What Handgun Will You Never Trade Or Sell

[jonp]

I started a thread that worded oddly. I was interested in what firearm you bought for yourself that you still have. One you won't part with for love of money. That first one you scraped and saved for? One bought at auction you still have when all the others hit the road because you needed that latest and greatest like my long gone 41 Blackhawks and pre 64 Win 300 H&H?

Let's get specific. What Handgun revolver or semi have you held onto thick and thin. Bad times scraping the bottom of the barrel for food money but won't let it go.

Mine is my trusty Single Six Convertible. Carried many a mile in the woods, ton of partridge, rabbits and squirrels for supper. Dispatched problem skunks and porcupines and mink/muskrats and coyotes on the trap line. Used on whitetails for the parting shot. I think I will be buried with it as when I go home it is always taken and is the first on my hip to carry around.

Can't see like I could and it might take 3 or 4 to headshot a squirrel when back in the day I'd shoot lights out with it but I don't care. I'll pay the ammo bill

[M-Tecs]

My dad's High Standard H-D Military. When I was a kid in a very small town, we still had a town dump. I killed hundreds, if not thousands, of rats with that 22 pistol. Same for his Winchester 75 target 22 rifle. Fifty years later I am still mildly depressed about the town switching over to a landfill........

[Shawlerbrook]

Probably my old Colt Cobra 38 stubby.

[tigweldit]

For Christmas, 1966, Mom and Dad gave me a Ruger old model Blackhawk in .41 magnum with a 6 1/2" barrel. Still have it. Thousands of hot j bullets and target cast lead. I kept it in good shape but used the heck out of it. A Belt Mountain pin and a set of Pachmeyer grips are the only changes. I've probably had over a hundred handguns come and go in my life. The .41 Blackhawk will be the last to go.

[gc45]

To many to mention. if we exclude collectables, which many here own, the shooter guns I'd never sell are, the Ruger 44sp flat top, Ruger BH Bisley 45C, Smith J-frame snubby.
See, I can't keep just one!

[Winger Ed.]

For me, it was a Series 80 blue Gold Cup.
I'd dreamed of having one for years, and in the early 90s, the stars came together and I bought a new one.

It's never fired a factory round, but hundreds of pounds of 190 SWCs.

When I first got it, I only had 10 empty cases.
I'd load & shoot 'em. Then load & shoot 'em again for quite awhile before more brass started coming to me.

The other is a .45-70 CB. But that's for another thread.:bigsmyl2:

[rockrat]

A Ruger MKI 22 with a 6.875" barrel. Put tens of thousands of rounds thru it.

[dverna]

Nothing I own is that important to me. Guns are tools.

I have guns I really like but if someone wants to pay me $500 over market value, they are gone.

[Sasquatch-1]

Mine is a New Model Super Blackhawk my wife gave me as a wedding gift close to 50 years ago. At this point in life I probably will not get rid of anything unless it is to one of my kids.

[BPSharps]

I got two that I couldn't get rid of...Magnum Research BFR in 45/70 and a Thompson Center Contender in 30/30 it is very accurate.

[ShooterAZ]

Mine would be my S&W 625 Model of 1989 45ACP/45 Auto Rim revolver. I almost sold it once in "somewhat" hard times a lot of years ago, but I'm glad I didn't do it as it's one heck of a good shooting gun. I also have an old model Single Six that I inherited from a deceased uncle that will never be sold.

[atfsux]

For me it is the family heirloom rifle; an 1873 Winchester in .32-20 with a 22in. octagon barrel. Bought in 1902 at the Phelps Dodge mine commissary before statehood as one of two consecutively serial numbered rifles bought together at the same time (the other is with family up in Colorado). Aside from being used to put food on the table at the family homestead in southern Arizona near the border, it was also used to shoot at Pancho Villa's stragglers fleeing the battle with U.S. forces at Columbus, New Mexico in 1916. I bagged my first deer with it within line of sight of the old homestead back in 1990. Every male member of my family has used that rifle for the same purpose.

I realize now that I didn't read the title of the thread very closely;... What HANDGUN Will You Never Trade Or Sell? Ooooops!


