The Joy of a Beater

[Storm]

Over my shooting career spanning the better part of four decades I have had the pleasure of mentoring a number of new shooters. One aspect that I have always encouraged is appreciating the joys of a beater. When I say “beater” I am referring to a gun that is in good, reliable working order but may have some significant aesthetic issues or a very minor problem like a worn spring. To be sure I have many guns that are in varying degrees of finish all the way up to safe queens that are pristine, but there is just something fun about a gun where the damage was done by someone else. I have two guns that qualify, an old PT92 AF and a FEG Hi Power, both internally pristine but absolutely abused externally. I will limit my comments to the FEG but the story is almost identical as to the PT92 AF.

I found the FEG P9M (CAI import) in a local shop. I have an Eighties vintage Browning that is pristine and I had been looking for a shooter where I don’t need to be fussy. As I looked in the FEG in the case I marveled how a gun could have that screwed up of a finish. It wasn’t merely a case of holster wear or minor pitting, but looked like it had been dragged over a quarter mile of riprap and stored in a swamp. Luckily the damage was limited to the slide and the frame was actually quite nice. Being the exact style of Hi Power that I wanted I was tempted but walked away from it on two visits to the shop. Three was a charm and I picked the gun up for around $200. It might have been a high price due to the finish condition, but the internals looked new other than obviously needing a new recoil spring. FEG recoil springs tend to be weak to begin with.

So, I brought the gun home and went over it and overall was quite pleased. Over the next month while enjoying my evening cigar I weighted the issue as to whether to have it refinished. Part of me wanted to leave it be realizing that it would never be perfect, but the other part of me wretched a little every time I looked at the slide. In the end I decided to refine it just a little by getting it GunKoted. I took it to my smith who did some metal work on it. He has also a great hand with the sandblaster and so much of the wear disappeared while keeping contours crisp. He used a matte black GunKote which helps hide a world of hurt. Overall the gun looks pretty doggone good. I added a new set of FN grips proper to the lanyard (I took the ring off).
So, now I have my beater Hi Power, and outstanding shooter on par with my Pristine Browning, one that I can enjoy without being fussy. If I set it down a little hard I’m not rushing to check for damage. It can knock around in my range bag without concern. It’s not as much of a beater as it was, and it could have stayed as it was, but a gun like this tends to get used the most and enjoyed the most.

 

[Old Fuff]

Right on!!!

I have said for a long time that a perfect finish (in and of itself) does not make a better shooter. If one is careful in making a selection to be sure they're no hidden mechanical problems they can enjoy a sometimes considerable savings in price.

The perfect candidate is one that has been used/shot little, but carried much. Since cosmetic condition often determines the asking price one can find great opportunities, without the nagging feeling that somehow the piece is being hurt because it's seeing more use.

But then, do we want to clue in "ordinary people" about this.

 

[PJSprog]

Agreed. I've been eyeballing a couple of older S&W 64s that are beaters as well; one as a plinker, and another as an everyday carry. While the beauty queens are nice to show off to friends, you're right in that it's these "ugly" guns we usually shoot most.

 

[il.bill]

Congratulations on a job well done.

That is a great looking piece. I have a Luger M80 / FEG Hi-Power that is in similar condition (though certainly not as handsome as yours) that is one of my absolute favorite shooters. I do not think I would sell it even if I could double my money. I will be thinking of your FEG and mine while smoking my next evening cigar.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

I could never consider a gun that looks that good that I would enjoy as good as you are enjoying this one, a beater. To me a beater is a gun that if it fell off a stump into a puddle of water I wouldn't be a hurry to go pick it back up or worry about water damage.

I bought an old 8mm mouser that I would use as a foul weather gun until I discovered how accurate it was. I then refinished it and it's one of my priced processions even though it is still ugly and gainly looking. I can still shoot ground hogs off of a bench at 150yds with the original open sights with it.
I don't think you consider your pistol a beater anymore either, I think your too proud of it, as I would be.

Now, you have to go look for another one that is a beater and leave it that way so you can honestly say you have one. For $200.00 and the cost of a spring and refinishing, and the insides are like new, it really doesn't get any better than that.

It looks like a work of art now. I know pictures are deceiving but from your picture, you did that one justice. I'd have to change it's status to reconditioned.

