3" 10-7 that needs help.

[BJoe]

I got one of the Australian 3" 10-7 LEO trade in's that is NOT marked with police markings, I do NOT buy those. I love the gun and it has worked it's way into my weekly range visits. Tight lock up, solid as a rock, and the bluing may be 25% on a REAL good day.
I do want to make this a 'keeper shooter' and plan on putting a target hammer and trigger in it. Any ideas on finish? Blue, nickel, pinto, or one of the bake on finishes. Anyone have experience with the spray and bake finishes? It would be done at a gunsmith.Thanks.



BJoe

 

[chief38]

Not trying to be a "kill-joy" or discourage you, but it is my opinion that it is simply not worth doing what you are planning. You can buy the same gun in excellent condition and if you are interested in a target hammer, trigger & adjustable sights I'd suggest looking at a M15, M14, or similar (same as M10 but set up more for Target work). Keep the Model 10 as a plinker, home defense or field gun where looks don't matter. IN FACT sometimes a "rough" gun is better than a beautiful gun because you can shoot the heck out of it, carry it anywhere and not worry about scratching or dinging it.

Sometimes I wish I had an old clunker car that I didn't give a damn about when I was rubbing up against brush, going through the mud, and over packing with stuff. Just a simple vehicle to use as you please without worry and just enjoy.

 

[Mike McLellan]

I'm with chief on this one. Leave it alone. Beaters have a distinct beauty that only old gun-nuts can appreciate.

 

[deanodog]

I hate the thoughts of scratching up a new nice finish. I have a couple of the Aussie three inchers and they are good shooters and I don't worry about anything except more ammo. I would not do anything to mine but shoot them. I have more beaters than safe queens.

 

[flagman1776]

I have to say... target hammers do NOTHING for you. They give a little bigger area to thumb when cocking for single action fire... and get hung up on things like clothing & holsters. Leave the hammer.
Trigger... probably the best thing you can do is polish the grooves off the front face where your finger rides to give a smoother feel in DA shooting, & no harm if you ever do SA firing.
Nothing wrong with a spray on finish if it suits you but you'll not add any value by doing so. You have a fine shooter there, shoot it, love it, shoot it some more.

 

[sac-gunslinger]

I am with the rest of the posters. Keep it, shoot it, carry it just as it is. Great working gun.

 

[SgtLumpy]

Me too...or three, four, whatever we're up to. I wouldn't refinish.


Sgt Lumpy

 

[jrs70]

I have one of Australian 3" also. It is a 10-5. I put a set of wood houge on it and left it as is.

 

[Rpg]

Leave it as is!

It will be a fine shooter for your grandchildren, long after you're gone just the way it is.

 

[66snub]

Of all the things above, I agree with every bit of it. The one that I am most opposed to, is the application of a baked on finish. I have seen these applied to other Smiths, and it makes me weep. Blued, nickel, and stainless would all be preferable to Cerakote and Durakote. Those other finishes add the character to a Smith in the same way that the beautiful triggers and reliability do. It's all a package... Just my $.02...

 

[Black_Sheep]

If you like the 10-7 enough and are willing to have more in the gun than it will possibly be worth, by all means go for it. I fell in love with a beater 10-8 that I got off of GB and chose to give it a beauty makeover. The gun may never be worth what I have into it but I get a lot of enjoyment out of it...

 

[1madss]

I had the same feeling when I bought my 10-6. It passed pretty quickly when I saw the cost of a high polish re-blue More than I paid for the gun. I ended up touching it up with a little cold blue on the areas that really bothered me and left the rest. Shoots great and I don't really see the wear anymore.

My 10-6 the day it came home after a good cleaning. I replaced the ejector rod and corrected the end shake.


Now I do recall seeing a thread that someone had done a re-finish on a 4" M10 HB. He took a good bit of grief from others but that thing was STUNNING! Like Black Sheep said, if you understand that you will never get your money back out of it, go for it.

I have to go with the rest of the folks on the coating, not a fan on revolvers.

 

[66Park]

I'm with the guys who say keep it as is. Enjoy the hell out of it at the range, carry it, use it as a home defense gun, or whatever. If you want one with pristine finish, buy another one. Model 10s are not expensive. I wouldn't bother with the target hammer and trigger either. The target hammer won't do anything for you really, unless you are a single action bullseye shooter, and I don't like target triggers on service style guns. If you want a gun with those features, get a Model 14 with target hammer, trigger, stocks, and adjustable sights, and shoot tight groups to your heart's content.

 

[2ndAmendmentNut]

Alot of people will tell you not to put any money into it, and not to refinish because you will hurt the value of the gun. I will tell you the gun is not worth anything to a collector anyways so you might as well enjoy it however you see fit.

I bought a pair of 4" heavy barreled M10s back when Bud's was doing a special for $260 a piece. My only regret is that I didn't buy 10 or 20 of those great keepers. Both M10s had great actions, one had about 60-70% blue the other had less than 50%. I decided to "slow rust blue" the M10 in worse shape. The finish turned out beautiful and I will do it to the other as soon as I find the time. Rust Bluing is a very durable finish and will outperform all other finishes save for hard Crome and of corse stainless steel (but that's not really a finish).

P.S. I'll try to get a picture of what a slow rust blue finish looks like posted.

 

[BJoe]

UNCLE!!!!!!!!!!! I will leave it as is, except smooth the trigger. It is a GREAT shooter, as most former LEO guns are that get carried a lot, and in the case of Australia LEO guns, probably less than 100 rounds through it in it's life. The top strap looks NEW.

BJoe

p.s. with this gun I am reminded of a song a few here may remember "If you want to be happy for the rest of your life never make a pretty woman your wife."

 

[hotrod150]

Blacksheep, that's a good-looking model 10.
BJoe, I can't tell from your photo but as I recall those Aussie 3" model 10's (from Buds?) are square butts? If it was me, i would:
modify to round butt and install uncle mike boot grips
polish the trigger face smooth and radius the edges & tip
bob the hammer
duty-tune the action
Then you'd have yourself a nice piece well-suited for open or concealed carry. If I decided I couldn't live with the finish, I might matte-blue it. You can do this pretty easily yourself by beadblasting it and using oxpho or some other good cold blue. It doesn't hold up all that good in my experience but it looks good and is easy to touch up.

 

[Jaymo]

If I were going to refinish it, I'd send it to S&W for a factory reblue.
There's nothing wrong with having them make it brand new again.
I don't buy mine to resell. I buy mine to enjoy, and just like a car, enjoy them more if they look good.

 

[DGNY]

Gracious... I am with Black Sheep. Do what you wish. Have fun. Be creative.

And do show us the results, if you take the plunge.

Regards,

Dyson

 

[pmosley]

2500 of my closest friends and I bought one of these 3" Aussie trade-ins from Bud's a few years ago.

Mine is a 10-5 and is 75% at best, has no metal damage or deep scratches, and is tighter than a tick mechanically. It has become one of my go to revolvers for light woods activity carry.

Just today it accompanied me on a fishing excursion. While I don't abuse any of my guns, I don't worry (and probably couldn't tell) if this one got another scratch.

Renaissance wax keeps it smooth and glossy. I'm sure it's the only gun I have that FEELS better than it LOOKS!

While I don't anticipate refinishing mine I can certainly understand the allure of doing so.

Your gun - your decision.

 

[policerevolvercollector]

Another vote for the leave it "as-is" group!