New Snub finish - matte black or silver?

[Engieman]

Looking at a new production airweight Snubby.....how does the factory finish hold up to edc use; holster, pocket, etc.? Wanted to know your experience with durability, appearance, etc. Know it will shoot just fine regardless, but also didn’t want it to flake or look prematurely trashed.

Don’t dare touch my wife’s pristine, vintage nickel model 38 anywhere outside the nightstand, or my daughters SS Ladysmith. As I recall I bought both of them.....could be wrong.

 

[NCBeagle]

I have quite a few of both finishes. In my experience, the black finish wears better. It seems more durable. Also, it looks better when worn. The black / blue does not suffer the flaking problem of the early matte silver version.

Here is a 442 carried regularly (not exclusively) for more than 10 years. A little finish off the muzzle and high spots. It has at least a couple thousand rounds down range and it’s been wet a few times. In fact, it just traveled to Reno with me last week.

 

[Fchewy]

Black seems to be more durable and it dosen't have that peeling layer the silver has, why do they put that on a gun.....

 

[NCBeagle]

Black seems to be more durable and it dosen't have that peeling layer the silver has, why do they put that on a gun.....

I think that Smith has largely corrected the problem with the silver finish. It affected the earlier production run. Mostly cosmetic. Really, you cannot go wrong with either.