This particular weapon is a Model 19-4, the last variant made with recessed cylinders and pinned barrels.[1] This is a target model and it is very accurate.
This revolver dates back to the time when concealed carry was permitted in very few states.[2] Civilians purchased handguns for target shooting, hunting and home defense. Handguns tended to be larger, as larger meant less recoil. Other than J-frame Smiths, Colt Detective Specials and PPKs,[3] I don't recall there being much of a selection of concealable handguns.
Automatics tended to be either .22s or Colt 1911s. Revolvers were preferred because they were less messy, they didn't throw brass casings hither and yon. That was of special interest to those who reloaded their own ammunition.
The 4" barrel Model 19 was popular with police, as it was not as heavy to carry as a heavy-frame Model 27.[4] Legend has it that the stainless steel variant, the Model 66, was used for a time by Navy SEALs, because that model was resistant to the corrosive effects of salt water.
The knock against the Model 19 was a reputation for developing cracked barrels with aggressively-loaded .357 cartridges. The Model 19 was built on the Smith & Wesson "K frame", which was designed originally for .38 Special revolvers. Fitting a .357 magnum on a K frame may have been, for the time, pushing the limits of metallurgy.
Smith & Wesson introduced a slightly heavier frame for its .357s in the early 1980s, the "L frame". Still, the Model 19 remained in production until the end of the 20th Century, the Model 66 continued on for several more years.
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[1] S&W made that change to its line of revolvers in the early 1980s to cut costs.
[2] CT being one of them.
[3] PPK and PPK/s probably sold more for the tie-in to a certain fictional spy, than anything else.
[4] The Model 27s and the less-expensive Model 28 were built on the "N-frame", which originated with the famed "Triple Lock" .44.
5 comments:
Ah yes the beloved K frame. A subject Dear to my heart. I have owned 2 model 19's, and 2 66's. First a used one then I bought a brand new 6", sold that for a 4" 66, later traded that for a 6" model 66. I am done trading revolvers now. The 6" model 66 will shoot cloverleaf groups with +P handloads. With Mag rounds I can shoot branches off of cedar trees.
Accuracy for a Squirel, power for a Bear, relatively light to carry with slim lines and in stainless it rarely even needs oiling.
That and a couple of Safariland speed loaders and I have no fear walking my road here in Bear and Cat country.
It may be a 19th century design, but that doesn't take anything away from it, I believe it was way ahead of it's time.
w3ski
My father bought a K-frame with a 4" barrel from a retiring police officer sometime in the mid 1970's. It is a beautiful weapon, it shoots sweet and is heavy enough to be controllable but not so heavy as to weigh you down. With the 4" barrel it is plenty accurate but not unwieldy as a longer barrel would be. I consider it to be close to the perfect home defense weapon (other than a shotgun) because of its reliability, accuracy, and sufficient power to stop an attacker but not so much power as to be a threat to your neighbors or to your own bone integrity for that matter (WTF with a .454 Cassul for home defense anyhow?!).
On the question of "home defense", I don't know why anyone would prefer a handgun. It's an area weapon so you can get more than one miscreant at once, you don't have to aim it much, it goes off with an intimidating flash and roar, a pump model holds at least as many rounds as a revolver, and the pellets don't go through the opposite wall or walls.
brtrain, there are situations where the length of the long gun simply is not feasible to deal with. For example, if someone knocks on your front door claiming to be the UPS delivery guy, you can hold the handgun behind your back while answering the door. You cannot do that with a shotgun.
Shotgun patterns don't spread that much in room-length encounters, maybe 1" of spread per yard of distance. So you're still going to have to point the weapon at the Wayward Choir Boy if you want to hit him. And any pellet load that has enough oomph to penetrate deeply enough into the vitals of said Choir Boy will likely go through sheetrock.
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