Finally a Model 15! 15-3 to be precise

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

I went for a walk after lunch and stopped in the gun and pawn that is about a block from my office (as I often do).
While chatting with the owner I happened to notice something in the case. I hadn't been looking closely as I didn't really intend to buy anything. But I saw it and thought; "that looks an awful lot like a model 10 with adjustable sights, it must be a 14 or 15." I asked him to see it, he handed it to me and noted that it was a bit rough. The bluing shows a fair amount of holster wear, but we got to talking on the price and agreed on $350 including tax and I gleefully left with my long sought after 4 inch model 15. I love my 4 inch 10-5, it is what turned me into a full-time revolver fan, and I had always wanted one with adjustable sights. So here it is. I'll be doing a lot of shooting tonight.

147471

[zarrinvz24]

Looks like it was taken care of, blueing wear doesn't look bad at all.

[3leggedturtle]

Oh them are great pistols. Who cares about honest wear if the mechanicals are basically new. The price couldn't have been better. I had a 5" Model 10, loved it but it went down the road for a Ruger SS with adjustable sights. Just wish they had made the Model 15 in 32SW+L.

[Petrol & Powder]

That's a fine gun and a little bit of honest bluing wear is inconsequential. A Square butt, 4", 38 Special with adjustable sights; one of the most useful K-frames you'll ever find.

[Butler Ford]

...Just wish they had made the Model 15 in 32SW+L.


Essentially, they did. S&W Model 16 or earlier K32. They are 32 magnum but the 32S&W Long shoot just fine in them.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

I didn't post a picture of the wear on the cylinder, there is a strip that looks like it rusted then was cleaned with rust remover, no pitting, just a weird marbleizing of the bluing. I'm about to go shoot it so I'll report back afterwards.

[bedbugbilly]

Congrats on finding your 15! You are going to love it! I like vintage Smiths and most of mine have good honest wear on them - and are great shooters!

I went to look at what was advertised as a 10 one time at a LGS - turned out to be a M & P 38 Spl - 5" (pre 10). As I was looking at it, I also noticed a Combat Masterpiece in the show case (pre 15). It's the only time I've ever purchased two revolvers at the same time - and I've never regretted getting either one. Nothing like a good K frame!

Looking forward to hearing how you like it - they can be sweet shooters! Congrats again on your fine and have fun!

[JWFilips]

The 15 Smith is my large carry gun ( Heavily loaded with wad cutters!) It is a great shooter also. Probably my most shot handgun ( on paper that is..not bad guys!) I got it at one of those once In a lifetime Gun Broker auctions. Great price and far better then advertised ...Well maybe twice in a lifetime because I scored a sweet 38 S&W Terrier for my wife a few days later from the same dealer It too at a bargain price and far better then advertised! That was one lucky week and we both are happy! Probably two of the nicest guns I have ever bought & they came from GB!

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Much like my Model 10, and all my other smiths for that matter, it shoots like a dream. And best of all it likes my the 38 special load that I bulk load for other guns - 358495 sized .358 over 3.0 grains of bullseye.

[Petrol & Powder]

Great gun, great bullet and great load! There's nothing like an accurate WC fired out of a K-frame S&W. Fun, useful, efficient and consistent.

You found a great S&W and a dash 3 to boot. Pinned and recessed, probably a very smooth action and clearly it shoots. Enjoy your new toy !!

[Uncle R.]

Congratulations on a great find!

I've had my 15 for many years and I don't always give it the attention it deserves but last weekend I had it out for some time at the range. I put maybe 100 rounds through it and fell in love all over again. What a perfect revolver! With a bit of warming up I was putting heavy +P .38 loads on an IPSC target at 5 yards just as fast as I could roll through that smooth DA trigger. I didn't have a timer but I'll bet I was emptying that cylinder in way less than two seconds and keeping them all in the A zone or very close to it.

Mine wears Pachmayr grippers (as do most of my K frames) and they're the frosting on the cake for instinctive shooting. I recommend you try them, I find them much superior to the factory grips though not as pretty. I've never found another handgun to match my model 15 as a natural pointing self defense gun. In a shoot-as-fast-as-you-can panic mode deployment it puts holes right where I'm looking, again and again and again. Aptly named, it's a Combat Masterpiece indeed.

Enjoy!

Uncle R.

[castalott]

Smith K frames....the best of the best in my book...