Well,...that would be my Randall 1911 Service Model .45acp. It's a blood gun,...and that's all I'm gonna say about that.

[Agent1187]

I sold most of my initial cheap collection and ammunition to purchase a 6" Les Baer 45. That one is sticking around as long as I can stand.

The other is a S&W Highway Patrolman 357 that a distant relative used as his service revolver.

[Shopdog]

Gdad's commercial,bought in '17... 1911 that he carried during WWI in the Army Air Corps...

Ain't goin anywhere,for ANY price. It's a very good shooter,albeit limited to a mag or two a year with some soft 200g SWC loads. Which interestingly,chambers with his original mags like greased ball bearings. And even with the razor thin front sight,will tear the X out of a slow fire 50 foot pistol target. I'd guess that in it's 100+ year lifespan it's had less than 1k rounds through it,just looking at the internal wear.

My pistols will all go to our 4 wonderful sons,and their boys so there's never been any concern about selling. I've already given them each a cpl...

[OptimusPanda]

I'll never get rid of my first handgun, a SW1911. Probably has 15k rounds through it by now.

[Slugster]

S&W 686 .357, 4" barrel.

[Wheelguns 1961]

Ruger bisley 45c 7 1/2” barrel. It was the first revolver that I set up for hunting. It is still my favorite hunting revolver. It would be the last to go.

[Kentucky146]

All of them, handguns or rifles. NONE are for sale or trade

[Larry Gibson]

318257318258

318259318260

[GhostHawk]

I have several.

The first was a request from my Father in Law. He was drafted for the Korean war right out of high school. Because he was a farm boy he ended up running a D6 cat feeding a rock crusher. The problem was the rock crusher was making gravel for the air strip in the Chosen area. He wanted a 1911 that he could hold. As close to GI as I could get.

What I found was a Springfield Armory early 90's make that was very close to stock GI issue.

We were down visiting and when the ladies disappeared into the bedroom to do girl stuff. I got the 1911 out and handed it to my father in law.

It was pretty interesting. For about 3 hours he never said a word. But I would see him smile as a memory came floating up and he remembered someone. Then slowly he would become more serious, and would end with tears rolling down his face. He would compose himself, and do it again, and again.

I swore to him that from that day forward it would be known as "Roger's Gun" and that I would tell his great grandchildren all that he told me. It is an heirloom of the house.

The other end of the spectrum is a little NAA arms Ranger II 5 shot revolver in .22mag. If I carry most often that is what I carry. It is small, light, and cute.
Cute like a baby rattlesnake. Cute with a sting. I carry it in a IWB holster setup on my left side for cross draw, butt to the right. Any shirt, jacket, t-shirt or vest will cover it totally. I have worked the nylon holster a fair amount. The revolver has essentially a pin on top of the barrel for a front sight which used to catch in the nylon stitching of the holster.

I cut a wedge shaped piece of kydex and formed it to the top of the barrel and around the cylinder. Then hot glued it to the holster.

A hair tie is hot glued to the top outside of the holster, which stretches back and slips over the hammer.

This is an "anti fall out of holster hitting the floor" when using a public bathroom. Happened to me once in a Walmart and I thought on it till I had a solution.

Middle of the road is a Ruger New Model Single Six in .32H&R mag that I have only shot .32sw longs in. This little girl thinks she is royalty, but if you sweet talk her a little bit she shoots like a princess on steroids.

[375supermag]

Every firearm I own are going to my son when I am done with them.
None will be sold...he already refers to them as his and I am OK with that.

[Tall]

I bought my S&W Model 25-2 new around 1983. The dealer ordered a 45 Colt cylinder to go with it. It is a tack driver. I doubt any amount of money could cause me to part with it.

[deltaenterprizes]

Nothing I own is that important to me. Guns are tools.

I have guns I really like but if someone wants to pay me $500 over market value, they are gone.

Same here!
I have quite a few things that really like and still have sentimental value but if I need the money and the price is right they will have to go!

[rbuck351]

I have enough hand guns that I would sell if needed that I will keep a few until I take a dirt nap. These are a very early Walther Olympic target 22, a Ballister Molina 45, a Ruger MKI T and a Russian Tok 7.62x 25. The Tok and the Walther were brought home from WW II by my father.

