Model-10 vs 15...
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Not really. The fixed sight mod 10 came in both RB and SB grip frames
while the mod 15 only came with the SB as far as I know. The
adjustable sights on the 15 give you the advantage of zeroing your
gun with ammo of varying bullet weights. 2" 15s are not common and
likely to be pricey. My favorite is the RB mod 10, the 2" SB 10s don't
look right to me and the 2" 15s look even worse. The 2" RB 10 is just
a really neat compact and solid revolver to me and I have three of
them. I got this 10-7 a while back on GB for a very good
price. It has some light freckling due to improper storage but
is in almost unfired condition without even a turn ring.
while the mod 15 only came with the SB as far as I know. The
adjustable sights on the 15 give you the advantage of zeroing your
gun with ammo of varying bullet weights. 2" 15s are not common and
likely to be pricey. My favorite is the RB mod 10, the 2" SB 10s don't
look right to me and the 2" 15s look even worse. The 2" RB 10 is just
a really neat compact and solid revolver to me and I have three of
them. I got this 10-7 a while back on GB for a very good
price. It has some light freckling due to improper storage but
is in almost unfired condition without even a turn ring.
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Snubby Model 15s, as you noted, have adjustable sights; they're also square butt only.
Snubby Model 10s, with their fixed sights, can be found in round or square butt configurations, as well as nickel or blued, whereas a factory nickel Model 15 is uncommon unto rare. (By the way, if you like stainless, the snubby Model 64 is the Model 10s stainless twin, though you can only find it in round butt.)
I believe the barrel profile on the snubby 15 might also be a little thicker than the 10.
All told, very similar defense revolvers with a couple key distinctions.
DocB
Member
The early M10 snub had the tapered barrel which appears tiny when compared to the M10 I have from the early 1970's. I prefer the later gun. It has better proportions. Got a picture here somewhere. Here it is. My real preference is the later gun with the RB. . .haven't found one of those yet.
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Targets Guy
US Veteran
What a decision. Can't miss.
Remember on a j frame round butt you can buy grips to make it feel like a square butt.
Remember on a j frame round butt you can buy grips to make it feel like a square butt.
Engine49guy
Member
Other than the things stated the other difference is the Model 10 has smooth "Tangs" where the 15's are serrated.
On another note while 4" Model 15's are uncommon in nickel the snubs do not seem to be.
IMO if your intention is to CCW the 10 is better suited for that purpose, then again the Model 12 is the same size but lighter and the Model 37 lighter and smaller.
IMO the snub 15 is kind of conundrum with its Square butt grip frame and 2" Heavy Barrel with non shrouded ejector rod (BTW the 15 snub frame and rear site are different than the 4" version) ,
On the other hand there was a K target snub available with a Round butt grip frame in 2.5" and 3" barrel lengths available in blue nickel or SS that also fires .357 Magnum...
Its called the Model 19 and 66 "Combat Magnum" and can be had for around the same selling price as the Model 15 snub.
(L to R Models 66-1, Nickel 15-3, 12-3)
On another note while 4" Model 15's are uncommon in nickel the snubs do not seem to be.
IMO if your intention is to CCW the 10 is better suited for that purpose, then again the Model 12 is the same size but lighter and the Model 37 lighter and smaller.
IMO the snub 15 is kind of conundrum with its Square butt grip frame and 2" Heavy Barrel with non shrouded ejector rod (BTW the 15 snub frame and rear site are different than the 4" version) ,
On the other hand there was a K target snub available with a Round butt grip frame in 2.5" and 3" barrel lengths available in blue nickel or SS that also fires .357 Magnum...
Its called the Model 19 and 66 "Combat Magnum" and can be had for around the same selling price as the Model 15 snub.
(L to R Models 66-1, Nickel 15-3, 12-3)
GyMac
US Veteran
I like both the 10 and 15 snubbies, but if l were thinking about actually carrying the gun, l would get a 3 inch, round butt Model 10.
Engine49guy
Member
The advantage of a 3" barrel is a full length ejector rod ,
Another advantage of the Combat Magnums made prior to 1982 is they have recessed cylinders .
Another advantage of the Combat Magnums made prior to 1982 is they have recessed cylinders .
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govt 380
Member
i have a 2" 15 in excellent shape. it has a 1 inch very narrow scratch from the back screw, mostly hidden by grips. otherwise the blueing is perfect. the scratch will disappear with a blueing pen. last year i bid on three revolvers, and woke up having won all three. $675 shipped.
I was fixing to write that you'll probably pay $200 more for a snubbie M15 than a M10, in the $650 range, and there is govt380 proving my point! Good job govt (when do I ever get to say that to the government? 
).
I have one M 15 2" and it's gorgeous but I carry a M10-7 round butt for several reasons, one of which being that it conceals better, another that as a longtime cowboy action shooter the fixed sights come naturally to me, and another because I have my first M10 a very long time, many decades, and I'm very good with it (or it's just good with me, hard to say).
