What S&W revolver was in the movie Magnum Force?

[.45FMJoe]

In the second Dirty Harry movie, Magnum Force, Lt. Briggs pulls a revolver on Callahan in the car after the mailbox bomb is unsuccessful. What type of S&W is it? It is larger than a J frame but still looks to be a 2" barrel, maybe a 2.5 inch? Does anyone know if it is an L or N frame? I know at the end Briggs has a 4" Python but in the car he pulls out what is clearly a S&W. I'm 99% sure anyway, I have not watched the movie in a couple of weeks so I might be mistaken but this is something that sticks in my head.

 

[rcmodel]

They hadn't started making L-frames yet back then, so it must certainly be a 2 1/2" Model 19 Combat Magnum.

But I was thinking he had a Colt?
Haven't seen the movie in years though.

rcmodel

 

[.45FMJoe]

It definitely had the signature tapered half-underlug that screams S&W, which is why I ask.

 

[.45FMJoe]

Oh, I forgot. Callahan's partner had a 2" Colt so that might have been what you are thinking.

 

[rcmodel]

This it?
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=117883429

rcmodel

 

[.45FMJoe]

Looks like it. But for some reason the one in the movie looks huge, so I was thinking it could have possibly been an N frame.

 

[.45FMJoe]

You must be correct rc, I did some google research. You are right, the movie came out in 1973 and the L frame came out in 1980 or 1981. The gun was a very deep, high polish blue, and the only blued .357 N frame I could find would have been a 27 (not the rough blue of a 28) and the shortest barrel a 27 was offered in was 3.5" according to Wikipedia. So it must have been a 19 Combat Magnum!

 

[shevrock]

http://www.imfdb.org/index.php?title=Magnum_Force

 

[.45FMJoe]

^ Yeah it has every gun except the one I'm asking about.

 

[rcmodel]

Nothing there about what gun Lt. Briggs, (Hal Holbrook) used though.

rcmodel

 

[mavracer]

under the Python heading it says Lt. Briggs was carrying a python.

 

[.45FMJoe]

under the Python heading it says Lt. Briggs was carrying a python.

That was at the very end of the movie, but not in the car!

 

[.45FMJoe]

So, I popped in my Blu-ray of "Magnum Force" and watched the scene ... oh, about a dozen times or so. Then I went comparing pictures. The barrel is obviously just a little longer than a 2.5" but not quite as long as a 4". So I guess that means it is a 3" barrel. I was able to pause the movie in a spot that shows the top of the revolver when Briggs and Callahan are fighting over it in the car. There is clearly a very small amount of ribbing on the top of the barrel before the long sight base begins. On a 2.5" gun, from the pictures I have seen online, the sight base literally covers the whole barrel. On a 3" gun there is just a little bit of barrel uncovered by the front sight base.

For example, notice on this 2.5" barrel Model 19 the sight base covers the entire barrel:


Contrast that with this 3" barrel:


Anyway, it is damn near impossible to find another picture of this but that has to be what it is.

ETA - My online research also says the 3" variety were all round-butt which is strange given the picture I posted. But the grips in the movie definitely looked like round butt grips as they were kind of thin up top and Brigg' hand completely covers the grip.

 

[Trader]

We watched the movie 2 weeks ago and I remember thinking 3 inch model 19.

 

[Storm]

Little known is that the gun that Hal Holbrook used in Magnum Force is actually a 2/3 sized replica which accounts for the size discrepancies. In real life Hall Holbrook was only 4' 1" tall. He worked around his diminuitive size and has had a quite successful career despite his stature. The car scene in Magnum Force with Clint required them to create a 2/3 sized car seat so tiny Hal wouldn't look out of place. In scenes with both Clint and Hal in frame they used forced perspective to compensate for Hal's size. The day that they shot that car scene the costume folks mislaid Hal's suit so they had to run out to a local department store and grab a suit from the husky boys suit department and make a few quick alterations.

Okay, all right, none of that is true, and by my recollection Hal Holbrook is actually rather tall from when I saw him onstage doing Mark Twain. He's a darn good actor, and still alive BTW. But, now I'm going to have to go back and watch Magnum Force for the billionth time just to see what that dang gun is :banghead: