Rusty M19-3 Restoration ?s

[glazer1972]

Money wise, I don't have anything in this handgun up to this point.
It belonged to my dad and before that my uncle. It spent many years as the under the counter gun in a beer joint. When I got it I had to remove a dirt dauber nest from the bore and therefore there is a ring of rust/corrosion in the bore about 2 1/8" from the muzzle. It is hard to see in the pics but is there. I have found a 4" Mod. 19 bbl for about $90 so that is an option. I have also found several Mod. 66 bbls. for a hair more. I have thought about getting it blasted and parked also but it may be more $ than its worth. I have also considered a round but conversion if I do go with the 4" bbl. replacement. Any thoughts?

 

[ken158]

Retire it with the memories and hang it on the wall...

 

[STCM(SW)]

I would do the barrel, blast & park rout.
I don't give up on a S&W magnum easy......

 

[Snake Plissken]

I say get some steel wool, gun blue cleaner and shine it up best you can , would make a shooter grade 19 and no worries about holster wear or anything, enjoy.

 

[policerevolvercollector]

I say get some steel wool, gun blue cleaner and shine it up best you can , would make a shooter grade 19 and no worries about holster wear or anything, enjoy.

As suggested in earlier posts ^^^^, clean it and shoot it. You might be surprised how well it does "as-is". I've seen guns that had real bad breaks in the rifling ("bulges") that shot just fine as long as the trouble was not directly at the muzzle. Try this before you spend a ton of cash on it. If you rebarrel & refinish it etc., you'll no longer have your family heirloom............

 

[snubbyfan]

Get yourself one of these and have at it.
Birchwood Casey Perma Blue Liquid Cold Blue Kit

 

[Class III]

Try shooting it as is. It may surprise you.

If you have to "Make Improvements" first try cutting and crowning the barrel and adding a new front sight, cheaper than a replacement barrel. Maybe make yourself one of the rare 3" M19's.

If accuracy is not there you still have very little invested and may want to look at replacing the barrel.

As far as the finish goes, I wouldn't change a thing. I've owned worse that shot like a laser.

Class III

 

[2152hq]

Great project gun. You can go in so many different directions with it.

It all depends on how much you want to spend on it and/or how much time you want to put in to it.

Having nothing in it at this point is a great place to be if the money and hours to be put into a potential project is being balanced against a resale or final value.
That's tough to do anyway with project guns. They are usually a labor or charge card of love.

If you're unsure,,clean it up, use it and have a beer or two with it for old times.

 

[DAinTX]

I say get some steel wool, gun blue cleaner and shine it up best you can , would make a shooter grade 19 and no worries about holster wear or anything, enjoy.

Yeah, this ^. 0000 steel wool, or better yet bronze wool, Hoppes, and some work will clean all the rust off. Then degrease it well and try Brownells' Ortho-blue, or Birchwood-Casey's Perma-Blue or Super-Blue on it. As far as the barrel goes..just shoot it, you won't hurt anything. If you have to shorten it, do that. But don't give up on it! The problems are mostly cosmetic. Later on, if it's a good shooter and the finish bothers you, Dura-coat it.

 

[Silver Dollar]

If it goes bang really well, I'd do what the other guys said and clean it up. You can't put a good 19 down.

 

[lebomm]

My personal inclination would be that it's a tool - keep it working. If it won't group w/that ringed bore (and I bet it will), then consider the rebarrel. I hope my daughter (a City of Seattle truck mechanic) keeps my tools working when I've quit using 'em.

Just my $.02 worth
Larry

 

[Rpg]

Clean it, oil it and prevent it from rusting further. Then enjoy it! I

Idoubt you'd notice any functional improvement from doing more.

Pass it on in the family as the heirloom it is! Treasure it, don't mess with it.

 

[sw282]

lf it were my Dad's l would spare no expense making it look new....

 

[CHASLX200]

That gun needs a good loving. Just get it redone if the cost is not too steep.

 

[texagun]

I would do a complete breakdown, soak everything but the grips in an oil bath for a couple of days, and gently go to work on it with some 0000 steel wool. Then re-blue with some Oxpho-Blue and use it as a shooter. You might be surprised at how well it turns out. I would not pour a bunch of money in a gun that is badly pitted. You would never recover your costs.
I would love to see some before and after photos of the gun after you restore it.

Brownells 4 oz. Oxpho-Blue : Cabela's

 

[Nevada Ed]

At least clean it up and give it a try.........it deserves that much, for all it has gone through.

 

[jakenov3]

take the grips off and spray it down inside with brake cleaner then oil

 

[kaaskop49]

In the late 60s, the 19 was THE primo revolver, M-29 nonwithstanding. IMHO, it still is. Many great suggestions ahead of me: do something with this gun. A .357 is a great thing to have.

 

[semperfi71]

First, welcome to the Forum.

If it were mine I'd soak it for a week in Croil (SP?).

Then I'd scrub the bore and chambers with Croil (SP)? and a tight fitting bronze brush wrapped with copper scrub pad (Chore Boy is best) to remove any rust in these areas.

Then I'd soak it with carburetor cleaner (not brake cleaner) to remove the Croil (SP?). Carb cleaner does what brake cleaner does but leaves a slight oil film.

I would remove the sideplate (search here and find out how to do it correctly) and make sure the inside is clean and free of debris (again a good detailed hand cleaning followed by washing out with carb cleaner).

Then I would make sure the outside is protected by a good preservative oil (lightly).

Then I make sure the stocks are clean and protected.

Then, if it functions correctly I'd see how it shot. Many times a lightly eroded bore, or a bore with a slight bulge can shoot very well.

If it performed good I would leave it as it is. It is a family heirloom (not pristine, except for the memories) and as such should be kept as remembered.

If it functions well and is kept properly preserved and protected it will not need any "re-finishing" to protect it further.

 

[Doug M.]

I'm in inclined to the strip/park/rebarrel, with the RB cuz I like those on a 4" K frame. I am planning to eventually RB my 66.