for 4 inch guns and carried their 2 inchers in them so they didn't need to qualify with a separate gun for off-duty carry. Many added Target or big Pachmayr grips. I was surprised at how common this was.

I never found a 2 inch M-15 any harder to shoot well than a 4 incher. The short gun still has a big grip frame to accept good stocks and those big, blocky adjustable sights are great. And, with the short barrel, that front sight looks like it is a lot more steady than it really is, giving the shooter confidence.

I wondered from time to time why S&W didn't put a round butt on the 2 inch M-15, or offer a 2 inch barrel on the M-67, but I guess the short M-19 and M-66 covered those bases.

 

[kwill1911]

Might the Navy have issued these to investigators or intelligence agents? ONI had some round-butt M-19's, with four-inch barrels.


This seems an odd choice for SEAL warfare.

It letters to the Naval Special Warfare Unit in Coronado, CA.

 

[Texas Star]

It letters to the Naval Special Warfare Unit in Coronado, CA.

Is that gun a normal M-15, or an AF M-56?


Thanks for the photo, BTW. An impressive item.

 

[Texas Star]

Does the USAF M-56 have target hammer and trigger? I don't like those on that size gun, but the four-inch AF guns had that feature.

 

[kwill1911]

The Navy gun is a Model 15. Here it is with a USAF Model 56.

 

[kwill1911]

Other than the diamond on the Model 56 stocks, it is hard to see much difference. However, this shot should help.

 

[Texas Star]

I don't see rear sight base grooving on either. Does the AF gun have grooves on the front sight base? Hard to tell in the photo.
Sometimes, if I Save a pic and look at it in My Pictures, I see more detail than on this board.


Thanks for the added photos. Very well done. You add a lot of knowledge to the board.

 

[kwill1911]

Not sure if you are asking about front or rear sight or both. The Model 15 has serrations on the grips straps, rear sight, front sight and sight rib. The Model 56 is missing all serrations except on the front sight blade. It is factory marked "U.S." on the back strap. The "PROP.US NAVY" on the side plate of the Model 15 was engraved by the Navy.

 

[Texas Star]

Not sure if you are asking about front or rear sight or both. The Model 15 has serrations on the grips straps, rear sight, front sight and sight rib. The Model 56 is missing all serrations except on the front sight blade. It is factory marked "U.S." on the back strap. The "PROP.US NAVY" on the side plate of the Model 15 was engraved by the Navy.

Thanks. I just can't see the grooves that I know must be there on the M-15. I sort of made them out on the rear sight base, using a magnifying glass.


Maybe my computer monitor needs better resolution.