Doug.38PR
Member
And a snub nose J frame or D frame mean't a snub nose?
Most young people like me hear the term ".38 Special" today and they think of a small compact pistol that carries 5 shots in the cylinder (maybe 6 if they happen to know what a Detective Special is) and is used by non-gun people who just want "something" to have in the drawer or a cop or civilian might have as a "backup" gun. The round itself that the gun shoots is deemed "just a .38 special"
But in my dad's generation. (wartime babies and Baby Boomer gen) a .38 Special wasn't "just" anything and it was considered a front line service gun that the average policeman and civilian alike depended on for an all around fundamental defense weapon that had either a 4, 5 or 6 inch barrel.
Before I even bought my first gun my dad had been saying for years that he always wanted "a .38 Special. The old policeman's revolver." Didn't even say a brand name. Plain Jain gun. No bells and whistles. No overbearing grips.
One day, about 9 years ago, I went out bought my first handgun. I had always thought I would get a 1911 .45. Looked cool. But there was something about that plain jane ".38 Special" that dad always talked about that just jumped out in my mind. Used S&W M-10s were here and there under the gun counter at the local gun store. Looked like what I thought of as "A .38 Special." but then I saw a single gun next to them that looked the same only a little better somehow. Maybe it was the straight barrel rather than the tapered pencil barrel. Maybe it was the slightly larger cylinder. It was a Colt Official Police 4 inch that I was told was made in 1944.
I bought it for about $275. Wasn't sure what condition it was. Except the bore looked good. I wasn't very knowledgeable about guns at the time. Didn't know how to check for timing and such. My first gun. And I was excited.
Took it home. Dad was out somewhere. I put it on the stool of his chair in the den for him to see when he walked in.
I heard him come back about 20 minutes later. Walked into the room to see him starring down at it. "That's a .38 Special" he said.
As much as dad admired my first piece, he said he identified more with the S&W version as that's what he remembers the police in Jackson, MS carrying as a boy. About a month later I went back down to that same gunstore, as it was his birthday, and bought a S&W M-10 4 inch pencil barrel like new with the original box from 1971. Wrapped it, put a bow on it. And on his birthday, he was proud to get that. And to this day, everytime I say "your Model-10" he looks at me funny and has to think about it, "Oh my .38 Special?"
(as a side note, I later got him a Post 1972 Colt Agent, yet to this day he still calls it his "snub nose Detective Special")
I later got another Colt Official Police postwar from 1961, had it refurbished and is in better condition. I've gone through a lot of other guns. But it always comes back to that Colt Official Police, that .38 Special that always winds up in my holster, suitcase or on the firing line with me. Much as I love that 1961 gun, I still wish I could restore that 1944 version to prime condition even though it's still a good shooter (it's one flaw is that the bolt can go back up the ramp on one of the notches because the notches are so worn). The .38 Special is not too heavy, not too bulky, no adjustable sights to get knocked out of alignment, no rubber grips to bulge, nor is it too small or too weak and has a sturdy enough frame to handle more than adequate loads. Simple fundamental weapon that becomes a part of my hand.
Most young people like me hear the term ".38 Special" today and they think of a small compact pistol that carries 5 shots in the cylinder (maybe 6 if they happen to know what a Detective Special is) and is used by non-gun people who just want "something" to have in the drawer or a cop or civilian might have as a "backup" gun. The round itself that the gun shoots is deemed "just a .38 special"
But in my dad's generation. (wartime babies and Baby Boomer gen) a .38 Special wasn't "just" anything and it was considered a front line service gun that the average policeman and civilian alike depended on for an all around fundamental defense weapon that had either a 4, 5 or 6 inch barrel.
Before I even bought my first gun my dad had been saying for years that he always wanted "a .38 Special. The old policeman's revolver." Didn't even say a brand name. Plain Jain gun. No bells and whistles. No overbearing grips.
One day, about 9 years ago, I went out bought my first handgun. I had always thought I would get a 1911 .45. Looked cool. But there was something about that plain jane ".38 Special" that dad always talked about that just jumped out in my mind. Used S&W M-10s were here and there under the gun counter at the local gun store. Looked like what I thought of as "A .38 Special." but then I saw a single gun next to them that looked the same only a little better somehow. Maybe it was the straight barrel rather than the tapered pencil barrel. Maybe it was the slightly larger cylinder. It was a Colt Official Police 4 inch that I was told was made in 1944.
I bought it for about $275. Wasn't sure what condition it was. Except the bore looked good. I wasn't very knowledgeable about guns at the time. Didn't know how to check for timing and such. My first gun. And I was excited.
Took it home. Dad was out somewhere. I put it on the stool of his chair in the den for him to see when he walked in.
I heard him come back about 20 minutes later. Walked into the room to see him starring down at it. "That's a .38 Special" he said.
As much as dad admired my first piece, he said he identified more with the S&W version as that's what he remembers the police in Jackson, MS carrying as a boy. About a month later I went back down to that same gunstore, as it was his birthday, and bought a S&W M-10 4 inch pencil barrel like new with the original box from 1971. Wrapped it, put a bow on it. And on his birthday, he was proud to get that. And to this day, everytime I say "your Model-10" he looks at me funny and has to think about it, "Oh my .38 Special?"
(as a side note, I later got him a Post 1972 Colt Agent, yet to this day he still calls it his "snub nose Detective Special")
I later got another Colt Official Police postwar from 1961, had it refurbished and is in better condition. I've gone through a lot of other guns. But it always comes back to that Colt Official Police, that .38 Special that always winds up in my holster, suitcase or on the firing line with me. Much as I love that 1961 gun, I still wish I could restore that 1944 version to prime condition even though it's still a good shooter (it's one flaw is that the bolt can go back up the ramp on one of the notches because the notches are so worn). The .38 Special is not too heavy, not too bulky, no adjustable sights to get knocked out of alignment, no rubber grips to bulge, nor is it too small or too weak and has a sturdy enough frame to handle more than adequate loads. Simple fundamental weapon that becomes a part of my hand.
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