High Standard Sentinel 22mag

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357smallbore

357smallbore

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Have a chance to buy a High Standard blued Sentinel MK IV in 22WMR with a 4in bbl. 9 shot.
Gun is as new as can be. $550 is the cost.
Is this a good deal? I know they are rare. Been researching them. This looks to be made in 1977.
 
I owned one. My Dad had it and after he passed I inherited it. It had a 2" barrel, but I bought a 4" barrel from Gun Parts Corp and installed it.
The gun was fairly accurate with the 4" barrel. I gave it to my sister. She needed a handgun for home and has arthritic wrists so recoil really bothers her. I figured 9 shots of .22 Magnum that she can shoot versus another bigger cartridge and gun that she can't would be a plus for her.

I think $550 is a bit high, but with today's pricing due to "the silliness" I would say it's about what would be expected.
I know that my Dad shot his gun a lot and whoever had it before him did as well. Someone did a lot of dry firing with it or tried shooting lots of .22 LR through and chewed up the cylinder. The firing pin was unharmed. I did manage to get a replacement cylinder for it from the company I mentioned. Luckily no gunsmithing was needed to time it when I installed it. The one thing I had to do was polish the chambers really good. Casings would get stuck after firing a couple of cylinders of .22 Magnum.

My Dad bought his gun sometime in 1978 and according to my brother shot it a lot. I got it after he died in '83. I would shoot it occasionally. When I decided to send it to my sister in 2016 I tore the gun completely down. Something I would never do again unless I had to. It takes the proverbial 3 hands, a fair amount of cussing and holding your mouth just right to get those things back together. One thing I saw when I had it apart is that the internal workings of these revolvers is very robust. I was actually impressed with the design. So much so that I actually regretted telling my sister she could have it. The only thing I had to repair or replace (and it may not have even needed it ) was the cylinder stop spring. It seemed a little weak. Also, the schematic from Gun Parts Corp was a life saver in reassembling the gun properly.

Here is a link to Gun Parts Corp for the Sentinel: https://www.gunpartscorp.com/gun-manufacturer/high-standard/revolvers-hs/mkiv-sentinel

I would go through the available parts and see if the ones they are out of stock on are parts that you are fairly confident that you could live without.

Would I buy one for $550? Maybe, if I had other guns for SD and HD and I wanted something a little unique that is not something you see much of these days. I wouldn't buy it if it was going to be my only gun and I was going to shoot it a lot.
 
Trivia Alert:

The original Sentinel could not be reassembled without a jig like the factory used, but nobody else was likely to have, not even a regular gunsmith. High Standard would put it back together for $5.00. They probably made a good bit of money that way before they redesigned the action to not need the jig.
 
My first handgun, bought new in the mid'60s, was a High Standard Sentinel. Until this thread, I didn't know High Standard ever made a Sentinel chambered in .22WMR - mine would shoot shorts, longs and long rifles.
As a matter of fact, my High Standard Sentinel loaded with .22 shorts was the first gun my wife ever fired. That was almost 50 years ago (before faceless strangers on the internet were telling other folks that husbands couldn't teach their wives to shoot) and my wife took to guns and shooting like a duck to water.:)
 
.308 Norma said:
My first handgun, bought new in the mid'60s, was a High Standard Sentinel. Until this thread, I didn't know High Standard ever made a Sentinel chambered in .22WMR - mine would shoot shorts, longs and long rifles.
As a matter of fact, my High Standard Sentinel loaded with .22 shorts was the first gun my wife ever fired. That was almost 50 years ago (before faceless strangers on the internet were telling other folks that husbands couldn't teach their wives to shoot) and my wife took to guns and shooting like a duck to water.:)
Click to expand...

Like you I bought one of these in the earlier '60's and never knew until now about the EMR version. Unlike you I had already taught my wife to shoot with my single six and she did the duck to water thing. You can see a lot of things on the internet that are untrue just like the husbands teaching wives to shoot thing. Anyway I didn't consider the Sentinel to be anything special and it eventually went down the road but I still have that single six and it's just as good today as it was then.

Edited to add: I just saw the picture of the gun in the OP. If mine had been that model I would most likely still have it. Very nice indeed.
 
doubleh said:
Anyway I didn't consider the Sentinel to be anything special and it eventually went down the road but I still have that single six and it's just as good today as it was then.
Click to expand...
Yep, I didn't consider my Sentinel to be "anything special" either. I wish I wouldn't have let it go though - just sentimental reasons.
My wife still has her first handgun, and it too is a single six. Hers is one of those 1976 "200th year of American Liberty" jobs. She uses the little stainless Bearcat she bought just a couple of years ago a lot more often though. As a matter of fact, the ground squirrels are starting to pop up out of their dins around here, so my wife and I might be exterminating some of them soon - my wife with her Bearcat and me with my Glock 44. We'll be using scoped .22 rifles for ground squirrels any more than 15 or 20 yards away of course.;)
 
Jim Watson said:
Trivia Alert:

The original Sentinel could not be reassembled without a jig like the factory used, but nobody else was likely to have, not even a regular gunsmith. High Standard would put it back together for $5.00. They probably made a good bit of money that way before they redesigned the action to not need the jig.
Click to expand...

When I disassembled the one I had I recall reading about needing a jig. Let me tell you, I am pretty sure a jig would have helped tremendously. :D
What a bear that was to reassemble, but I am sure if I did it a couple of times it may have gotten easier.


@357smallbore that’s a good looking revolver. Congratulations! :)
Let us know how it shoots. :thumbup:
 
Glad you got it. A 22 mag is one of my favorite rounds. A while back Sportsman's Guide had Armscor 22 mag for $5.56 a box and so I joined the club to get free shipping and one of the things I bought was 4,000 22 mag rounds. That gives a least 5,500 rounds on hand. I told you I like 22 mag. I have two Ruger single sixes and two Marlin bolt actions in 22 mag.
 
This is just personal opinion, but if you like the gun, I'd go for it, if it's in the condition you say it's in. They are rare enough you may not see the opportunity again, IF you like the specific caliber.

Case in point: I've been looking for a High Standard Sentinel in 22LR, for 10 years, and I have seen nary a one. In any condition. Or caliber.
 
357smallbore
I bought it.
Click to expand...

Way to go and good for you! Looks to be in great shape too! I believe the same designer who gave Colt's Detective Special a new look with a shrouded barrel also did the redesign of the Sentinel Mk.IV in the early '70s.
 
I've been looking for a High Standard Sentinel. Prices have certainly gone up since I started. $550 doesn't seem out of line for the gun in such good condition.
 
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