Victory Model or Colt Official Police?

[wickedsharp]

I am going to look at two guns tomorrow morning.
I don't have very many details (serial number range, markings, etc..) yet, but they are:

4" Victory Model S&W in .38 special.
4" Colt Official Police in .38 special.

I've seen pictures, and they both appear to be in superb condition. I'm told they are both in original (not refinished) condition and 100% mechanically. The Colt appears to have a deep polished blue finish (shiny), and the Victory is the parkerized looking flat finish.

I can only pick one of them.

Assuming I don't see something that makes one obviously more valuable than the other, which one is generally more desireable and why?

Whichever I choose is going to get shot pretty frequently.

 

[Shade00]

I would say that the Victory Model is probably the more 'collectable' of the two - Victory Models in good shape are on the rise. However, don't discount Colts. The Official Police has the great old Colt lockup, and an example in fine shape is a great shooter.

Of course, I don't know if I could choose between the two. With any luck your purchase will be guided by what you actually see when you get them in your hands. I would MAYBE choose the Official Police if it was in excellent+ condition. But I just couldn't say.

 

[Kleanbore]

Two things that might be of interest to you: the Colt will handle +P loads, which are not recommended for the Victory model; and the Smith will likely have a smoother double action pull. Try both in single and double action, and then consider condition inside and out.

 

[PRM]

Colt/S&W

I had both guns over the years - For their era, both were top of the line guns. Both will still do the job today. Guess I'm old fashioned - but I still like the wheel guns.

In fact in the mid-seventies, when I first got into law enforcement - we were required to furnish our own guns. The department guidelines for the agency I worked for, as well as a lot of others at that time mandated a Colt or S&W 4 inch, 38 Special or .357. No exceptions (kind of funny now).

You can't go wrong with either if they are in good shape. Go with the one that feels best to you.

 

[420Stainless]

I didn't choose in the poll due to no experience with the Victory Model or as a collector (if that's where your interest is).

I do have a 1930 Official Police with a six inch barrel that's I enjoy shooting very much. Nice, smooth trigger in a medium weight revolver.