[sigep1764]

I have a couple of rifles and shotguns that were inherited from Grandpa. Those will never go. Agree with the above post on guns other than those 4 long guns, if someone offers 500 over value, Id sell. But if push came to shove, that last one I'd sell would be my CZ75B Omega. Ive had it almost a decade and it still looks new despite having thousands and thousands of rounds through it. The trigger is beautiful and it just fits right.

[bedbugbilly]

My old S & W M ^ P 5" 38 Spl. - it was born the same year I was. It, like me, has some honest wear on it but is in top shape, hits what I point it at and is 100% reliable. Even if I'n gone, I have specified that it go to a younger fellow that I think highly of (we never have kids). The 2nd one is my 1910 Colt Army Special 6" 38 Spl. - that is slated to go to the B in L of the young fellow I'm leaving the M & P to - both fine fellows. The Colt AS is another one that hits where you point it.

[Sig556r]

Any of my 1911s…& I have quite a few

[Texas by God]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20230925/72e3ffea36f6a4ed697115df1c1652b2.jpeg
Long ago on a prairie dog safari, my cousin from Muleshoe gave me a Ballester Molina Argentine.45 auto.
The bluing was almost gone, but it worked and shot just fine.
I changed the sights, lowered the ejection port a bit, and polished the feed ramp for feeding bullets other than FMJ.
I baked on a Lauer Gun Kote finish and my daughter bought some nice grips for it.
It’s probably not worth much to anyone else,
But I’ve kept it around because it works and is a great shooter.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rintinglen]

My 4 inch Colt Python. Rode a lot of miles with me and was on my hip on the first night of the Rodney King riots.

[Electrod47]

I have had several over the years, but currently own just one genuine Colt Government Model .45acp. Series 80. I sleep with a Sig 228 9mm next to my bed and own a plethora of single actions. A couple dozen rifles and shotguns. But, if everything I have that goes bang is swept away, due to age and circumstances. My cold dead hand will still be clutching that Colt Government Model. That's just the way its going to be...for me.

[JoeJames]

To many to mention. if we exclude collectables, which many here own, the shooter guns I'd never sell are, the Ruger 44sp flat top, Ruger BH Bisley 45C, Smith J-frame snubby.
See, I can't keep just one!
Great minds - I would am quite happy with my Lipsey Ruger BH 41/2" in 44 Special. Not counting 22 rounds; I have probably shot it more than any other revolver I own. I cast for it and load for it.

318278

[gwpercle]

The revolver in my avatar ... a model 58 S&W in 41 Magnum .

One of my best friends , from childhood , returned from U.S. Marines about 1970 and joinded the Baton Rouge Police Department as a Motorcycle Cop , rode a big H.D. for two decades and packed the 41 magnum in place of dept. issued 38 special model 64 S&W ... He wanted to be able to shoot through a car if needed ...
He knew I loved that gun and I reloaded boxes of ammo for us both to shoot at local indoor range .
After 25 years service Larry retired and ... Gave me his revolver ... he said I always enjoyed shooting it so much , he wanted me to have it ... I got tears in my eyes ...
Thanks Larry :drinks:
Gary

[Hogtamer]

Never is a loooong time. whatcha trading?

[.429&H110]

What handgun would I never never ever?

My wife's. Don't even ever think about it.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Wonderful thread! So many good choices, and lots of interesting choices. Wish there were more favorite pistol photos, but I'm enjoying the ones that were posted. Me...? Too hard to pick just one, but this is one of several:

1911 Colt, unusual serial no. of A ASO<>5016<>. The gun was confiscated from an inebriated bartender who was threatening his customers with it. The serial no., right side, had been filed off. It was restored using acid with only one number remaining in question, could have been an 8, or a 6, 3, or 9. All possible combinations were run to see if it was stolen, but it wasn't.

