Many want a small frame .44 spl. S&W has one

[44and45]

The Smith&Wesson website has a Night Guard model 396 in .44 special, looks like a 5 shot but no stats on what it is made of or cartridge count. My guess its another Scandium matte painted revolver.



The price really put me off, ($980.00) though I liked the looks of the wheel gun.

The Night Guard is also made in .45 acp and .44 magnum...price is slightly higher at $1,044.00, can't S&W make a .44 special that the average Joe can afford.

This marketing ploy just makes the used guns harder to acquire at a decent price...so they think you'll plunk your money down on a new one.

I'm not buying it.


Jim

 

[rcmodel]

L-Frame.
SC frame.
Stainless cylinder.
5-shot.
24.2 oz.

I'd expect real street price in the high $700 - low $800 range after the dust settles.

rcmodel

 

[BlindJustice]

FWIW
THe NG line also has a feature not mentioned - the rear sight is the
Cyllinder & SLide Extreme Duty Fixed rear ( Avail. from Cyl & Slide for
$ 80 and the front sight has to be dovetailed in so that it can be sighted
for windage. which is an additional cost. This is part of the
mark up for the Night Guard line.

The Pachmayr rubber grips aren't that much $$ additional.

There's a poll on the NG line and the 325 NG & 396 NG lead it
over the Magnum offering in this line.

 

[sm]

I really really like .44 spl guns for CCW, and general use.
Just I cannot do SC.

Model 24s, now that is a .44spl!

Charter Arms BullDogs, great concept, just the guns did not hold up.

Blue carbon steel in a 3" bbl is what I want.
I'd even do a Blue steel with aluminum alloy, but none of the other whoopy-goopy alloys.

Somebody needs to bring us one back like yesteryear...

 

[44and45]

I'm for imports making copies of yesteryear revolvers, if Beretta, or some other Italian gun maker was to make some 2nd models or 3rd models clones of S&W wheel guns...we'd have some good guns. Make them in 3 inch to 6 inch barrels...and all in between sizes.

But kind of doubt we get any better price break.

But if you have to pay the big bucks, you should get something for your money in the metallurgy of the gun's steel. Scandium crap isn't going to fill the bill. And we want to see some blued guns too...as well as the SS.


Jim

 

[Ceemack]

I'd even do a Blue steel with aluminum alloy, but none of the other whoopy-goopy alloys.

But...the "scandium" guns ARE steel (actually stainless, IIRC) cylinders and barrels with aluminum alloy frames and barrel shrouds.

They just have small amounts of scandium added to the aluminum to help it hold up under the strain of repeated firing (especially around the pin holes), something with which the older aluminum alloys had trouble.

I'm not crazy about the scandium guns, but given the choice between a "scandium" gun and one made from a traditional aluminum alloy, the traditional alloy doesn't even merit consideration.

 

[sm]

I am all for Beretta or FN making a Model 24 again.
I bet they can use metals, and have quality control and not put a lock on it.

I am fed up, as many other of having my intelligence insulted.
Do not tell me a $40 shirt, marked up to $80, then run on "on sale for 1/2 price" is a sale.
It is a $40 damn shirt. I don't mind paying $40 for a quality shirt. And if the seasons change (whatever reason) and a 10% sale , then I respect the Mom & Pop store for being honest, and that $40 shirt less 10% is is $36.

What are you getting for monies spent? That is the bottom line.

These SC...now what the hell good is a gun that if I don't use this nit-picky window of ammo it has to have, I will get "set-back" ( should that not be forward?) and jam a revolver cylinder.

These are NOT good guns for me.

Same reasons I will not do a Polygonal rifling.
I might want to run 9mm lead bullets made from wheel weights.
With ammo prices, some are finding out their gun will not shoot lead "safely" and they have to buy another barrel.

I do shoot 9mm bullets made from wheel weights out of a plastic pistol in 9mm.
That was one criteria of the T&E I and the others T&E-ing with me, had to find out.

.44 spl is a proven low pressure round. It is great for CCW, and for use in homes, apts, condo's business seting, vehicles (including limo's and taxi cabs) property , and hunting uses.

Blue Steel, wood stocks, with stock options to tweak fit, no lock, gold bead front sight in the blade, fixed rear, 3" for CCW - is what I want.
I am not the only one.

4" fits legal regs for min bbl length, 5" is a real neat bbl length for handgun hunting, and farmer/rancher use.

I want to be able to use wad cutter, rat shot, "flying ashtrays" LRN, and hardcast LSWC, from mild to kick butt and take names.

Where in the hell is the S&W I grew up with?

 

[cyanide]

Where in the hell is the S&W I grew up with?

+1

 

[ArmedBear]

Uh, it'd be right about where the Colt you grew up with is, if it still made nothing but blue steel revolvers...

S&W does make a lot of that, but they're also trying to make practical revolvers that aren't anachronisms. I like both, myself.

Just shot a few rounds through the family 642 last night. What a great little tool it is.

Now, you might hate the lock, but this little 36 in color case and +P rated is kinda neat, and current production...

