Project gun?
- Thread starter tedog
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Nice patina, leave it alone.
Carry it, shoot it, enjoy it. A potent package in a small size. If the grips aren't to your liking, switch them out. It's amazing what that can do to the look and feel of a revolver like that. Nice purchase.
Depends. If you want this to be a BBQ gun, then full restoration is required. If you plan to use this in a humid or salt water environment, hard chrome would be good. If you just plan to take it to the range and maybe use it as a truck gun, leave it as-is.
I like a gun with character. You know they have a story to tell. And even though it's a minor detail I really like the flat latch guns. I would clean it and carry it with pride.
Green Frog
Member
Yes tedog, assuming price was appropriate to condition, that's a perfect project gun. Some folks who worship at the Altar of Originality will cry out to preserve it just as is for its historical significance, but unless it was owned by Robert Byrd's chief bodyguard or some such luminary, I'd say ignore them. 
BUT, I wouldn't rush into a bunch of alterations just to be doing them. With a little cleaning and lubrication it looks like it would be a good shooter as it is, then you can let the gun "tell you what it wants to be." I've had a couple of projects in the past that got a bunch of random changes willy-nilly until I'd spent a lot of money and time without any real idea of what I actually wanted to have as a finished product. OTOH, my first Baby Chiefs Special just got a well thought out package of slicked-up changes that made it a pleasure to carry and a joy to shoot. I wish I still had that old gun!
You have a good foundation there, and thoughtful changes and improvements will make it suit you even better.
Froggie
BUT, I wouldn't rush into a bunch of alterations just to be doing them. With a little cleaning and lubrication it looks like it would be a good shooter as it is, then you can let the gun "tell you what it wants to be." I've had a couple of projects in the past that got a bunch of random changes willy-nilly until I'd spent a lot of money and time without any real idea of what I actually wanted to have as a finished product. OTOH, my first Baby Chiefs Special just got a well thought out package of slicked-up changes that made it a pleasure to carry and a joy to shoot. I wish I still had that old gun!
You have a good foundation there, and thoughtful changes and improvements will make it suit you even better.
Froggie
I like it
I bought a flat latch like that and had it rose nickeled for my wife.
Good buy.
I bought a flat latch like that and had it rose nickeled for my wife.
Carry and handle it a while. Then decide. I would wax it for now.
OLDSTER
Member
I agree with others. Leave it as is; nice old finish and great "shooter".
if it shoots and functions well....leave it as is....orig. means little with this one, but that's the way I like 'em
Project?
What do hope to achieve?
Leave it alone!
What do hope to achieve?
Leave it alone!
Why not live with it a while?
Besides the grips, I think it looks pretty cool! Think of all the work that gun had to do to earn that look!
If the mechanics and bore are good, what's not to like?
Jim
Besides the grips, I think it looks pretty cool! Think of all the work that gun had to do to earn that look!
If the mechanics and bore are good, what's not to like?
Jim
JohnnieBoy
Member
I would keep it just as is. Something to be said for honest wear.
I have a pair of walnut Magna's for sale in the classifieds right now that would fit that beauty perfectly. They aren't diamonds, though.
I have a pair of walnut Magna's for sale in the classifieds right now that would fit that beauty perfectly. They aren't diamonds, though.
Green Frog
Member
This thread exposes a fact of life on this forum (and gun owners in general.) there are two major philosophies on gun ownership that we can clearly see over and over, and although there is a continuum between the extremes, most of us are at heart, either conservators or users.
The ideal situation for the conservator is to find boxed, pristine examples but who don't want to put any wear and tear on any example, regardless of current condition. We call these people "Serious Collectors."
At the extreme other end of the spectrum are the users. These folks regard their guns as tools to be used and enjoyed even as they take on signs of wear and "lose value." We call these people "Shooters."
Among the serious collectors we have folks with safes full of excellent or better examples of as many guns as they can acquire, and get their pleasure from pride of ownership and from maintaining the high condition of their guns, usually calling them "investments."
