S&W Model 19... weak?

Not all model 19's are the same either. The OP's 19-3 is one of the older guns and one where I would shoot mostly 38's and reserve 357 loads for occasional use. But newer versions of all S&W revolvers are a lot tougher than the older versions.

Snake Plisskin said:

Can't go wrong with the Model 19 it's a workhorse and a pleasure to shoot...!!!!
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I think that’s nailed it: the 19 is a workhorse not a racehorse. You don’t take a plow horse to Churchill Downs every weekend and expect to have that horse for very long.

Back when I was a young fellow, a couple of coots who wrote for various gun magazines, Bill Jordan, and Skeeter Skelton, convinced me that a medium frame, 357 with a 4" barrel, was the "best all around" handgun a fellow could want. The were pretty much speaking of the Smith and Wesson Model 19, and not much has happened over the last fifty years or so to change my mind.

I've probably owned a dozen or so Model 19's over the years. They come and go in various trades, or sold to finance something else I can't live without. A Model 19 sells FAST, and most people don't quibble over the price too much.

I've never fired much 357 ammo in any of mine. When I got started 357 ammo was so expensive I bought one box, and never fired a single round of it. I don't know what happened to that box of ammo, but I'm sure it went one way, and I the other when my ex and I split up. But there were still 50 rounds in it for whoever got it.

But I do fire a fair amount of 38's. I don't hot load anything, so the noise and blast isn't so high, and no worries about wearing out my guns. Wearing them out wouldn't be so bad, except you can't find parts, barrels especially for them. Smith and Wesson hasn't supported them for years, so I sort of baby mine now.

EXCEPTION! The exception is the new Model 19-9. A lot of people cuss these, MIM parts, two piece barrel, "the lock (GASP)" and various other real or imagined faults. Personally I've never found any, and my -9 is probably my favorite Model 19. I can blow 357's through it all day long with no worries. Smith and Wesson redesigned the thing to remove the "weak spot" at the forcing cone, changed a few other things and IMHO improved the animal. Most importantly (to me anyway) is it is fully supported by the factory and if something happens to it, they'll fix it.

Here's a picture of the forcing cone on my 19-9. Note that lack of the infamous "flat spot," You can also see the male side of the "ball detent" there, but that's the subject of another thread.



I don't hesitate to shoot 357's in this one. And it likes them, too.

And the gun it's attached to.



My other "classic" 19's. A -1, and a -4. I had another one, but sold it to a friend who wanted one and couldn't find any locally. Why should I have them all?





Footnote: The only cracked forcing cone, I've ever seen, live and in person, was on a S&W Model 15, 38 Special of all things.

GeoDudeFlorida said:

My Ruger Blackhawk hasn't seen a .38 since I got it. Judging by the cyliner when I got it years back ,the previous owner never put a .38 in it either - no short-case rings. It's a hunting handgun. Not much use loading it with target ammo.

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Thats what my BH 44 mag is for. A straight up hunting gun. I would like to have another model 19/66 but after looking on GB yesterday I am going to have to pass. I just can't justify the prices they are wanting for them. But I have my model 19 bases covered with a Ruger Security Six with 4" barrel. Its very close in size and weight and I changed to a lighter main spring and it has a very nice trigger now. And it Ruger strong if I want to shoot hot 357s through it. Plus I only paid $375 for it a few years ago. But even the Security Six has risen in price and most now sell for over $500.

Always thought the M-19 was the racehorse,not the workhorse, brought out for show, but it's the workhorse that is hitched up to the plow. The M-19 was developed at Bill Jordan's urging-"the answer to the peace officer's dream!", at the same time S&W introduced the Highway Patrolman (1954). I personally prefer some heft to my guns, at 5'10" and still fairly muscular at 71 I am not weight sensitive though I never wore a badge and walked a beat at 3AM on a dark and gloomy night.
I remember that Skeeter was initially quite enamored of the 2.5" M-19, later changed his mind, cited muzzle blast and flash, found the 4" no harder to conceal.

In the event that I ever did buy another model 19 I think I would just do what CajunBass did and just buy a brand new 19-9. I have no problems with MIM parts or the teo piece barrel. And the lock is a non issue also. Heck I can buy a brand new model 19 for what some sellers are wanting for a 3 decades old model 19.

ThomasT said:

In the event that I ever did buy another model 19 I think I would just do what CajunBass did and just buy a brand new 19-9/ I have no problems with MIM parts or the teo piece barrel. And the lock is a non issue also. Heck I can buy a brand new model 19 for what some sellers are wanting for a 3 decades old model 19.

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I did call S&W last year and ask them if there were any issues with the Model 19 Classic shooting a steady diet of .357 Magnum. They said “Absolutely not! The barrel to cylinder interface has been changed and there is no machining down of the barrel to accommodate the cylinder like the older models of the 19.”

I didn’t end up buying a new model 19 but that’s good information to know.

fxvr5 said:

Here's an L-frame without all that weight up front:

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https://www.smith-wesson.com/product/model-686

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But so, so ugly. The so-called Performance Center is just a sad joke to me these days.

It's a shame S&W doesn't offer the regular 586/686 with the traditional shroud or something close to it. They did a limited run of them once. L-frames don't do anything for me personally, but it seems to me it would make the model much more attractive for carry.

AustinTX said:

But so, so ugly.

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Not to my eye. I like it.

fxvr5 said:

Not to my eye. I like it.

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A lot of people do, evidently, since the PC lineup is replete with similarly hideous-looking (to me) creations.

JJFitch said:

Does anyone ever shoot any handgun a steady diet of .357

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Yep. I have shot somewhere t the tune of 10,000 .357 through a Taurus 689 from the time I was 15 until I had ruined it and sold it for nothing when I was about 24. All of those were at least full tilt boogie per book spec, and several hundred were nuclear stupid level loads. I miss that gun.

I shoot .38s out of mine and finish the session with 158 grain Magnum. Cleans out cylinder residue mate.

Thewelshm

Bill Jordan wrote that he did all his fast draw and hip shooting practice with wax bullets.