It was purchased at a police auction by my father who then had it renumbered by the Alameda Sheriff's Office, one of 3 California agencies authorized by law to renumber guns, and re-blued by an elderly gunsmith who was later murdered in his shop by an escaped criminal. I received it as a gift on my 16th Christmas, along with a 2 lb. coffee can full of mixed FMJ ammo, some head stamped back as far as 1917. Under my father's coaching and supervision I leaned to shoot with this pistol until I could consistently hit another 2 lb. can at 25 yds. It had an awful, heavy, creepy trigger pull (still not that good!) that taught me to concentrate on maintaining sight alignment while keeping up a steady squeeze. I am one of those whom an unaltered 1911 likes to hammer bite on the web of the hand between thumb and forefinger, and I later changed out the issue hammer for a Commander-type rowel hammer--but it still bites me. I didn't want to modify it any further, and retained the original hammer with the pistol. I seldom shoot it anymore, having other 1911s and A1s, many with beavertail safeties.

318284 318283

DG

[atr]

S&W model 29 Highway patrol .357 Magnum / mid 60's vintage.
My Dad bought it for me when I graduated high school. I think of him every time I shoot it.

[James Wisner]

Most likely a Colt Officers Model, Heavy Barrel in 32 New Police ( 32 S&W )
I took me a number of years to find.

Colt only made aprox 1000 of them in 1940-41

The other one was from a good friend who has since passed
Its a Ruger SSM in 32 H&R with the 4 5/8" barrel

Just love the 32's

JW

[MT Gianni]

A quick mental inventory gave me 19 handguns and 7 pistol length contender bbls. I could not find any that I would never sell.

[stubshaft]

My FA 83 in 454 Cassull. The one that will be next to last is my S&W Model 646 Performance Center in 40 S&W (there were only 161 made)!

[Edm]

Ruger Redhawk. 5.5”. Traded a Glock for it in the 90s. For a while it was my only centerfire handgun. Traveled all over with me. I know it’s scars and scratches and can tell you the story of each one.

[Lloyd Smale]

ive trade off about anything id get rid of so the ones i have are staying. only exception is one of my glock 22's. i have three of them but even so i sure in no hurry to get rid of one. there imo the best non concealed fighting pistol ever made. if shtf id have one on my hip and another in my back pack

[firefly1957]

It is not my most carried or fired revolver but I will never sell My Model 29 I really like the gun. I bought it in 1978 in the walnut presentation case $469 out the door . It is very accurate and over to the left you see me shooting it .

[elmacgyver0]

I don't sell guns.

[Handloader109]

Already let it go. My dad's bring back luger. First pistol I had ever shot. Let it go to my nephew to keep it in the family for hopefully longer

Sent from my SM-S908U using Tapatalk

[Rapier]

I guess, "will not sell" is actually the key.

I was gifted my great grandfather's Smith & Wesson 32. He was the sheriff of and a Judge in Jefferson County, AL He carried the Smith #1 in 32 S&W as a backup gun and also carried it in the pocket of his robes on the bench and in the court room. It has a signed letter attesting to what it is, rolled up, inserted into the barrel. It is of no real value except to our family.

It has traveled many, many miles protecting the life of a man of the law. Could well be, that without it, I would not be here.

[elmacgyver0]

I have always figured if I was that destitute that I had to sell my guns to pay bills, I probably had no business having them in the first place.
That said I did let go of a couple.
The first was the first rifle I had ever owned, a .22 cal Stevens "Little Scout" that the breech was opening upon firing, I traded for a cheap bolt action so I could keep shooting.
I really missed the "Little Scout" to the point I started building one from scratch, mostly by memory, never finished it as it had the same problem as the original.
I recently acquired another as a gunsmith project that I finished a few days ago. I was kind of obsessed with those little Stevens boy's guns.
The main problem with them is most of today's ammunition is too powerful for the weak actions. I figured out that CCI Quiet-22 works perfectly in them.
The old bolt gun I did get rid of, but I never did like it, so it doesn't count.
The other one was a .22 Jennings I bought from a friend that later had sellers' remorse, so I let him have it back.

[Minerat]

All of them, handguns or rifles. NONE are for sale or trade

Me too. I have never sold one I obtained. Never will. They go to my grandson.

[HARRYMPOPE]

Ruger Old Army would be my last to go.

[Wag]

It boils down to, "What's your favorite gun?" Perhaps.......

The lower the value of the gun, the easier it will be to keep it. If the value is very high and someone is offering you the cash to pay the rent and feed your family, it might be harder to keep it.