[Petrol & Powder]

Well if we're going to talk about revolver grips ;) (thanks for the segue Uncle R [smilie=s:) I too find the Pachmayr Gripper to be an excellent all-around grip for a mid-sized DA revolver. I use them on my Ruger Service-Six's and nothing else quite fits that niche.
For a square butt K-frame you can always use a Tyler T-grip adaptor if you want to stay old school (really not a bad set-up IMHO). I like some of the grips by Eagle but frankly a square butt K-frame with factory target grips or just a Tyler adaptor will work for most people.

And yes, those guns point & shoot very well indeed.

[castalott]

I love my 4 inch 10-5, it is what turned me into a full-time revolver fan, and I had always wanted one with adjustable sights.

147471[/QUOTE]

But if you ever find one without adjustable sights that shoots to point of aim, you are in hog Heaven....

[Uncle Jimbo]

I've got a 15-3 and I love it. They are a sweet gun to shoot. You will love it.

[pjames32]

Sadly sold my 15 40+ years ago when I stopped shooting bullseye. Wish I still had it. Great gun with a good trigger.
PJ

[retread]

Now I have to pray for forgiveness - envy!

[bluelund79]

Congrats! I just won a 15-1 on GB today, can't wait to get it in to my ffl. Already loaded some ammo for it this evening. Hopefully the Model 10 I won this weekend arrives tomorrow. Post some range results when you shoot it

[Firebricker]

Nice revolver I too like the model 15 ! Did S&W call the M15 "combat masterpiece"? FB

[TXGunNut]

Very nice, congrats! I had a nice 14 (6") once but never a 15. S&W never made a sweeter gun than the 15...except for maybe the 17...or maybe the 14. ;-)

[Scharfschuetze]

Did S&W call the M15 "combat masterpiece"?

Yep. The Model 15 was the "Combat Masterpiece," the Model 19 was the "Combat Magnum" as I recall and the Model 28 was the "Highway Patrolman." The J frame in .22 LR was often call the "Kit Gun."

Congrats to the OP on his Model 15. They are truly fine revolvers. Mine was turned into a PPC revolver years ago and in some ways I wish that it had remained a Model 15. Still, I do have a Model 19 that performs the same duty that the Model 15 did so well.

[Silver Jack Hammer]

A buddy of mine put a wounded bear down with his Model 15, just like yours. He said the gun did the job, he popped the bear in the ear 6 times. He complained that the incident did ruin a perfectly good pair of underwear and bought a Model 29 the very next time he was in town. But he said he loves his Model 15. I had a Model 18 .22 which today I regret parting with. These K frame Smith's are the very best and the Model 15 is the best .38.

Our bailiff came out to the range with his Model 15 and said; Gosh, thanks for letting me shoot with you real police officers. The young guys made fun of the old fat man with the revolver. That old fat man with his Model 15 literally handed the young guys with their Glocks their rear ends. The bailiff out shot everyone on the Dept except for the range officers that day.

[Uncle R.]

15s are sweet - and old fat guys rock!
:bigsmyl2:

[Char-Gar]

The Combat Masterpiece/Model 15 is the high water mark of Smith and Wesson K frame police service revolvers. There is none better. It was thoughtfully engineered to be,well a combat masterpiece.

Mine was purchased NIB in 2004, even thought it was made in 1957. The price was a whopping $325.00 when US Air Force surplus Model 15s were on the market for $100.00 less. I was happy to pay the extra money for an unfired specimen.

You will get great enjoyment from your new handgun...they are great!

[Blackwater]

You'll love that neat old gun! Now, read up how to do a good action job on it, and you'll really, REALLY like it even more! Those S&W's have the absolutely smoothest actions EVER designed by man, and they can be REALLY sweet with a little work. The "secret" to a really good, smooth and fairly light trigger pull is the bolt return spring. You HAVE to get a lighter one to avoid problems if you lighten the trigger return spring, which is awfully strong on stock Smiths. Get the action job, and you'll be absolutely amazed at how easy it is to do DA shooting. I once shot a lot as a member of a pistol team on PPC courses, which are pretty crip, but there were always a few good shots that kept it interesting, and of course when you shoot with a team, you want to do your best and not let the other guys down, or sometimes try to make up when one has an off day shooting. It's one of the things that make any team sports more interesting.

Ya' done good, bro'! Enjoy!

