Good S&W Restorer ?

[Jackal]

Hi. Here's my situation. I have been looking for a birthday present for my father and I have not been able to find anything yet, until now. He has an old S&W Hand Ejector .32 that was his grandfathers (my great grandfathers). It is starting to rust and looking very poor. The mechanical condition is perfect, having only been shot maybe 50 times. I would like to have it restored to a like new finish, but I cant find anyone around here to do it reliably. I dont want a to hobby gunsmith to give it a bead blasted, utility, matte blue. I want a shiny, quality, deep, rich blue. Basically, I want the revolver to look new. So here's my question. Who does good work for a reasonable cost? I really don't want to spend anything over $150.00 for the re-finish. Any recomendations would be great. Thanks

I have included a couple pics.

 

[Sistema1927]

If it was mine (which it is not), I would leave well enough alone. That old S&W has character, and I think that refinishing it would be a mistake. Is there something else he needs? Possibly a nice El Paso Saddlery holster? A vintage revolver deserves vintage leather.

edited to add: Do something to stop further rusting, and carefully remove any rust, but don't go any further, IMHO.

 

[Jet22]

If it was mine (which it is not), I would leave well enough alone.

I was waiting to hear somebody elses opinion first, but that was my thought too. I much prefer guns with character to ones that were refinished. I actually seek out the more worn (finish) ones as they are more in my price range and usually are a great buy if otherwise sound. Refinishing a gun will rarely add any value to it.

 

[earplug]

Leave it alone

Grandpa won't get a face lift and his revolver just needs a little lube.
Collectors hate refinished stuff.

 

[Jackal]

I couldn't care less about money value. It is purely sentimental. Besides, these arent worth a whole lot anyway. The look on my dad's face when I reveal to him a "new" old revolver would be priceless.

 

[Old Fuff]

I would start by calling Smith & Wesson's service department and see what they might have to say. When the gun was made they used special polishing wheels that were shaped to fit the contour of the part. In many cases they still have those wheels. They would also give the gun a complete once-over inspection.

It's a moot point in your case, but next to the original finish most collectors (and others) prefer a factory refinish over others.

You might also consider Ford's Guns (http://www.fordsguns.com/index1.htm) that have an excellent reputation for refinishing work.

 

[SigfanUSAF]

In my experience, S&W won't work on anything older than the early 50's. $150 won't get to far for a high polish blue where pits have to be removed. Check out my link below for a look at my dads sight. Ask S&W who they would suggest

 

[Majic]

A gun that age the factory won't touch. Their policy as if they find something wrong they must fix and they may not have the parts. Also with metal damage $150 won't cover the amount of handwork needed to bring it back to pristine condition. For that kind of money I would leave it as it is and find a nice period holster for it.

 

[Old Fuff]

There are ways to save money on a refinishing job.

1. Disassemble the gun yourself, and only sent the parts that need to be refinished. Many refinishers will give you a break in the price if they don't have to disassemble and then reassemble the gun.

2. Invest some elbow grease by using emory cloth or paper to hand work out the serious dings and pits. This can bring the cost way down, and if you are careful you'll end up with a better polishing job to boot.

The cost of high-polish bluing isn't the bluing itself, it's the work that's done before the gun parts go into the bluing tank.

 

[pharmer]

Leave that gun alone. It has taken almost a hundred years to look that way. It would be like giving a face lift and boobs to your 85 year old granny. Joe

 

[jad0110]

Leave that gun alone. It has taken almost a hundred years to look that way. It would be like giving a face lift and boobs to your 85 year old granny.

Yikes. Well there's one way to look at it, though I'd care not to .

I was thinking about this same issue, thanks Jackal for starting the post.

I am looking for a S&W K-22 and am considering anything from a lightly used example to a beater. I plan on keeping it forever, whatever I get, so refinishing a beater would be something I'd consider as I'm not concerned about resale value. I just love that rich blue finish of vintage Smiths. Would S&W still be able to duplicate the rich finishing that they would have put on 50 years ago? Can anyone comment? Or would it come out looking, GASP, like this???

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/...d=10001&productId=14741&langId=-1&isFirearm=Y


The new blue finish looks more like black finger nail polish.

 

[gezzer]

LEAVE IT ALONE

Your Grandfather put some of those marks on it. If you were my kid and you got it refinished for me I would be VERY upset.

The gun is in very good condition looks 80% or better to me. You will ruin it.

 

[Standing Wolf]

I see nothing wrong with having a tired old gun spiffed up and reblued. Yes, such work usually destroys the collector's value, but a.) most guns aren't collectable, and b.) most gun owners aren't collectors.

 

[IrvJr]

If you have the $$$ and time, how about Doug Turnbull?

http://www.turnbullrestoration.com/

 

[SigfanUSAF]

A couple pics of a S&W .44 HE restored by Dave R. Chicoine.

www.oldwestgunsmith.com

 

[Golddog]

Gene Williams, in Princeton, TX, restored a 1927 S&W M&P revolver for me, and the work was absolutely magnificent. He's probably a bit less expensive than others of similar high quality.

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