Blued 66 Combat Magnum

[gdogs]

Picked up this little gem today. A factory blued 66 no dash Combat Magnum. These were made for the Connecticut State Police. Can’t say I know much about them other than what is in the SCSW:

Model 66 in blued stainless, 4” barrel; reported that 750-800 were made, marked “Conn State Police” (or possibly “CSP”, we are uncertain which) with a three-digit number on the frame below the cylinder. Also reported that some have been sold as surplus with the black coloring polished off the stainless steel. Target hammer, .265 trigger, red ramp, white outline rear sight.

Mine is marked CSP 0074 on the left side of the frame below the cylinder. Neat gun, in pretty decent shape considering it was a service revolver. The grips that were on it are correct vintage, but not serial number matching (pretty close though - my guess is from the same batch of guns). Also had a crack in one panel that is currently under repair. Gave me a reason to play dress up anyways, which if you know anything about me you’d know that the factory grips weren’t likely to stay on it regardless. Tried a set of Culina oak grips, then a set of Farrants, but settled on an unknown Roper-esque set I had laying around - they just looked right on it. Anybody seen one of these before?




With my Pre-18 in her new Sanderson maple shoes.

 

[jdlii]

That's a first for me. Great find!

 

[lamarw]

A very nice acquisition. I suspect it will do nothing but appreciate in value and your enjoyment. Congrats.

 

[viceunit]

I never knew such an animal existed. Thanks for sharing.

 

[shouldazagged]

Very nice indeed. I wonder what processes are involved in getting that nice blue on stainless.

 

[les.b]

Wow...never even heard of them before!! Nice catch!!

Best Regards, Les

 

[Barely_rigged]

Yeah I've got one myself - CSP 0561.

 

[JayCeeNC]

I remember those; never saw one, though.
Nice catch!

 

[Barely_rigged]

I

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[vigil617]

OK, so now I'm going to ask the "elephant in the room" question:

Why in the heck would the factory blue a stainless revolver?

In this case, why not just sell the Connecticut State Police a Model 19 instead?

I'm glad there's an entry in the SCSW about these because, otherwise, I'd think somebody had gamed the OP on this gun.

And while we're at it: are there other blued stainless S&W models out there that were done at the factory?

I learn something new every day in this place!

 

[bovw]

OK, so now I'm going to ask the "elephant in the room" question:



Why in the heck would the factory blue a stainless revolver?



In this case, why not just sell the Connecticut State Police a Model 19 instead?



I'm glad there's an entry in the SCSW about these because, otherwise, I'd think somebody had gamed the OP on this gun.



And while we're at it: are there other blued stainless S&W models out there that were done at the factory?



I learn something new every day in this place!

Only thing I can think of is with the NE weather. Stainless a bit more corrosion resistant, but didn't want a bright finish. That's my best guess.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[16thVACav]

It's a rare day when I come to this site and don't learn something new.

 

[BAM-BAM]

OK, so now I'm going to ask the "elephant in the room" question:

Why in the heck would the factory blue a stainless revolver?

In this case, why not just sell the Connecticut State Police a Model 19 instead?

I'm glad there's an entry in the SCSW about these because, otherwise, I'd think somebody had gamed the OP on this gun.

And while we're at it: are there other blued stainless S&W models out there that were done at the factory?

I learn something new every day in this place!

IIRC the W Va State Police carry blued/melonite 4566s...... and weren't there some "blackened" 686s or 681 for a Highway Patrol???

 

[Fishinfool]

Very familiar with that model. In fact, I was issued one the later half of 1980 when I joined the CSP. Department policy was no silver colored handguns for duty carry - had to be blued.

CSP wanted the corrosion resistance of SS, but with a dark finish, so had S&W do a special run of 66's with a blackened finish. It is not traditional blueing, and does not wear as well as blue. Most looked pretty rough after several years of use. I believe this finish was also offered on several other limited production runs of SS revolvers offered to the public in that time frame.

At the time, you could carry your own revolver as long as it met dept. guidelines - four or six inch, blued D/A revolver chambered in .357 magnum, S&W or Colt. I bought one of the first 586's to hit the shelf, as I preferred the balance, and seldom carried my issued 66.

Mine, and I believe all 66's were stamped "CSP." This continued to be the issue revolver for uniform use until the Berretta 92 was adopted in about 1984 or so. Could have purchased my issue 66 for a song and a dance back then, but didn't. Wish I had.

Larry

 

[bananaman]

Nice 66 you have there! It does well playing "Dress-Up"! I do a lot of stock changing myself. Enjoy your 66! Bob

 

[dant]

darkened stainless...............

yes, you can darken (it is NOT bluing) of stainless , Dulite Co makes the solution, we used to do it in our shop, BUT very little call for it for obvious reasons...( try selling a stainless gun that is darkened, and promote it as "stainless" something gets lost in the translation)..yes, the PDs and agencies liked the idea of the "not shiny" but having the attributes of stainless but alas gun alloy stainless is NOT medical or surgical grade so can and will still tarnish, stain, and rust ( pit) look under the rubber grips of ANY PD stainless revolver trade-in gun.......hhhhmmmmm
yes it was also done on some L framed guns during that time......does NOT hold up well

 

[vigil617]

Thanks for all the replies on the "why darken a stainless gun," and to the OP, I hope the bit of thread drift wasn't a problem. I still find your gun quite interesting, and it's also interesting that police agencies would consciously not want shiny guns carried by their officers. I'm thinking maybe it's a combination of being "traditional" and matching the uniform, as well as not being flashy or focusing attention on the weapon, that affected some departments' policies.

When I remember what I've read about how popular the Model 66 Combat Magnum was when it first came out -- and how unobtainable it was for the public due to heavy LE demand -- I guess I can see how a few departments wanted the gun but couldn't quite abide the shiny finish, so they tried to get the better of both worlds with the bluing. Since it apparently didn't hold up very well, I guess it was a trade-off that didn't really work out, except for those collectors now who have been able to find the guns that weren't carried much if at all.

Who knows, maybe if the semi-autos hadn't come into the LE realm as pervasively, perhaps Melonited stainless revolvers would have been the norm for officers to carry....

Anyway, the blued Model 66 is another piece of S&W revolver lore that's good to know!

 

[usm1rifle]

7lol inimical ikii8 pi p8ko7o88ii68u8 i8iOS 9o99f

What is this you posted after quoting the OP's photos?

 

[MikeLeitner]

What is this you posted after quoting the OP's photos?

ikarus1 is an android. His data to text translation algorithm had a brain fart.

 

[Double-O-Dave]

Gdogs:

Thanks for posting this along with the photos. I'd never heard of a "blued" Model 66 before. My first stainless steel revolver was a Model 66-2 with a 2.5 inch long barrel. In the early 1980s, I decided to buy a Model 686 with a 6.0 inch long barrel. I remember a lot of LEOs I knew telling me that I was being foolish for buying such a "shiny gun" and losing all "tactical advantages" by doing so. As I intended to use the 686 for targets at the range and occasional hunting, I failed to understand what "tactical advantages" I was losing. Other LEOs advised me to either apply black electrician's tape to the piece, or to smear black shoe polish on the piece to hide its shiny surface. Huh? The piece came from the factory with a brushed/matte stainless steel finish. I really enjoyed that 686, but it was a heavy beast compared to a Model 66. Congratulations on your new acquisition.

Regards,

Dave