Plain-Jane Model 10 beaters for $300??

I got this 10-5 about a year ago for 375.00. The finish actually looks better than the pic.

ThomasT said:

The funny thing is people buy the 357s and rarely ever shoot 357s from them, just 38s because they are easier to shoot and cheaper to buy. And I'm the same way. If I shoot a 357 round from one of my 357 revolvers its usually one of the midrange loads with a 158gr hard cast lead bullet pushed by 6.6grs of Unique to around 1100fps. Just a step up from a hot 38 special. And very pleasant to shoot from the heavy GP-100.

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I couldn't agree more.
There's logic....then there's what people do.
Any hotter than 6.6 of unique load, I like my 12.0gr of 2400 for a little north of 1200fps.

ThomasT said:

The funny thing is people buy the 357s and rarely ever shoot 357s from them, just 38s because they are easier to shoot and cheaper to buy.

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But it's nice to know you can... lol

I sold my .38Spl. S&W 64 and bought a .357 65 for the same money, just in case I wanted to.

It's not impossible to find a decent "beater Model 10 for $300" type of deal. You just have to be patient.

If you're patient, they'll come to you. Keep checking GB every 2-3 days. You'll run across some beaters. Sooner or later you'll win one for a bid you're willing to pay.

I think my winning bid on this one was just a hair over $400, earlier this year. I guess the stainless is worth an extra $100 over blued? (I already had the grips.)

It was some kind of LE trade-in, maybe DoC.

My 64-6 was 430.00 on GB recently. It’s darn near mint. Tight as a drum

Not really a beater, but this was $375 last year when I bought it.

In my area, decent model 10's seem to be scarce and too expensive $500 min.
Given that pricing, a new M10-14 seems more reasonable.
Yes, I know MIM, the hole, etc.......
I have one; it has a nice trigger, locks tight, shoots great-
Everything one could want in a utility revolver.

NeroM said:

In my area, decent model 10's seem to be scarce and too expensive $500 min.
Given that pricing, a new M10-14 seems more reasonable.
Yes, I know MIM, the hole, etc.......
I have one; it has a nice trigger, locks tight, shoots great-
Everything one could want in a utility revolver.

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Three years ago I bought a 10-14(pre- classic version) and 10-10, both NY DOC trade ins and have no complaints with either. They were $336/each OTD w/2 speed loaders & pouches. I later found a near mint 64-8 trade in for $300 OTD. I find them to be smooth shooters and the K frames just fit my hands so well. Not too heavy, not too light and well balanced. Glad I bought them before the prices spiked.

This model 10 is cosmetically challenged but the auction ends in 40 minutes. $215 last I looked.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/913169888

My Model 10 was $295 after transfer 3 years and about 30% of the US money supply ago. Wouldn't expect them to be any cheaper now.

Biblethumpncop said:

This model 10 is cosmetically challenged but the auction ends in 40 minutes. $215 last I looked.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/913169888

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That went for cheap but rust and cracked grip.

GeoDudeFlorida said:

$95.68 in 1973 dollars is $591.13 in 2021 dollars - and a brand new Model 10 from Sportsman's Warehouse will run you $750. So maybe prices are being effected by more than just inflation?

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Back in 1973 they probably had a large team of people manufacturing model 10’s every day of the week. Now they probably do a couple small runs every few months. Back then the model 10 was they’re bread and butter. Now it’s a small niche market.

Here are a couple of my beater models 10s both under $300. The 6" barreled gun is a model 10-5 I bought off GB for $280 several years ago. The second in a HB model 10-8 with factory nickle plate that I just got a few months ago for...free. My most favorite price of all. It was my mothers gun she used when she worked for the Tarrant County Sheriffs office in the jail. She was there for 18 years before retiring.

I noticed the HB gun felt heavier than the skinny barreled gun so weighed them along with my model 15. The 6" gun weighed 31oz, the model 15 weighed 33oz and the HB model 10 weighed 36oz. They lighter weight of a 4" skinny barrel model 10 may have explained some of its popularity with cops over the decades. With all the equipment they carried anything that saved a few ounces was probably appreciated. The rubber grips on the models 15 and HB may have accounted for some of the weight gain over the 6" gun with factory wood grips.

Not a pristine gun but worth very well above $300. What was this thing about supply and demand?

Palladan44 said:

They make great "first guns".

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And second, and third, and.........
My model 10 and it's variants in my collection would be the last to ever go.
Well, just before my 686 no dash.

the first M10-8 I bought back in 2013 or so was a 85% gun for $275.
The second, a 90% 10-3, was $240 in 2014
The third, a 99%+ 10-5 I bought for $220 in 2014
The fourth, an older 90% 10-5 was $200 at a pawnshop in 2015 or so..
The fifth, a like new nickel 10-8, I bought this year for $550. That one is a beauty, not a mark on it, with every other cylinder showing scorch marks on the cylinder face, which leads me to believe it hasn't been fired since leaving the factory.

You just don't find those deals from 5-6 years ago any more. I haven't seen an M10 under $350 for quiet a while now, and for $350 the ones I've seen are really beat up.
Times they are a changin'

I bought one of the overseas trade in Model 10s earlier this year or later last year for 250ish dollars at Cabelas.

They are expensive now- a good condition old model 10 is $600-800


This is My first smith a decade ago and was bought for $105.
Still one of the most accurate revolvers I own. 3.0 of bullseye and it’s got all 6 shots touching at 10yards. If not, it’s me.
When it was time to shoot for concealed carry - the Instructor gasped at the sight of a old wheel gun in his class. He also gasp at the no practice needed , and fast shooting controled shot -bullseye target of each shot touching when qualifying.
I almost swapped barrels for a 3” I got- yet never could…. I just bought another and left this 10-6 as is….. Perfect.

I cheated in post #50 and nobody noticed that the cylinder is longer than the .38 Special cylinder, it is a 13-3, adding to the scarcity and value.

A model 10 and a model 13 are two rather different things...
Hope you feel justified about "cheating".


Very nice, by the way.

My 13-3 and 10-6 are Very similar and very different… if that makes sense.

I have a 3" Model 10 Blued RB and a 3" Model 13 Blued RB on my want list. Not sure which is higher priority.

Got the 10-6 from my old Boss for $105 few years later got my 13-3 in Box w/Docs from Same Boss for $350.
All within last few years. The 13 was my carry for a while. Yet I shoot the 10 much better
Some model 10 rb 3” are out there