Here's a new-production 21 in .44 Special...

There's another version of the 21, and a couple of the 24, in various finishes.

 

[Gator]

I am all for Beretta or FN making a Model 24 again.

YES! What a winner that would be!

 

[sm]

ArmedBear,

Yes I know Colt is gone too, and it was a lot of fun razzing the Colt revolver crowd about their guns were backwards *grin*
Oh I still do razz, just like I do trap shooters about not standing "out there" [sta 8] and having clays come at them.

Folks,

I have a Old Colt DS, a mentor wanted me to have one as he was dying, and as I razzed him such for getting one way back when.

The gun mfgs are not doing quality guns today.
They are vying for a piece of the pie of the current latest greatest - cloning guns, and cutting corners.

I would rather pay for a OLDer gun made with better metallurgy , attention to detail, craftsmanship and quality control.

S&W is not the only mfg.

Kimber - way back, before they moved and called guns "Series I" had a damn good 1911.
Series I in a simple blue, or stainless, was fine in the early days.
Line extension is killing Kimber.

I do not like the current Rem shotguns, they are not the same gun they used to be.
They had THE best O/U on the market at one time, the 3200.

I'd rather have a SKB with rust on the receiver adn dings in the wood that a brand spanking hi-dollar Remington today.

We have generation gap(s).
-New folks that have no frigging idea what a real gun is about.
-We have those shaped by TV, Movies, Video Games.
-Wannabes that change minds, guns and latest greatest faster than they do underwear.
-Groupies that have to have what a guru instructor, "says".
-Groupies that have to have what whomever or whatever "sez".
-Instructor Groupies...hell this is worse than Elvis Freaks and American Idiot fans.

-Seasoned shooters , some are older, some are younger and raised right.
Some of these recall shooting quals at 50 yards, not feet, yards.

Last time I looked inside a S&W revolver bore:
Where did the lands and grooves go?

So folks wonder why there are some new latest and greatest for sale, both revolvers and semi's and the use guns are hard to come by.

Well I know 5 ladies off the top of my head that got rid of Glocks, 4 were model 26, and they bought a real gun for carry.
OLDer S&W K frames.

These have lands and grooves, sweet butter smooth triggers, no locks, nice gun fit, and one is able to tweak with nice wood stocks, and metallurgy like a gun is supposed to have.

These gals also got rid of goopy over priced, plastic knives with stainless steel blades too.
They have real knives of CV or 1095 Carbon steel .


Take me back to the Five & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean...

 

[Virginian]

Come on SM, out with it. I know you secretly like black plastic and concrete smooth (the new "matte") steel.
I'm afraid you and me are dinosaurs. We are not in that Madison Avenue coveted 18 to 40 something age group. We know what we like and want, and advertising is wasted on us. As a result, they don't care what we want.

 

[Drail]

Sm, I agree with you 100%. And I remember those first production year models from Kimber. A customer brought one in and laid it on my bench and said "Whaddya think of this?" This was a time when I kept finding Colts with sear and hammer pin holes mislocated and not parallel and plunger tubes and front sights staked so lightly they would shoot off in 100 rounds. Along comes Kimber with frames and slides that were in spec and proper. They were fitted almost like the old NM Colts from the thirties. Now I'm seeing new Kimbers with their mass produced problems. I guess it's all about quantity and not quality. I'm glad I bought all the older S&W revolvers I could afford years ago. Haven't seen anything out there I want.

 

[ArmedBear]

I'd rather have a SKB with rust on the receiver adn dings in the wood that a brand spanking hi-dollar Remington today.

Me, too.

But I did manage to get the rust off the SKB. I want it to last another 30 years.

However, while I haven't analyzed the metal in my recent Smith, I don't think there's any comparison between it and a modern Remington. The Smith is still finely finished inside and out, and everything fits together perfectly. Even an old Remington receiver gun is a cheap POS by comparison, when you actually take it apart and look inside.

Why they quit making the 3200 is beyond me; the market for it is the discerning shooter who will pay for quality, but not for the guns Remington tried to replace it with.

My recent Marlins, also, are just like the old one I have and others I've shot.

Objectively, though, new Smiths that I've seen are not defective in any discernible way. Expensive, yes, and MIM may catch up to them at some point, but I'm not sure it's fair or objective to compare them to Remingtons!

Then, of course, there's Browning, that makes guns very well, but not all of them are worth making...

 

[boomer1911a1]

????

Blue carbon steel in a 3" bbl is what I want.
I'd even do a Blue steel with aluminum alloy, but none of the other whoopy-goopy alloys.

Somebody needs to bring us one back like yesteryear...

I'm for imports making copies of yesteryear revolvers, if Beretta, or some other Italian gun maker was to make some 2nd models or 3rd models clones of S&W wheel guns...we'd have some good guns. Make them in 3 inch to 6 inch barrels...and all in between sizes.

Blue Steel, wood stocks, with stock options to tweak fit, no lock, gold bead front sight in the blade, fixed rear, 3" for CCW - is what I want.
I am not the only one.

