WHAT A CHOICE!

[crazyphil]

I have read somewhere that sometime after WWII new recruits
to the F.B.I. were given a choice of Colt's Official Police or S&W's
Military and Police.

The OP dominated up until WWII, but during the war and after
S&W started catching up, and became the dominate handgun in
the law enforcement community.

This is kind of dumb question to ask on S&W Forum, but if you
had to make the choice between the Colt's OP or the S&W M&P,
which one would you choose, and why?

 

[diyj98]

I've always prefered the S&W lockwork over Colts. I've seen a much higher percentage of old Colts with timing issues than S&W's.

 

[cmansguns]

The ONLY choice!

Phil;

There is No "choice" about it. The Smith & Wesson is the ONLY choice.

Why...you ask? Because it is the only one of the two that the cylinder was designed to rotate in the correct direction. That other guy (Sam something, who evidently owned a horse or something), was wrong for years and years.

Above info did NOT come from Wikipedia

 

[armorer951]

The main reason for this distinction has nothing to do with quality. The S&W's we're less expensive. This is the driving force behind every LE admin expenditure.

I was issued a S&W model 19. I too have always preferred the S&W over the Colt revolvers.

Another advantage of the S&W internals is they are easier to maintain and repair in my opinion.....an obvious plus for those armorers among us, like me, who are not the brightest bulb in the box.

 

[DWalt]

Probably more a matter of better astute marketing and pricing on the part of S&W than anything else. Also the Colt OP is a little heavier frame than the K-frame M&P. For Cop use, a Colt would never have been fired enough during anyone's lifetime to get out of time. I have a fairly large flock of Colts made on the same frame, and have never had one which was out of time. But the internal mechanism of the Colt is more complex than the S&W.

 

[quikdraw67]

Nothing beats a Smith revolver in DA.

Plus the grip angle and cylinder release latch is easier to operate IMHO.

 

[crazyphil]

I looked at them a bit differently. Did I want the gun used by Jim Cirillo,
or the one used by Barney Fife? Answer below:

 

[Absalom]

Owning and having shot both post-war models, my unscientific opinion would be:

If you think about shooting, you'll pick the Colt. Better fixed-sight picture, better trigger, better grip shape, better (grippier) stock texture, less felt recoil.

If you think about anything else, like carrying the gun for eight or ten hours, operating the cylinder latch, the exposed ejector rod, and just compare the overall looks, you'll pick the S&W.

 

[Absalom]

…..
The OP dominated up until WWII, but during the war and after
S&W started catching up, and became the dominate handgun in
the law enforcement community.
….

Minor correction here:

It wasn't the OP that dominated, it was Colt as a brand.

Number-wise as indicated by serials, more M&P's than AS/OP sold before WW II.

What tipped the balance to Colt were the hundreds of thousands of Colts Police Positive and Police Positive Special which together outsold the mid-frame guns in law enforcement before the war.

S&W's Regulation Police never really caught on enough to be competitive among the small frames.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I believe both brands handle "Proper Normal Use" about equally. S&W handles abuse far better!

Ivan

 

[Just another 22 shooter]

I've always prefered the S&W lockwork over Colts. I've seen a much higher percentage of old Colts with timing issues than S&W's.

My exact thoughts as I finished the original post.

 

[Heinz]

The only Colt I have ever owned was an OP. It handled and shot very well. I gave it to my father so he would stop carrying a Armenius 32 when he went into work at night. I remember reading one of the writers in Guns and Ammo who said "My eyes and brain like the Smith and Wesson, my hand likes the Colt"

 

[Igiveup]

I got a .41 Colt from my father when I was fifteen and became an Eagle Scout. A nice old revolver, but I like the feel and cylinder release of the S&W better.

 

[CajunBass]

I've always liked the Official Police. I don't know if I like it "more" than say a Model 10 or not, and I certainly don't know which was "best" but I liked both. I've owned more Smith and Wesson's but they seemed to turn up at my LGS more often than Colts.

I did have a really nice Official Police 38, 4" barrel for a while. It was made in 1939 IIRC, and the backstrap was stamped "Treasury Department Secret Service." (Or some variation of that) I thought that was interesting, almost certainly some uniformed officers gun. I kept it for a while, then sold it to a fellow in Georgia who collected department owned Colts. It was just a gun to me, but to him it was something special.

 

[usmc2427765]

As our Range master told me in the 1960's " I'would rather have a mother in a ***** house than a partner with a Colt revolver". Now at 74, I still agree.

 

[ameridaddy]

Plus the grip angle and cylinder release latch is easier to operate IMHO.

Bingo! That's what did it for me.

 

[Puller]

Probably more a matter of better astute marketing and pricing on the part of S&W than anything else. . . .

Hmmm, looks like maybe Gaston took a lesson from one of the best we he decided to dominate the LE market.

 

[BAM-BAM]

In 1938/39 my Dad Chose a 6" Colt New Service in .357 magnum ( sent it
off the Calf to add King Adj sights) as his duty gun. He continued to use this as both a duty gun and target pistol until he retired in 1977.

He got back from the South Pacific/Philippines in Nov 1945.... in Aug 1946 he bought a S&W 4" M&P. This gun also saw a lot of carry time especially after he made Lt. around 1960.

He bought a 2" Colt Detective Special sometime in the 1950s.... off duty and primary when he made Capt.

Got a S&W 640 in 1989