Hello All,

For the last three years I've been looking for a Model 29 in decent shape. During that time I've found a few 29's and 629's that were either fairly rashed up and abused or simply priced for more than I thought they were worth. Being primarily a shooter rather than collector (no criticism meant there, if I had the disposable income I would be) I was looking for a user in good shape, rather than a valuable safe queen.

Last Monday night I walked into a local indoor range for my usual Monday night bullseye league and saw this -2 in the display case:
(shown with my 6" 27-2)


It's got a little holster wear but is otherwise in great shape, most of what seems to be white points in the photo is due to me neglecting to turn off the overhead lighting before taking the photo, apologies. It's mechanically near-perfect. The center pin was binding up and I assumed it was due to fouling. However, it turned out to be a slightly bent extractor rod, so after an eight dollar replacement it's good to go. I've always prefered the Smiths made in the seventies as they seem to still have a bit of that old time quality yet aren't as pricey as the earlier guns, so I was happy to find this one with a 1975 manufacture date.

I replaced the horrendous rubber hogues that came with it with these cocobolo Ahrends as I can't stand rubber stocks. The double-action trigger is as smooth as butter and the single-action breaks like glass. I wouldn't be surprised if it had recieved an action job at some point. I haven't shot it any farther than twentyfive yards but so far the accuracy has been very impressive with a 240 grn SWC over ten grains of Unique, as well as 240 grain JSP Winchester White Box fodder. I've shot a few .44 mags over the years, but those have been owned by friends so I've never really spent any significant time shooting one. Needless to say, this one has me hooked. Between my own handloads and the box of factory WWB I fired a total of one hundred rounds during that first range session. Needless to say, by the time I was done I was really done!

Irregardless of condition these things don't seem to go for less than six hundred dollars in my area (usually closer to seven) so I was happy to find this one for $450.00. In fact, three of my shooting buddies where standing behind me drooling over my shoulder as I checked it out so I doubt it would have been around the next afternoon if I'd hesitated. It also helped to have my wife standing beside me saying, "You should buy that!" When I came back a couple of days later to shoot it the shop owner told me there'd been a couple of other people who'd come in looking for it, so if I'd snoozed I would have lost this one.

I just thought I'd share my excitement, thanks for looking.

Well done Trooper
Just so you know, you are now on the road to ruin. You have 'Smith and Wessonitis'. There is no cure

Very nice!
That's a great price too.. Congrats!

It's always great when, after years of searching, you find what you want. I did that with my M-17-4, and at that point was willing to pay the high price for a NIB M-17.....$400. Luckily, I got the full price I paid, a few months earlier at R&R Gunshop, for a beautiful Browning Challenger. I ended up paying $75 folr a NIB M-17-4. It was a bargain for me, for a classy revolver......no matter what Drew says. Bob

$450 would have had me reaching for the wallet at top speed.

You done great!

Jose, That was 8 years ago, my friend!!! Still......I think...... 'I done good'!!!! Bob

Great story and a good buy. That 29-2 is one of those revolvers that you just "have to have". Like the 17-4 story, you just know your gonna' buy it!

GGF

Trooper,

How long did it take you to get the gun dealer that drunk?
That's a unheard of find around here, you done good.

Very nice!!

Thanks guys, it was a pretty exciting find for me. I'd found quite a few 629's locally that had been made in the eighties and nineties, as well as a few 29's of the same vintage. However, none of the 629's featured the P&R features I prefer, and the 29's all looked too beat up for me. (I'm not a collector but I like my guns to look nice) The fact that all of these were close to, or over the seven hundred dollar mark made me pass them by. I might have paid that for a nice example but none of those were what I really wanted.

This particular shop owners prices are fair on new firearms, he's not giving anything away for free but he's not ripping you off either, and his prices are actually pretty reasonable on used guns. A snub-nosed nickel plated Model 10 originally caught my eye and I was handling that when I happened to glance at the next shelf down and saw this one. Needless to say, the Model 10 was immediately passed back to the clerk and my attention was focused on the big'un. I was surprised by the price, so after giving it the once-over I didn't waste any time pulling out the check book! The Model 10 is still calling to me though.

Now the search begins for a four-inch 29. I've always been a lover of the N-frames and used to own several. Unfortunately, back in the mid-nineties I suffered a smashed right wrist and while I recovered, shooting those big guns was out of the question for a number of years. Consequently, they sat in the safe unused and were eventually sold off one by one to finance other things. Back then I picked them up for a song compared to what we're paying now and it makes me grit my teeth to think about it. On the bright side it is fun to search them out and it makes me appreciate them more when I find them.