4" fits legal regs for min bbl length, 5" is a real neat bbl length for handgun hunting, and farmer/rancher use.

I want to be able to use wad cutter, rat shot, "flying ashtrays" LRN, and hardcast LSWC, from mild to kick butt and take names.

Where in the hell is the S&W I grew up with?

One of us missed something. Maybe it was me, but...

In its 2007 catalog, S&W had five pages of its "Classic" line: M29s, M21s, M22s, Lemon-squeezers... All available in good old blued (or nickle-plated or case hardened) steel with Goncalo Alves (or maybe American Walnut) grips. Remember the Thunder Ranch M21 .44 Spl that everyone whined about because of the big, garish, gold logo on the side? Well, S&W cleaned it up for you and -- just for good measure -- added in the M22 .45 ACP version of the same gun. True, they both have the dreaded internal lock, but if that worries you a little, just ignore it. If it worries you a lot, have it removed... or do it yourself. They're not hard to work on.

I've been lusting after a 21 for a couple of years, now, saving my pennies and scouring Gunbroker. This summer, I'll have one. But I heard a rumor that S&W discontinued their "Classic" line this year. If true, that's a shame... but not Smith's fault. They offered the guns people like us have been asking for. If we didn't buy them, we have no one to blame but ourselves.

And one more thing...
Why in the H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS would anyone want to buy a Beretta clone of a S&W? I like Berettas, and own a couple myself, but if a newly-minted .44 SPL Hand-Ejector, Third Model appears on the shelves of my gun store anytime soon, it had better have "Marcas Registradas" and a Yankee address on it...

 

[ArmedBear]

AFAIK, they EXPANDED the Classic line this year.

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/...1&parent_category_rn=15701&top_category=15701

Added CCH frames, too.

 

[ArmedBear]

Why in the H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS would anyone want to buy a Beretta clone of a S&W?

S&W stopped making some revolvers that people want, I guess.

 

[boomer1911a1]

I saw the Beretta copies of the Schofield, and found them interesting (although not as faithful as the Uberti.) I'm just saying that if we start seeing repro Triple-Locks, I hope they're domestic products. And if you want a big-bore, pencil-barreled Indian Jones (1st movie) revolver, order up a Model 21...

PS, 'Bear, Thanks for the heads-up on the line-up. I haven't been to the website ina couple of months.

 

[Cosmoline]

The price on the new S&W is absolutely absurd. Plus I don't think much of the S&W products from the past few decades. But I would LOVE to see a new Ruger snub with a 3" barrel chambered for the .44 Special.

They offered the guns people like us have been asking for. If we didn't buy them, we have no one to blame but ourselves.

No, they offered overpriced and anachronistic faux vintage revolvers. They even had wheelguns from the first half of the 20th century with faux case hardened finishes, when all I wanted was QUALITY blue like they used to have. I don't want faux historical revolvers or other weirdness. What I'd like to see is something simple, like a return to K frame magnums or a .44 Special snub. No bells or whistles needed. No performance shop needed. S&W seems unable to do anything with adding a bunch of nonsense such as porting or case hardened finish, not to mention idiotic plastic sights and foolishly light weight construction. The company reminds me of a kid who won't pull his britches up.

The bottom line is, if I want a collectable historic revolver I'll just buy one of the actual items. I would not buy a "heritage" series anymore than I'd buy one of the late lamented USRAC "legacy" leverguns. I don't go to a modern arms maker for failed attempts to create an artificial collector's item. All I want is a sturdy, simple revolver with no nonsense frills and no extra holes poked in it and no trigger locks chambered in .44 Special with a 3" barrel. Taurus has actually come close from time to time, but I wish Ruger would step in and do it. They have the frames and bulletproof innards that can take the pounding. They also seem to be the last gun makers who are still making wheelguns as something other than "fun gunz"

 

[GaryP]

Cosmoline said in reference to Ruger revolvers:

They also seem to be the last gun makers who are still making wheelguns as something other than "fun gunz"

Exactly; No BS here just fact!

 

[sm]

I am over age 50.
I have been a Curmudgeon for a long darn time.
I completed my studies to become a Reprobate - and Old Fuff has yet to send me my diploma.

*taps foot*


Gee fellas,
Can't you let a over the age of 50 Reprobate be a Reprobate around here?

*git-outta-my-yard!*

 

[Magnum Wheel Man]

Back to the Night Hawk... anyone know the differences between it (other than the "funky" sights & the black color ), & an older Airlite L frame like mine ???

 

[Walkalong]

but none of the other whoopy-goopy alloys

Gosh sm, I like my 696.

Somebody needs to bring us one back like yesteryear...

Unlike some, I got it, and I would not mind it either, but it ain't gonna happen.

Gee fellas,
Can't you let a over the age of 50 Reprobate be a Reprobate around here?

It's OK by me.

Welcome back.

I'm over 50 and would like to know where Old Fluffs school is. I'd like to be a certified curmugen myself one day. (part way there)