 

[Storm]

Hey Tightgroup. Because of the metal work done and varying degrees of blasting done to different areas the finish is more blotchy than the photo shows, more so on the other side. GunKote isn't the prettiest finish in the world but is certainly durable. In my eyes, although the looks of this gun have improved big time, it's still that "dragged through the riprap" gun that I saw in the case. Because I have had new life breathed into the finish I'm not afraid to be rough with it and I can bear to look at it. Truth is, the decision to have it refinished came down to a coin-flip.

My Taurus PT92 AF was a bit of a different story. Back in the Eighties my original one pulled my fat out of the fire. I later sold it and came to regret it over the years as one should never sell a gun that saves your behind. So, a handful of years back as penance for my sins I searched for the identical pistol (safety only, no decock) in cosmetically horrible condition and internally pristine. I finally found it and it looked like it had been stored in a wet holster for decades. Internally it looked unfired. The frame was just fine. Off to Mac's it went for the slide and barrel. Like my smith with the FEG, for what he had to work with, it's great. Not pretty, but great. Again, a gun that now gets used a lot. BTW, Uncle Mike's rubber checkered grips are the way to go on that one.

When I go gun shop hopping with my gun buddies they are mostly looking at the new guns while I am looking for the pig in the poke. Problem is, they are learning.

 

[AethelstanAegen]

Some of my "beaters" have become my favorite guns and they generally see the most use. There's something I really enjoy about the character behind a beater firearm.

 

[tightgroup tiger]

There's something I really enjoy about the character behind a beater firearm

especially for all the more you pay for them.

 

[W.E.G.]

I got mine!



I think it was carried by the French before being surrendered for surplus.

 

[GyMac]

I think it looks great! I would love to have an FEG like that.

 

[witchhunter]

I agree, I bought a S & W Mdl 18 4" back in '77 or so that was stored under a pickup seat it's whole life. Looked like death, but internally tight, like it was hardly fired. I shot it for years and it is still one of the most accurate .22's I have ever shot. I gave it to my son for his 15th birthday. To get it back would cost me dearly......

 

[rgwalt]

I have a "rat gun". Kind of like a rat bike, it is composed of pieces and parts from different firearms. It is an old Colt 1911 GI slide, an aluminum frame, and various aftermarket 1911 parts. My 1911 gunsmith did all of the work for me, and it is a sweet, light weight pistol. I haven't carried it much yet, but I see years of use out camping, hiking, and hunting.

 

[lowercase]

That FEG looks great!

Here's my favorite beater. It is a 1948 pre Model-10, and was sitting in the used case at the LGS looking awful. It was filthy and had some surface rust and was wearing some ugly rubber grips.

I picked it up for $145, and it cleaned up fairly well. No big gouges, and the surface rust came right off. Since the wear was just honest wear, I decided to pair it with some diamond magnas with similar levels of wear. I added the Pachmayr grip adaptor, and got it an old Bucheimer "Federal Man" holster.

Accurate as all get-out, locks up superbly, and has a great trigger. Gotta love those beater guns.

Here's a second beater of mine. A Bulgarian Makarov with a very worn finish that was probably a police gun. Someone who carried it felt compelled to (very crudely) file down the safety lever. I guess it poked him in the side.

The gun is mechanically excellent and a great little shooter. I outfitted it with some Pearce rubber grips, and carry it from time to time in a falco holster. The pic makes the finish look FAR better than it is. The finish is only about 40%, and I am considering either sending to Mac's for Gun Kote, or to Metalife for hard chrome.

 

[AethelstanAegen]

These are two of my favorite beaters. Their finish is pretty rough but not too bad when you consider they're both 115 years old! They still work perfectly and I get a ton of enjoyment from them.

 

[Nomad]

I have bought a number of police trade-ins that would be considered beaters and they have turned out to be worth much more than what I paid.

 

[PlayTheAces]

This one had a tough life before I found it. I've thought one or twice about refinishing it, but then I come to my senses. Shoots good, what more could ya want?