I'm pretty sure you can find stocks for a round butt K frame that make it appear square. Ahrends for sure make those.
If I didn't have a M15 2" I'd buy govt380's right out from under you but, since I do have one, I'll be nice and let it go. I had a nickel one like that, too but, sadly, it was stolen some years back.
).I have one M 15 2" and it's gorgeous but I carry a M10-7 round butt for several reasons, one of which being that it conceals better, another that as a longtime cowboy action shooter the fixed sights come naturally to me, and another because I have my first M10 a very long time, many decades, and I'm very good with it (or it's just good with me, hard to say).
I'm pretty sure you can find stocks for a round butt K frame that make it appear square. Ahrends for sure make those.
If I didn't have a M15 2" I'd buy govt380's right out from under you but, since I do have one, I'll be nice and let it go. I had a nickel one like that, too but, sadly, it was stolen some years back.
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Pictures 2 and 3 in my last post are the same gun. Sorry. I can't tell when I'm looking at an index. Even with thumbnail pix.
The gun pictured here is the gun I carry with new stocks. The S&W album picture is the same gun with the wood stocks I had on it for years. The original stocks are long since traded away; I wasn't collecting S&Ws way back when.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/members/iscs-yoda-albums-s-and-w-revolvers-picture12606-m10-7-a.html
As an aside, I have not bought a Model 10 2" VERY recently but I think the going price is $400 to $450, and they're not easy to find. If you want to carry a 2" snub I'd be jumping on that M15.
The gun pictured here is the gun I carry with new stocks. The S&W album picture is the same gun with the wood stocks I had on it for years. The original stocks are long since traded away; I wasn't collecting S&Ws way back when.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/members/iscs-yoda-albums-s-and-w-revolvers-picture12606-m10-7-a.html
As an aside, I have not bought a Model 10 2" VERY recently but I think the going price is $400 to $450, and they're not easy to find. If you want to carry a 2" snub I'd be jumping on that M15.
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If you are intending on making this a carry gun - I'd give the nod to a M10 2" RB. No sights to catch, RB is a little easier to conceal and carry, and just a tinge lighter as well.
If this is going to be primarily a Range gun, then I's opt for a 4" M15 (not a 2").
If this is going to be primarily a Range gun, then I's opt for a 4" M15 (not a 2").
If not constrained by "Department Policy".....like Engine49 I'd opt for a 2 1/2" 19/66 for versatility and round butt.
I don't own a 2" 15 but do have a 2" round butt 10 and 2 1/2" 19/66s....... but when I conceal carry a revolver.....it's a 3" 66-4
I don't own a 2" 15 but do have a 2" round butt 10 and 2 1/2" 19/66s....... but when I conceal carry a revolver.....it's a 3" 66-4
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bananaman
Member
I have been wanting a K snub for years. 15, was #1 on the list. Could not find 1 that fit my condition/ price range. SO...... I won a 10-5 on GB. Picked it up on Monday. Fired very LITTLE, but definitely carried. $329 shipped. It is a round butt, and I added the laser grips. Have not shot it yet. Bob
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roaddog28
Member
I would buy both. But I love K frame 38 special revolvers
Etalksalot
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I don't know if I'm too late or not, but I have a model 15 snub, blued and I originally didn't like them, until a few weeks before I got mine and I started liking them. As it happens that ended up being my first Smith, it's a 15-3, with the pinned barrel and it's unbelievable. I wanted a model 10 snub round butt, but I traded 2 guns for the 15 snub and it has since become my favorite 38 special ever. I really hated the square butt guns too, but since I bought it, I love it and though I still want a RB 10, I really want a SB 10 also pretty bad. I fell in love with the 15, and still didn't like the SB 10 because it looked weird to me with the tapered snub barrel and fixed sights, but I love them now. There is a gorgeous 15-3, blued snub for sale on Guns International website right now in mint condition for a good price and I believe it has the box/papers/tool too.
Despite the inevitable claims of easily and enjoyably shooting Coke cans at 10-20 yards with their snubbies, the reality is that they are not target guns, or even decent plinkers. Snubbies are up-close, personal defense weapons, which they are outstanding as, but they ain't much good for anything else.
That being said,the only thing the M15 has over the m10 is the adjustable sights, which are pretty much pointless in a minute-of-barn type weapon with a 2" barrel, and add nothing but cost.
Now with that being said, I would go with whichever pistol was cheapest (likely the M10), and in the cleanest, lowest-miles, condition.
I would go with the M15 only if it was reasonably close in price, just because it'll have great value/desirability down the road. But for realistic shooting applications, the adjustable sights add virtually nothing but cost (and admitedly, they do look cooler
).
