A singularly odd occurrence...............

[Pierre]

Back in 1987 a Doctor friend of the family contacted me about supplying him with a revolver. He wanted something to take with him on his daily bicycle trips in the woods around his property in Whitefish. I had recently purchased a Lew Horton Limited Edition of 500 Astra .41 Magnum. I've been a fan of this caliber for some time.

Not wanting to give up my Astra, I ordered him a S&W .41 Magnum in a beautiful flat black. When it arrived, to say I was impressed would be an understatement! It was gorgeous and a solid handful of revolver. I called him and arranged for a pickup in town. I supplied him with a box of 210gr cartridges. I advised him to shoot a few rounds when he got home just to familiarize himself with the feel and the recoil. He had bought a shoulder holster for it and left with his prize. I promptly forgot about it. The years rolled by.

As he was a long time friend, we spoke to him about once a month about nothing in particular, then early in 2016 he called me about a compact folding stock 12 gauge for home defense. I happened to have a Mossberg Canadian Police Department shotgun with a 16" barrel and a top folding stock in stainless steel I had obtained in a trade some years back. For those years it had hung on the wall behind the front door. As I had other shotguns, that seemed like a good one for him.

I really don't like selling firearms, but I will trade for something I want. In this case, I didn't much care what the trade was as he was such a good friend to the Family. He asked me if I remembered the .41 Magnum he had purchased in the 80's. I asked why he'd want to trade that one and he told me that when he got home he had fired one round, found it too much for him and had stored it away back in 1987! He brought it in and I was astounded! It was absolutely mint.... Unblemished and in completely new condition!

I told him it wasn't a good trade for him as it was now worth substantially more than that shotgun. He didn't care. He wanted that shotgun and I came to realize that he was the same sort of trader that I am. If it's something I want....... then I do it and damn the difference, so we made the trade and I gave him a load of shotshells to take with him. This is a large, heavy handgun, but man!........ It's a beauty.

Read More

 

[Geardo]

Dang.

 

[KKG]

What dash number is the Revolver? I don't remember seeing that finish on anything but a Model 28 or Highway Patrolman.

 

[jmh119]

That's a beaut!

 

[Pierre]

What dash number is the Revolver? I don't remember seeing that finish on anything but a Model 28 or Highway Patrolman.

What am I looking for? I have it right here in front of me but I don't see what you're looking for.

 

[KKG]

Open the Crane and you should see a Model number marked on the Frame. This should be M-57. There should also be a Dash number, such as M-57-3 or ???

 

[Pierre]

Mod 57

 

[Pierre]

And no dash

 

[KKG]

If that's all, which is possible, I would have to guess that the gun was refinished. OR it came from the Factory that way. I would strongly recommend you get a Factory Letter which will tell you about it. The early Model 57s were manufactured with a High Polished finish.

 

[Kruel J]

That's a fine piece of steel there!

 

[Pierre]

Back in the 80's I was the Montana dealer for S&W. This came direct from the factory along with 4 other revolvers I ordered in. Simply MOD 57 and nothing else.

 

[Pierre]

I suppose I could see about a letter, but that's a long time ago. In our area I was the dealer for S&W, Springfield Arms, Valmet, H&K, SIG and Galil. A lot younger and very ambitious. I was a CIII supplying firearms to Sheriff and Police Depts from here to Washington and Oregon. Lots of firearms passed through here including the very early Barretts. Stoeger was my main importer

 

[Kruel J]

Ah, what's the point in chasing for a letter. How about just shooting that bad boy and enjoying it? Just me talking.

 

[CHLChris]

So when will this beauty be up for sale? What was that you just said? "When hell freezes over," is what I think you just said.

 

[Pierre]

With only one round through it, I'm leaving it for my son. There are far too many firearms here to shoot them all, and that particular revolver is too heavy for me now. Both wrists are shot. I was also a chisel and mallet mural carver for 50 years. I was too aggressive and wore out the cartelege in both wrists.

 

[CHLChris]

I'm convinced that almost every used S&W500Mag revolver (or 454Cas or 460S&WMag, too, for that matter) has at most 5 rounds through it upon its first entrance onto the used market. It is definitely more rare for a 41Mag to have been deemed too stout and put away. I'm usually not recoil sensitive, but one round out of a 454 8" and I handed it back to its owner with a, "Thanks, that was fun, but no more, please." Whereas, my first time shooting a 44Mag 6" was an absolute joy!

I wonder why he didn't come back to you and ask for a 357, instead. Ya think he was embarrassed? Maybe he thought you would have thought him weak or something.

 

[Pierre]

Big murals like this one.

 

[jbett98]

How long is the barrel?

 

[Pierre]

6"

 

[Pierre]

I'm convinced that almost every used S&W500Mag revolver (or 454Cas or 460S&WMag, too, for that matter) has at most 5 rounds through it upon its first entrance onto the used market. It is definitely more rare for a 41Mag to have been deemed too stout and put away. I'm usually not recoil sensitive, but one round out of a 454 8" and I handed it back to its owner with a, "Thanks, that was fun, but no more, please." Whereas, my first time shooting a 44Mag 6" was an absolute joy!

I wonder why he didn't come back to you and ask for a 357, instead. Ya think he was embarrassed? Maybe he thought you would have thought him weak or something.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

No. He's a neuro-surgeon that lives in the mountains above Whitefish. He just wanted home protection and probably doesn't know what a .357 is anyway.