Revolver smith

[aarolar]

Where or who is a good revolver smith that could go through my model 19-5 and check it over and tighten it up and possibly refinish? I also would like to have the throats reamed and such for cast boolits this is by far my favorite handgun to date.

[Bzcraig]

Start with member DougGuy

[baogongmeo]

I've heard that one can send them back home to Smith & Wesson and get a factory refinish and tune up to factory specs though I've not heard of them doing throats.

[aarolar]

I've heard that one can send them back home to Smith & Wesson and get a factory refinish and tune up to factory specs though I've not heard of them doing throats.
Ive heard the same although the turnaround time worries me somewhat. I would love to find someone local if it got lost in the mail it could be hard to replace even with insurance.

I have a J frame 442 that needs looking at as well its horrible with cast boolits I kinda think the timing may be off it literally sprays lead across the cylinder face and top strap. Plus the throats are small because one cylinder full will lead the 1-7/8 bore solid.

[Petrol & Powder]

There are plenty of good S&W trained armorers that can repair the mechanics of a S&W revolver. There are some big name guys that have solid reputations but frankly, there are plenty of S&W armorers around that can generally turn the gun around quicker than the big shops. I normally do most of my revolver work myself but I did send a model 64 to Fletcher Custom Pistols (http://www.fletchercustompistols.com/) and he did good work. He offers re-finishing but other than Gun-Kote, he farms out the refinish work anyway. I can't comment on his re-finishing work but his mechanical work was good.
As for reaming the throats, I can't speak from experience but Doug Guy certainly seems to have a good reputation on this forum.

The finishing is a bit different. Finish on a gun is a lot like body work on a car; a lot of people can do it but not many can do it well. The final result is very dependent on the preparation work. It can also range from reasonable to extremely expensive. I would look for people that can provide both price quotes and references.

Now, if you're not interested in maintaining a factory blued finish, there are less expensive options such as some of the spray-on, bake-on finishes. If I had a worn blued revolver that was a work horse but shot well, I would consider sending it to Robar (https://robarguns.com/custom-firearm-finishes/) for NP3 or one of their other finishes.

As for your 442, I would send that to Doug Guy.

Good luck.

[Artful]

Tim aka Goodsteel

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?273655-Old-S-amp-W-22-back-to-life

[Petrol & Powder]

That's beautiful work but it doesn't come cheap.

[aarolar]

That's beautiful work but it doesn't come cheap.
Neither do K Frames in good shape

[Petrol & Powder]

Only you can decide how much you wish to spend on your 19-5. The model 19 is a classic and if you wish to pay for a first class re-blue there are craftsmen that can do that for you.

[aarolar]

Only you can decide how much you wish to spend on your 19-5. The model 19 is a classic and if you wish to pay for a first class re-blue there are craftsmen that can do that for you.
Its a nickel so I imagine its going to be tough to find someone to refinish it I wouldn't mind going blue but you still need to remove the nickel without damaging all the roll marks.

[Petrol & Powder]

Is it a factory nickel finish ?

[aarolar]

Is it a factory nickel finish ?
I would assume so.

[Petrol & Powder]

I don't know if S&W is still equipped to handle nickel plating. The process has been abandoned by a lot of makers partially do to the regulations involved with disposal of the chemicals used. I'd check with them first before considering that option.
Nickel plate has to be chemically stripped off before proceeding with the new finish. Again, I think Robar might be a good option. I think they still offer nickel plating if you wanted to keep it close to original. Other options would be NP3 (which wouldn't be the same appearance but it is a lot tougher) or something else but in any event the nickel has to come off first.
Unless it's in really bad shape, I'd consider leaving the finish as-is and just fixing the mechanical issues.
Stripping the nickel off and bluing the gun would not be my choice due to the length and expense of those two combined processes. Others may have experience with that but I would proceed carefully.

[BCgunworks]

Stripping the nickel is actually a simple soaking process with minimal cost. I do it from time to time.

smith and wesson still offers nickel plating...turn around is 4-6 months

ford plating in FL also does a good job