Been wanting a .38 for a while

[modified5]

This was just a rough way to get one. My Moms mental health has been deteriorating for a while and I made the decision to pull her firearm out of her house. Not sure how much longer she will be able to live on her own. Life plods on.
It's a nice little S&W 15-3 that was owned by one of the old police chiefs in her town. She bought it years ago and was a descent little shot with it.
She kept it in great shape and I will always cherish the times I got to go shooting with her.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Looks very nice. Congratulations on your new revolver. Sorry to hear about your mom.

[condorjohn]

IMHO the Mod 15 is everything a .38 special revolver should be...

[Drm50]

I don't think you could get a better 38sp. for all purpose gun. I shoot k38s while my 19s gather dust. Very reasonable to shoot with cast boolits. The 22 ammo panic forced me into replacing it with 38sp target loads for plinking around.

[Outpost75]

I'm sorry to hear about your Mom. I had to do the same thing with mine. You did the right thing. It's also a good thing to go through the house and see if there are other hazardous or valuable things which should probably be removed for safe keeping.

If she is able to help you, ask her to do so, so that she doesn't think that you are "sneaking around taking stuff." Coordinate this activity with another family member and do it together to avoid any misunderstanding later. You'll be glad that you did.

We found some wonderful things, like Dad's letters to her from the Pacific during WW2.

I arranged them in date order so that I could read them to her, playing some old V-disks with wartime music on them as soft background.

By then she no longer recognized me as her son, but remembered me as Dad with a smile on her face and her eyes bright again.

I cried through the entire thing, but I know it meant alot to her and now that she is gone, I know they are both together again.

[Char-Gar]

It is a very sad time for you. You indeed did the right thing and my prayers are with you and your Mom. The revolver is a jewel, enhanced by the memories that go with it.

[metricmonkeywrench]

We are getting ready to go thru a similar situation with my Mom's Mom. She living in a home by herself in a retirement neighborhood, but her memory and heath are fading and the daughters are looking at moving her into assisted living facility. Hard but necessary decision. She has fallen several times and is uncomfortably close to being a living version of the TV commercial.

The 38 is a workhorse and is my favorite range plinking gun, but very capable of home defense and other such duties. Easy to lad and cast for with plenty of bullets and powders to toy with. The history and memories just makes it that much better.

[osteodoc08]

IMHO the Mod 15 is everything a .38 special revolver should be...

Pretty much my opinion as well.

Sorry to hear about mom. I know these decisions are difficult.

[Winger Ed.]

Sorry to hear about your Mom.

But the wait for a .38 paid off, ya got a good one.

[modified5]

I cast the Lee 158 rnfp for my .357's which I pretty much shoot .38's through. The SP101 shoots them pretty well. It will be fun to see how this one shoots it.
It is tough when parents get older. I watched my Mom go through this with her Mom and now she is struggling. The kicker is, she isn't even that old. She is only 72, but she is going blind and has been declining for a couple of years. I myself am in poor health with stage 4 prostate cancer so life is hard right now.
I am trying to at least gain enough strength and stamina to be able to go on a bull elk hunt next month that took me 13 years to draw. Lord willing, I will be able to go.

[Petrol & Powder]

1. You did the right thing. It's unfortunate that some people lose their mental abilities before the rest of the body gives out but it happens. It's better to prevent a tragedy than to deal with a tragedy.

2. There is no better "over-all" handgun than a DA revolver chambered in 38 Special and of those; the S&W K-frames are some of the best.

I have more than my fair share of S&W 38 Special DA revolvers and I'm not sorry.

[bluelund79]

The same sentiments I have, have already been expressed. My prayers are with you and your family for your Mom. That is one beautiful revolver, with a lot of personal attachment to it. Enjoy it, and honor her with it. My 15-1 is a favorite, however with zero sentimental value.

[white cloud]

Sorry to hear about your mom. IMHO, the S&W M-15 is among Smith&Wesson's best efforts. Only hits count and a M-15 makes hitting easy.

[trapper9260]

I was lucky my mom mind was ok but her body that went on her. I know she is not suffer anymore and sorry to hear how you mom is now. Do your best for her , you also did the right thing of take the gun out of the house. You will be happy you did in the end and also do like Outpost stated for her.

[Green Frog]

I went through the decline and passing of my Mom over the last year until 6/24 this year. I was pleased that her mind stayed sharp pretty much to the end, but her body (at 95) just let her down in the end. Enjoy every minute you can with her regardless of the state of her health, it is what it is and you can't go back later and get any of it back.

As for the Model 15, I consider that, along with its stainless version, the Model 67, to be the all-around answer to what ever shooter could have as a basic 38 Special - good for just about anything the average owner would want in a 38. Since yours has a history both with local law enforcement and the connection to your Mom, it is extra special. I would suggest you write down its entire history and keep it with the gun so that as you prepare to pass it along through the family, its full significance will be preserved with it. Of course letting it get out of the family is out of the question, right?

Regards,
Froggie

[9.3X62AL]

I'm sorry to hear about your Mom. I had to do the same thing with mine. You did the right thing. It's also a good thing to go through the house and see if there are other hazardous or valuable things which should probably be removed for safe keeping.

If she is able to help you, ask her to do so, so that she doesn't think that you are "sneaking around taking stuff." Coordinate this activity with another family member and do it together to avoid any misunderstanding later. You'll be glad that you did.

We found some wonderful things, like Dad's letters to her from the Pacific during WW2.

I arranged them in date order so that I could read them to her, playing some old V-disks with wartime music on them as soft background.

By then she no longer recognized me as her son, but remembered me as Dad with a smile on her face and her eyes bright again.

I cried through the entire thing, but I know it meant alot to her and now that she is gone, I know they are both together again.

I cried reading this. Beautiful sentiments, expressed with love. Thank you, sir.

[9.3X62AL]

The Combat Masterpiece models in 38 Special are about as good as it gets as far as medium-frame 38 Specials are concerned. Specific to the focus of the this group--Cast Boolits--few calibers do better work with castings than does the 38 Special. Superbly accurate, usually dimensionally-correct, most people can shoot them capably with a modicum of training. Small wonder that it was the pre-eminent police service cartridge for close to 80 years in this country. It is no State Secret that most agencies' current love affair with the 9mm 147 grain JHP sub-sonic load has a lot to do with its close ballistic resemblance to the 38 Special, and the tractable recoil and user-friendliness it exhibits.

A 4"-barreled, adjustable-sighted, medium-frame 38 Special revolver does a lot of things very, very well.

God bless you and your Mom. I know that you went this route out of love and compassion. I hope that when my time comes--and it will--that my kids and nephews are as sensitive and kind as you have been.

[Wis Tom]

We went through this same thing, as many have, with my father. The last gun to go, was the Inland M1 30 carbine. A very sad day indeed. He is gone now, and I miss him. I pray for you and your family, as this getting old thing is very difficult for all, involved.

[Treetop]

modified5, your ongoing experience with your Mom almost exactly mirrors mine, back in 2000. My Mom lingered on for about 4 years after losing her mental faculties. Her revolver was a near mint S&W model 10-2 "pencil barrel" that my Dad had bought for her, years before.

Nowadays, it's one of the grandkid's favorite guns to shoot when they come to the ranch. I load the old standard 2.8 gr. of Bullseye behind a 150 gr. NOE full wadcutter. They go through a hundred rounds or so each trip!

modified5, both you and your Mom will be in my thoughts and prayers. Remember that you have many friends here to share your burdens with! Semper Fi, Treetop

[Life Member]

I carry a s&w 10-5 snubby.