(oops, I just noticed this was a necro-thread. Yes etalksalot, given it's been nearly two years, we're too late.)
That being said,the only thing the M15 has over the m10 is the adjustable sights, which are pretty much pointless in a minute-of-barn type weapon with a 2" barrel, and add nothing but cost.
Now with that being said, I would go with whichever pistol was cheapest (likely the M10), and in the cleanest, lowest-miles, condition.
I would go with the M15 only if it was reasonably close in price, just because it'll have great value/desirability down the road. But for realistic shooting applications, the adjustable sights add virtually nothing but cost (and admitedly, they do look cooler
).(oops, I just noticed this was a necro-thread. Yes etalksalot, given it's been nearly two years, we're too late.)
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Despite the inevitable claims of easily and enjoyably shooting Coke cans at 10-20 yards with their snubbies, the reality is that they are not target guns, or even decent plinkers. Snubbies are up-close, personal defense weapons, which they are outstanding as, but they ain't much good for anything else.
That being said,the only thing the M15 has over the m10 is the adjustable sights, which are pretty much pointless in a minute-of-barn type weapon with a 2" barrel, and add nothing but cost.
Now with that being said, I would go with whichever pistol was cheapest (likely the M10), and in the cleanest, lowest-miles, condition.
I would go with the M15 only if it was reasonably close in price, just because it'll have great value/desirability down the road. But for realistic shooting applications, the adjustable sights add virtually nothing but cost (and admitedly, they do look cooler
(oops, I just noticed this was a necro-thread. Yes etalksalot, given it's been nearly two years, we're too late.)
Minute of barn? I'd bet you don't own one.
That has been my experience. I believe that a number of people have experienced it.My 2" Model 15 thinks it's a 4" at the range.
While it is perfectly logical to think that a 2" model 10 would be a better carry gun than a 2" Model 15, it doesn't always work out that way. Aside from the SB/RB issue (more later), the difference is the sighting system. Obviously, the 10 has to shoot to POA to be useful, but probably many do. More important are sight snagging and ease and speed of aligning the sights. With my body shape, clothing and holsters, sight snagging is not an issue. YMMV. With the grips I have used (SB and RB Magnas with Tylers), neither of my snubby Model 12s come up to eye level with a sight picture anywhere near as good as my snubby Model 15 with Rogers/Safariland grips. Again, YMMV.
For me, a RB K frame is ordinarily MUCH better than a SB K frame. However, the Rogers grips solve this problem for me. Many other people like a SB better, anyway.
The 2" Model 15 (Improved Model 56) doesn't seem to make sense at first. However, for some people, it is the best K frame gun ever made.
For some reason, my model 15's seem to be generally more accurate than my model 10's, and it isn't just adjustable sights, I don't think. I've had some model 10's - in various barrel lengths - that were quite accurate, and others that weren't that accurate, though none that were too inaccurate for defensive applications.
My model 15's ( I have four of them), on the other hand, are all in the "quite accurate" category, whether very worn and used or in minty condition. It's for this reason that I don't view the K-38 Combat Masterpiece as just a model 10 with adjustable sights. That being said, if I wanted a 6 shot snubby for carry, I'd probably opt for a model 10, as adjustable sights can snag on clothing when concealed. Both are great choices.
My model 15's ( I have four of them), on the other hand, are all in the "quite accurate" category, whether very worn and used or in minty condition. It's for this reason that I don't view the K-38 Combat Masterpiece as just a model 10 with adjustable sights. That being said, if I wanted a 6 shot snubby for carry, I'd probably opt for a model 10, as adjustable sights can snag on clothing when concealed. Both are great choices.
Rpg
Member
The sights on the 15 aren't just adjustable, they are vastly superior to the sights on a M10.
They are much more visible and useable than those on a 10.
M15's are superbly accurate in all barrel lengths.
The benefits of adjustable sights go way beyond their adjustability.
They are much more visible and useable than those on a 10.
M15's are superbly accurate in all barrel lengths.
The benefits of adjustable sights go way beyond their adjustability.
crstrode
Member
6 double-action hits at 15 yards on a 4-inch plate is no problem with my 2-inch 10-5 round butt.
And I'm a bespectacled old geezer collecting Social Security.
Sent from my ME173X using Tapatalk
Adjustable sights on a 2" Model 15 don't snag on my pockets/shirts/coats. Most certainly, YMMV.
As far as what combat range is or used to be, in my experience, it is undefined - I have never been in combat. However, I do know that for me, Model 15 sights are significantly superior to Model 10 sights at ANY range. See posts #23 and 25 above.
It would seem to me that the only remaining question is whether sights ever matter. I am not willing to bet my life that they never matter, when, for me, there is hardly a cost of having much better sights.
I have a question regarding these two models. In the 4" version, does a heavy barrel tend to be more accurate that the regular barrel?
Thanks.
Thanks.
