Picked her up the other day.



They were made between 1878 and 1908. Virgil Earp had one and Bob Ford killed Jesse James with one Jesse gave him. Wish mine was in better shape. I'm not much on refinishing antiques, but there's not much condition left on this one anyway. A bit of nickel in protected places and that's about it. One badly buggered screw that will need drilled. Needs timed. I could get the mechanics fixed. Boy a nice nickel plate job with some fire-blued screws and maybe case hardened hammer would look muy excellente though. What y'all think?

Very nice and since I am a philistine I would fix it up unless it had some historical significance.

I'm with T Lee, restore that nice old gun to a shooter.

My wife shoots a pair of S&W Model 2s in CAS. The top break design is easy to love.

Cole, I like that.

Cole,

Before hard core collectors take a shot at you, why don't you check and see how much value you're giving up with a restoration.

It would look pretty nice.

I restored a 1st yr mfg Ithaca 37R (1940 IIRC) with solid rib. Metal was pretty good, wood was solid but pretty ratty looking. I slightly reshaped it in the restoration to fit my uses, added a Decelerator pad, recut the checkering and it ended up looking pretty good.

You wouldn't believe the scolding I took from some guys over on the Shotgunworld, Ithaca Forum.

I had bought the gun pretty cheap, less than $300. maybe even $275, just don't remember. I finally got enough of them, one in particular, and wrote that if it was a valuable gun it would have cost more than it did. I think that made them even madder. They want to buy those old pre-war 37's dirt cheap then throw a fit if someone upgrades one.

If this Smith isn't a high dollar piece, fix it up...

Then, show us photos.

DF

I like those.

DF

Yep but then I have always been a fan of spur triggers.

I dunno. I got it from a pretty hardcore guy. I haven't seen any evidence of it being rare and you couldn't hurt it much condition-wise. The problem is the rounded edges. I like sharp edges. Of course if you've got a sharp gun with little finish, then you have to watch your refinish guy so he doesn't round the edges, especially around the screw holes. A fo-real restoration would be costly. I've got maybe $850 in it and I figure I could get it shootable for another $150 at most. The problem is sending it around and fooling with it.

What? Like this?

#3

Cole,

Bob Cogan at Accurate Plating is one of the best I've dealt with. Here is the link and if I was you, I'd talk to Bob and let him know what you're wanting to do.

http://www.apwcogan.com/

DF

Thanks.

Keep us posted on what you find out.

DF

Here's the link I referred to concerning the 1940 Ithaca 37R and the flack I got for refinishing the wood. Metal was left as is.

Just goes to show how some can come unglued when an old gun is refinished. To me, if it's a good job and enhances the usefulness of the gun, then go for it.

www.shotgunworld.com/bbs/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=121976

DF

If you were wondering what I want for Christmas....

(From Cole Younger)

Man, I just think I saw the lights at the bank dim a bit when the check for that one came through...

DF

That one's an original in original shape, but one can always dream. heheh

In 1965 I bought a new S&W Model 58, asked for it to be factory plated with armaloy and it still looks like new after tens of thousands of handloaded cast bullets going down the bore. If I ever got as lucky as you did I would have it armalloyed and use it forever - then pass it down to my kids.

Terry

I think an experienced plating specialist like Bob Cogan will know the best route to go. I would get it refinished as close to original as I could, just because.

A modern finish on an old gun like that, while very functional, leaves something to be desired, IMHO. YMMV.

DF

Nice score but I like the finish just the way it is although I could see wanting to CC the hammer and replace any buggered up screws.

I've been wanting one of the Uberti reproductions, as I think they just look cool. I'd like to work with a .44 Russian, and an original shootable Colt or S&W is more than I want to spend.



Now one of them, and one of the Spencer Reproductions in the same caliber, would make an interesting combo

I had one and stupidly traded it off.

Cole,

I had one and let it go. I found that it wasn't the greatest for CAS, the way the action is set up. It's a unique gun, but I can live with out it.

DF

You mean like the replica? If I was to use one for real in Cowboy Action, I'd want one like my old one. One that's not collector-grade. I'd get it rebuilt completely and use the crap out of it. The new one looks good and would be great for somebody more into the costuming/characterization aspect of your sport, but they don't feel as good as some other guns. I'm sure a SAA would be a lot faster. At the very least, the grips on the replica need to be thinned down.