Among the shooters, the most extreme adherents, frequently regarded as "Philistines" by their opposites, who not only enjoy using their guns, but frequently and happily alter guns to enjoy using them even more.
Who is right? Who is wrong? We all are. Every pristine example preserved today can provide shooting pleasure some time in the future; every example that gets customized gives somebody shooting pleasure now and as it leaves the "pool of the pristine" a little smaller so each remaining example is a little more sought after and valuable. Just think about that dynamic!
From the tone of this post (and to those who know me) it should be obvious that while I can appreciate the collection of original, unaltered examples (generally by someone else) I fall solidly in the category of those who want to shoot and enjoy their guns. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Green Frog
The ideal situation for the conservator is to find boxed, pristine examples but who don't want to put any wear and tear on any example, regardless of current condition. We call these people "Serious Collectors."
At the extreme other end of the spectrum are the users. These folks regard their guns as tools to be used and enjoyed even as they take on signs of wear and "lose value." We call these people "Shooters."
Among the serious collectors we have folks with safes full of excellent or better examples of as many guns as they can acquire, and get their pleasure from pride of ownership and from maintaining the high condition of their guns, usually calling them "investments."
Among the shooters, the most extreme adherents, frequently regarded as "Philistines" by their opposites, who not only enjoy using their guns, but frequently and happily alter guns to enjoy using them even more.
Who is right? Who is wrong? We all are. Every pristine example preserved today can provide shooting pleasure some time in the future; every example that gets customized gives somebody shooting pleasure now and as it leaves the "pool of the pristine" a little smaller so each remaining example is a little more sought after and valuable. Just think about that dynamic!
From the tone of this post (and to those who know me) it should be obvious that while I can appreciate the collection of original, unaltered examples (generally by someone else) I fall solidly in the category of those who want to shoot and enjoy their guns. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Green Frog
This thread exposes a fact of life on this forum (and gun owners in general.) there are two major philosophies on gun ownership that we can clearly see over and over, and although there is a continuum between the extremes, most of us are at heart, either conservators or users.
The ideal situation for the conservator is to find boxed, pristine examples but who don't want to put any wear and tear on any example, regardless of current condition. We call these people "Serious Collectors."
At the extreme other end of the spectrum are the users. These folks regard their guns as tools to be used and enjoyed even as they take on signs of wear and "lose value." We call these people "Shooters."
Among the serious collectors we have folks with safes full of excellent or better examples of as many guns as they can acquire, and get their pleasure from pride of ownership and from maintaining the high condition of their guns, usually calling them "investments."
Among the shooters, the most extreme adherents, frequently regarded as "Philistines" by their opposites, who not only enjoy using their guns, but frequently and happily alter guns to enjoy using them even more.
Who is right? Who is wrong? We all are. Every pristine example preserved today can provide shooting pleasure some time in the future; every example that gets customized gives somebody shooting pleasure now and as it leaves the "pool of the pristine" a little smaller so each remaining example is a little more sought after and valuable. Just think about that dynamic!
From the tone of this post (and to those who know me) it should be obvious that while I can appreciate the collection of original, unaltered examples (generally by someone else) I fall solidly in the category of those who want to shoot and enjoy their guns. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
Green Frog
Some good points.
There's another perspective to add to this, though. That is, the outlook brought to the field by a historian and/or curator.
With quality firearms, especially those made with a high level of aesthetic value, we are talking about somewhat "permanent" or lasting, artifacts. If properly taken care of, they will still be here long after we are gone. Whether put away in a safe "new in box" or whether taken out and utilized, neither choice inherently turns the gun into a worn out, discarded piece of waste.
That's pretty cool, and a big part of the appeal.
The condition itself is not so much important, in some ways, as is the idea: "what does the condition tell us about this artifact?"
In other words, the gun is a document.
Honest wear and tear is kind of appealing! Often, it tells a story (even if we dream it). But, "dead mint" is nice, too.
But, to me, a refinished gun, with overbuffing, dished out screw holes, blurred stamping, etc, is just defacement.
Fun topic!
