High Standard Sentinel MKIII .357

[AggiePharmD]

Can anyone tell me anything about these. From what I can find these might have been made by Dan Wesson between '74 and '75 and roll stamped and sold by HS. I've always wanted a DW 357 but they have always been a bit out of reach. The one I'm eyeing has a 5.75" bbl with a very, very faint line on the cylinder. Priced at $599.

Since I've never owned a DW I know nothing about disassembly, etc. Special tools needed? Are these very feniky about running smoothly?

TIA

[MT Gianni]

I understand they were a Dan Wesson design when he was at HS and that was the impetus for him to go on his own.

[rintinglen]

Dan Wessons were being made for years before they made the High Standard guns. My first centerfire revolver was a Model 12 purchased used in 1973. I later had a Model 14, which had the more refined barrel nut. High Standard was trying to cash in on the 70's Magnum craze and contracted with the Dan Wesson Company to get a center fire pistol to go along with their line of 22 revolvers and Target Pistols. Wesson only made them for High Standard for one or two years, My recollection is that it was cerca 1976.

What I seem to remember is that they were identical to the Dan Wesson M-15 except that I believe they had fixed, rather than interchangeable barrels.

[MT Gianni]

https://unblinkingeye.com/Guns/Sentinel/sentinel.html.
MK II and MK III. These were rebranded Dan Wesson .357 Magnum revolvers. They were sold from mid- 1973 through February of 1975. There are persistent rumors that High Standard made the Dan Wesson pistols, but they are completely untrue.

So much for my old memory.

[Drm50]

I had a couple HI-Standard 357s. One was a snub nose and I think name was Power Mag, that one had cracked forcing cone. I had 4” too. I would say they weren’t quality of DWs. They had solid barrels. I would argue that DWs weren’t the quality of P&R era S&Ws. I had several DWs in 357 and had no issues and they were fine shooting revolvers. I had a 445 Super Mag that was fine mechanically but lousy for accuracy. I was second owner and thought I could make it shoot, I lost.

[TNsailorman]

The High Standard pistol goes way back, preceeding DW. I used to get regular advertise,emt from them in the 50's. Very neat little revolvers and petty well made for the money. My friend had one in .22lr and it shot dead on at 25 yards. They made a .357 magnum in their later years called a Crusader. I really wanted one but they were in scarce supply for some reason and I never was able to nail one down. I believe they advertised in the NRA magazine back in the day. my memory anyway, james

[Green Frog]

The High Standard pistol goes way back, preceeding DW. I used to get regular advertise,emt from them in the 50's. Very neat little revolvers and petty well made for the money. My friend had one in .22lr and it shot dead on at 25 yards. They made a .357 magnum in their later years called a Crusader. I really wanted one but they were in scarce supply for some reason and I never was able to nail one down. I believe they advertised in the NRA magazine back in the day. my memory anyway, james

High Standard made a couple of forays into the world of center fire revolvers. They designed and made a series of their own called the “Crusader.” It was their own concept with innards that were totally different from all other revolvers. The lock work involved a gear driven movement rather than the levers seen in virtually all other revolvers. They were ballyhooed to be as good as the S&W N frames, but apparently never really made it into mass production... At least they never were commonly available. I’ve only seen a couple of the deluxe “introductory” models in 44 Mag and 45 Colt, embellished with a gold colored knight with sword on the right side plate.

Next HS tried a joint venture with the fledgling DW and marketed what was essentially a rebranded DW product. These too were less than big in the market... they are seldom seen for sale. IIRC, they were all of the type using that castellated nut to secure the barrel. I can’t remember the last time I saw one for sale.

This is a very small niche collectible within the already small HS field... come prepared with deep pockets and lots of patience!

Froggie

[MT Gianni]

The High Standard pistol goes way back, preceeding DW. I used to get regular advertise,emt from them in the 50's. Very neat little revolvers and petty well made for the money. My friend had one in .22lr and it shot dead on at 25 yards. They made a .357 magnum in their later years called a Crusader. I really wanted one but they were in scarce supply for some reason and I never was able to nail one down. I believe they advertised in the NRA magazine back in the day. my memory anyway, james

I have two HS 22 revolvers and they are excellent shooters.

[Green Frog]

The history of High Standard revolvers goes way back... but for rim fire revolvers. There was one basic frame design in two iterations, the “cowboy” style called the Double Nine and the more conventional (“police style?”) Sentinel. AFAIK, they all shared the same basic aluminum frame with steel barrel and cylinder. They were then cosmetically set up to make all the variety of models. The cylinders were all bored for nine cartridges and could be had in 22 long rifle or magnum chamberings.

The first handgun I ever owned was a snub nosed High Standard “Sentinel Deluxe” acquired by trade. It’s still in my safe 50 years later!

Froggie