 

[Double_J]

I have my "baby" that I bought for a song. It is a FM (Argentinian) High Power that has seen better days as far as a finish goes. I have not had it refinished yet as I can not decide what route to go, when I bought it I was looking for a "beater boat gun" that I could take fishing and not worry about getting it destroyed by the salt water. Well I have cut back on my fishing, and the high power is still finish worn but mechanically solid. I need to get the extractor tuned a little bit as it sometimes does not grab the case rim solidly but that is the only real hang up it has. I think when I get some money I might treat it to a good duracoat finish, or if I can find someone who can do a good hot blue or parkerizing inexpensively I might go that route. I still love to shoot it a lot and not have to worry about messing it up.

 

[il.bill]

I purchased two S&W Model 10-8 revolvers, both less than $250 each including S/H and local transfer, planning to clean them up and keep the better of the two as an 'extra' or 'beater' .38 spl. handgun, selling off the other one.

I then made the "mistake" of shooting them. They are two of the most accurate and sweet shooting handguns I own. Now I can not bring myself to part with either one. Maybe someday my son, brother, or nephew / niece will be looking for a basic home defense handgun and then one of the revolvers may find a new home. Or perhaps instead of buying another used firearm I will wise up and spend that money on getting one or both of them refinished.

 

[76shuvlinoff]

My "beater", a worn and pitted but fairly tight Taurus 82 .38. I tore it down cleaned it out, lightened the springs and hit it with some Perma Blue. The thing goes bang every dang time. I used it to introduce my wife and daughter to revolvers since they seemed to hate my semi autos. They loved it so I added a 4" Ruger .357 to the group just for them.

 

[PabloJ]

My "beater", a worn and pitted but fairly tight Taurus 82 .38. I tore it down cleaned it out, lightened the springs and hit it with some Perma Blue. The thing goes bang every dang time. I used it to introduce my wife and daughter to revolvers since they seemed to hate my semi autos. They loved it so I added a 4" Ruger .357 to the group just for them.

I seen those South American police surplus Taurus revolvers for just north of $150. In todays world that is impossible to beat.

 

[bannockburn]

My old "beater" is one of those wartime S&W revolvers that was like a Victory Model but without the pedigree. Instead of going off to war it probably spent its active career in some security guards holster at some factory or bank stateside. There are some letters that were electropenciled into the frame and overall the finish is a little thin and rough in a few spots. But mechanically its fine locking up nice and tight and with a very decent trigger to go along with it.

 

[highpower]

This has become my favorite carry gun. No rust, but the original bluing is so worn from holster carry that it doesn't matter how much I carry it now.

 

[boom boom]

My beater this year came about because I wanted a .38 for plinking and using lead bullets (My Ruger revolver leads horrendously and I have to use the Lewis Lead Remover for even a few rounds to get the barrel clean). Yeah, I could get the Ruger worked on but it is very accurate with plated and fmj bullets.

Pawnshop had a Smith that had holster wear and a few scratches. Dirty barrel and worn grips. It was labeled a Model 10 on the sign but had adjustable sights--and it was priced sweetly low. Bought it and cleaned it--turned out to be one of the last pre-model 15's made in 1957 with a rare 5 inch factory barrel. As I am not a collector, found out all of this post purchase from the S and W forums and Jim Supica's Catalog of SW. Will get a factory letter sometime this year just for fun.

Dreamy accuracy, extremely tight lockup, clean inside, even had the correct grips with no modifications. Found my aging eyes appreciated the 5 inch barrel and the excellent sights on this revolver. Now my problem is that my beater gun is a collectible and it leads to impious thoughts such as having S and W refinish this fine old firearm. As I said, I am a shooter and not a collector but a a result, I am looking for a new beater Smith .38 Special. Sigh.

 

[jaysouth]

I would not denigrate a faithful companion firearm with may years of honest wear by calling it a 'beater'.

J.W. Danforth, who was the owner of Ralston Purina used to hunt quail on our farm every year. He shot a very expensive double gun that had most of the finish gone, but not a speck of rust. I don't think that anyone would have called his engraved grade A Parker side by side a ''beater".

Who among us is as pristine as we were 40 years ago. What counts is how well we have maintained ourselves..

 

[C0untZer0]

What you described is what I like about a Glock.

It's like a shovel. I don't worry about a shovel looking like new after I use it and I don't worry about a Glock either.