[dubber123]

A buddy of mine put a wounded bear down with his Model 15, just like yours. He said the gun did the job, he popped the bear in the ear 6 times. He complained that the incident did ruin a perfectly good pair of underwear and bought a Model 29 the very next time he was in town. But he said he loves his Model 15. I had a Model 18 .22 which today I regret parting with. These K frame Smith's are the very best and the Model 15 is the best .38.

Our bailiff came out to the range with his Model 15 and said; Gosh, thanks for letting me shoot with you real police officers. The young guys made fun of the old fat man with the revolver. That old fat man with his Model 15 literally handed the young guys with their Glocks their rear ends. The bailiff out shot everyone on the Dept except for the range officers that day.

I shot with a pair of new deputies once in the early 90's. They had high capacity autos, I brought my old tapered barrel model 10. They thought it was hilarious, until I out shot them in speed up close, and really made their heads spin when I moved the targets to 50 and 75 yards. :) The old K-frame S&W's are almost always very accurate, and always easy to shoot well.

[Maximumbob54]

Didn't see if it was mentioned but the bluing on the cylinder sounds like it was touched up with cold bluing. Not that I'm knocking the gun or the price. At what you paid I would have been trying not to break my own arm trying to reach for my wallet.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Didn't see if it was mentioned but the bluing on the cylinder sounds like it was touched up with cold bluing. Not that I'm knocking the gun or the price. At what you paid I would have been trying not to break my own arm trying to reach for my wallet.

Thanks, that's what I assumed once I cleaned it and got it well oiled.

[Char-Gar]

The best "action job" is accomplished by firing the revolver often. In the due course of time, it will be as slick as snot on a glass door knob. What most folks call an action job is just putting premature wear on the revolver by replacing or weakening springs.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

The best "action job" is accomplished by firing the revolver often. In the due course of time, it will be as slick as snot on a glass door knob. What most folks call an action job is just putting premature wear on the revolver by replacing or weakening springs.

I completely agree, that is the trigger job that all my revolvers get, I shoot them.

[376Steyr]

Nice job! Now shoot wadcutter-equivalent loads and the like in it and it will last forever. I personally stopped loading +P .38 Specials when it dawned on me that I also owned a .357 Magnum, and had no need to beat up my .38 Special K-frames.

[fecmech]

I picked up my 15-1 a couple years back for a paltry $225. Poor thing had been in the case at the LGS for over a month and because it wasn't a .357 mag no one wanted it! It has always amazed me that shooters turn up their noses at .38 spl's and then end up shooting .38's 99% of the time in their .357's.

[Scharfschuetze]

It has always amazed me that shooters turn up their noses at .38 spl's and then end up shooting .38's 99% of the time in their .357's.

Well said. I probably have shot over a thousand 38 Specials for every 357 that I've shot. Many of those 38 Specials were shot through this Model 15. Wish it was back in original guise sometimes now that I'm not not an LEO and on the pistol team anymore. Great fun that was!

[Petrol & Powder]

I picked up my 15-1 a couple years back for a paltry $225. Poor thing had been in the case at the LGS for over a month and because it wasn't a .357 mag no one wanted it! It has always amazed me that shooters turn up their noses at .38 spl's and then end up shooting .38's 99% of the time in their .357's.

I could not agree more. I've seen people turn away from excellent revolvers for no other reason than "it's not a .357"
The 38 Special was the hot new cartridge when it was introduced, as was the 44 Special. The 44 magnum has almost killed off the 44 Special when it comes to DA revolvers. The 38 Special continues to live on despite the introduction of the .357 magnum largely due to the smaller guns chambered in 38 Spl.
Here's link to another thread that demonstrates the bias against the 38 Special:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?285909-Ruger’s-strength
The first post says it all. The prospective buyer wants the gun but only if it is re-chambered in .357 mag.

[jonp]

I got a 15-4 last year and it is a beaut. You got a good price on that gun and are going to love it. Congrats

[rintinglen]

Well said. I probably have shot over a thousand 38 Specials for every 357 that I've shot. Many of those 38 Specials were shot through this Model 15. Wish it was back in original guise sometimes now that I'm not not an LEO and on the pistol team anymore. Great fun that was!
+1!
I don't believe I've shot a round of 357 from a revolver in 10 years, and while I haven't shot a thousand 38's per, I'd be hard to persuade that it wasn't a 100+ to 1. I do know that I've fired way over 100,000 38's. (18,000 in 5 months back before marriage and children put a kink in my shooting budget through a revolver similar to Scharfeschutze's.) My current M-14 has about 36,000 through it now. But a nice m-15 could easily follow me home.

