Picked up a nice 15-3 last week

I bought a pretty nice S&W 15-3 a couple of weeks ago and on Monday I finally got it out of the regulatory 10-day penalty box (For the children!) and brought it home.



There were a few small freckles in the finish and a touch of muzzle-wear, but other than these very minor cosmetic things it locks up tight and has a good trigger pull. The original grips that came on it and I do not get along, so I went back to the aftermarket finger groove grip well and ordered another set. These came out of the box sort of red-pinkish, a color of which I’m not a fan of, which is too bad because these really fit my hands very nicely. I may swap them out again at some point for some walnut Altamont Ropers... or I may just leave it as-is if they grow on me.



The very first set of shots I fired was a two-hand DA group at 10 yards with 148 gr WC bullets over 2.8 gr Bullseye. I didn’t touch the sights when I bought it but I could hardly have set the sights for myself any better. The 24 rounds landed right at POA just a hair to the right.



After shooting a couple of other guns, I moved my B-27Q to 12 yards and fired a 24-shot DA string using 158 gr coated SWC over 4.5 gr Unique. Again, a pretty good group right about where they should go.



This is the fourth or fifth .38 or .357 K frame I’ve brought home in the past few years that has been in great mechanical shape and a perfect fit for my hands and eyes from the first shot fired. I haven’t had the same good luck with a couple of rimfire revolvers I’ve bought in the past couple of years, I’m hoping to change that streak of poor rimfire luck soon.

Stay safe.

high country said:

Looks to be in very nice condition. There is arguably no finer way to launch .38 wadutters.

Too bad those grips don't fit your hand well, they do look nice. As unsightly as they are, I find myself putting a set of pachmayrs back on mine despite trying several other options, they fit so nicely in the hand.

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These fit me well, they fill the area behind the trigger guard and cover the back strap making for a perfect fit. The factory walnut panels I don’t shoot well with, they just don’t fit me well.

Jonesy814 said:

Very nice! You'll really like it. The 15-3 that I bought about 3 years ago quickly became my favorite range gun
As far as the grips go, they look like some of the Thai grips I got on eBay. Take a small rod, dowel or whatever fits and pop the medallions out from behind. Soak the grips in a small pan with acetone and scrub with a toothbrush or rag. The finish they use comes right off. Stain with a dark color stain then apply a few coats of Tung Oil
I got these grips and almost liked them. I stripped them, Red contoured the shape then refinished them
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I think these are the Thai grips, they don’t cost a lot and they really do fit me well. I have sets of these grips on several of my K frames, recoil isn’t bad at all shooting my 6” Model 66-2 with magnum loads.

Thanks for the info! I think I’ll take your advice and strip this color off and use ting oil to come up with something better. .

Stay safe.

CajunBass said:

While I probably like the Model 19 a little more, there ain't nothing at all wrong with a Model 15. Plus it's a Combat Masterpiece," the best name for a handgun ever.

My -2 from 1966.

View attachment 979339

Target hammer, trigger, and diamond target stocks. Those target stocks are the most comfortable stocks I've ever used. I've got a similar set on my Model 19-1 from the early 60's. They're not as "fat" as later target stocks and lit my hand just perfectly. I actually bought this gun to get the stocks. I already had three or four Model 15's at the time. I've sold the others off, but this one will stay until the end.

I don't shoot it enough. I need to do something about that.

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Those are a lot like the Altamont Roper stocks I’m looking at. I like that they fill in behind the trigger guard and are a touch wider across the top than the factory stocks are.

The gun I bought has the standard mid-sized .375” hammer spur and narrow grooved trigger. I have a 66 with the .500 hammer and wide, smooth trigger like your Model 15. It makes for a totally different trigger pull for sure, much smoother and lighter-feeling. That’s a great combo of grips and features, I certainly see why you kept that one.

Stay safe.

I’m hoping to give it a try tomorrow.
I bought my first couple of sets and they were walnut brown like the 17-3 at the top.



The last few sets have been almost red-pink like the 14-3 below. I have some walnut stain and oil to finish them, I’ll post what happens when I’m done.

Thanks again!

Stay safe.

Ok, I popped the grips off and the S&W logo button out and took an old sock soaked in acetone to the grips.



The red stain did wipe off, it took me about five minutes per panel to bring out the light-walnut brown color of the wood. I oiled the grips, replaced the buttons and voila’!



Thank you Jonsey814 for the tip, I got to keep the grips I like and the gun now looks great .

Stay safe.