[Butler Ford]

A 15 and a box of bullets makes for a great afternoon!

http://www.myhostedpics.com/images/ButlerFord45/boxofbullets.jpg

[Lloyd Smale]

I shoot mine more then all my other handguns combined. Id like to know how many rounds have been through it through the years. Id bet there isn't many that have more.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

A 15 and a box of bullets makes for a great afternoon!

http://www.myhostedpics.com/images/ButlerFord45/boxofbullets.jpg

This looks like my first day out with it, except I had a 50 cal can full of wadcutter loads - the handle makes it a bit easier to carry.

[Uncle R.]

Nice job! Now shoot wadcutter-equivalent loads and the like in it and it will last forever. I personally stopped loading +P .38 Specials when it dawned on me that I also owned a .357 Magnum, and had no need to beat up my .38 Special K-frames.


I picked up my 15-1 a couple years back for a paltry $225. Poor thing had been in the case at the LGS for over a month and because it wasn't a .357 mag no one wanted it! It has always amazed me that shooters turn up their noses at .38 spl's and then end up shooting .38's 99% of the time in their .357's.

I don't think +P 38 loads strain a K-frame even a little. If I should some day be proven wrong I expect I will have sent many tens of thousands of rounds down the barrel before then, and I'll be too old to care.

My experience might be unusual but I shoot more .357 ammo than .38 in a typical year. I practice with my 65 a lot, and I practice with full house .357s because that's what I load it with when I use it as a winter carry gun. I sometimes use my 19 for bowling pins and I practice with .357 loads for that application. I have occasionally used revolvers in IPSC matches over the years and sometimes I want to make major with them. For those times I used and practiced with .357s as well.

I haven't shot in a bullseye league for many years, but when I did I used a lot of .38 wadcutters in my model 14. Frankly, they're kinda boring. :bigsmyl2: The +P .38 loads are more fun to shoot, and still have very mild recoil and blast compared to .357s. With 358429s they're very accurate as well. Loaded into that smooth model 15 they make a sweet-shooting and fun combination for an afternoon at the range.


Uncle R.

[straight-shooter]

15's must be in the air. Congrats to the OP for getting a nice piece. I found a deal locally on a 15-3 on what looks to be in pristine condition for a nice price. I now see what all the hub bub is about with these gems. I made up plenty of Lyman 358-495 button nose bullys and had a blast last time out. Very accurate and easy to handle with 3.3gr of W231. I also snagged a 19-3 only a week later in just as nice condition with the box and manual.

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd56/straightshooter44/SW15-3_wood%20Custom_zpsa4l8awg9.jpg

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd56/straightshooter44/SampW19-3_wood%20Custom_zpsmsjqycn8.jpg

[Char-Gar]

Well, when we start pulling out Model 19s, I must follow suit. A 1967 vintage 19-2...

[Uncle R.]

Oh Cheez...
They both look nice.
They both look very nice.
Especially that 4" 19.

A 19-3 you say?
Pinned and recessed and gee isn't it in beautiful condition?

SWEET!
My envy meter is rising...

And Charles - you with your 19-2 and 1967 vintage picture and all.
Ain't you ashamed of yourself?
Dad Gum It!
I was already about three quarters full of envy when you posted that picture.
As Gomez Addams once said, "Envy is a capital sin. Simply Capital!"

I guess I'll just lean back for a minute, close my eyes and try to think about something boring.

:bigsmyl2:

Uncle R.

[straight-shooter]

Think about the arts & crafts tables at the gun shows.... that should do it! Now that's boring... LOL

[TXGunNut]

Hmmmmm......methinks a nice old S&W revolver or two is headed for the range this weekend, maybe even one of mine! I don't think I have a K-38 of any description these days but maybe an L-frame or two will help me scratch that itch. I've been meaning to show my shooting buddy what a PPC gun will do @ 50, hope I'm still up to it! Getting old & fat, may just drag that old 586 Distinguished gun out instead. It'll hold the X-ring @ 50 any day I'm up to it.

[Scharfschuetze]

Speaking of Model 19s, I just spent a nice day at the range with this one a few days ago. It generally gets shot with 38 Specials, but the option of magnums is appealing when out in the woods or deserts.

Here it is with six at 25 yards.