Most of my guns I like enough to keep. The few that I don't like so much, I'd feel guilty for selling, even at a low price. So I'll keep them too.

--Wag--

[imashooter2]

I suppose I have 2. I couldn’t choose between them if I had to. They will both be in my estate.

First is a 1917 vintage commercial Colt 1911. It was Grampa's, then Dad's, now mine. Grampa and Dad shot competitive Bullseye with it and there is no telling how many thousands of rounds have been down the pipe. I remember the very first time I was allowed to shoot it. Grampa drove us down a dirt road on the outskirts of Raymond, NH and we put some old cans up on a wooden fence. Grampa had it stoked with his competition loads, an H&G #130 over some tiny charge of Hercules Bullseye. Real softball loads they were, but I was 8 years old and had only shot .22's up to that point. Old slab sides made quite an impression on this kid.

Grampa was the one that soldered on the Patridge front sight and bobbed the hammer. No doubt killed any collector value, but no matter. It's priceless to me.

http://www.imashooter2.com/pictures/grampa1911-760.jpg



The second is this M38 Bodyguard Airweight. My Father called me up one day and asked me to bring over one of the Hi Standard Supermatics. Which of course I did. When I got there I asked him what was up and he told me that in his old age, he could no longer work the slide on the crappy, but perfectly reliable, Davis .380 that had been his carry gun for years. I reached in my pocket and pulled out the 360 Airlight that I was carrying at the time. I unloaded it and handed it over to see if the double action pull was too heavy. It wasn’t, in fact he said it was easy. So I left the Supermatic and drove over to Targetmaster where I had seen this M38. Short negotiations followed and I brought it home with a box of hollow based wadcutters. Then I called up Mika and placed an order for a pocket holster just like the ones I use.

I will never forget when I gave it to him. He almost cried. It was his constant companion until his death in 2014. The 360 doesn’t get much use anymore. Pop’s Airweight has taken its place. The memories more than make up for the extra few ounces.
http://imashooter2.com/pictures/m38.jpg

[Riverpigusmc]

Wilson Combat CQB 1911 .45 . First pistol I could afford to have built to my specs. Had my friend Zane at Lonestar Custom Grips make me a pair of camelbone grips with the Eagle Globe and Anchor emblem embedded in the them. The other is my dad's old J frame airweight

[DCB]

S&W model 14-4 6" target with diamond grips made in about 1982.
https://i.postimg.cc/d3zF0dcf/20230928-144437.jpg (https://postimg.cc/fSjp2VL7)

[Kraschenbirn]

The plain-jane Remington-Rand 1911 that followed me home from Southeast Asia. I gave it away once, to my father, and it was returned when he passed away.

Bill

[GOPHER SLAYER]

1957 Ruger 357 Flat top.

[Ithaca Gunner]

Tough question...Probably my 4'' S&W 629-3. It just does so much so well.

[ulav8r]

Had to sell one about 50 years ago, a Remington Model 51 .380. My wife and I both still miss it. Nevermore.

[AK Islander]

The one I will never sell is actually the least valuable, from a monetary perpsective: Armi San Marco 1858 Remington replica with brass frame. The first handgun I ever owned, and has been with me on some of my finest adventures. Stoked with blank loads, me and my buddies used to ambush hayrides at youth camp (to simulate a “bushwacking” encounter - the campers loved it!). Carried it holstered to my high school one day - unloaded of course - when we had a western themed dress-up day. This in the time when doing such wouldn’t trigger a SWAT response. The old revolver has a pitted bore and excess endplay but I still shoot it once in a while with light loads. It probably isn’t worth $50. Too many good memories to ever think about letting it go at any price. Will get passed down to one of the kids someday.

[wch]

Mu Cplt M1911A1. veteran of WWII, Korea, Viet Nam and Afghanistan.

[snowwolfe]

Not one gun in my collection was gifted to me. If the price is right they would all go only to be replaced by something else.
However, I own three BFR’s and each have been modified. And I sent a new Anaconda and Python to Heffron for action jobs over 6 months ago (still waiting for them to be finished). These 5 would be the last to go simply because of the time and expense to get them in their current condition.

[wc870]

I don't really sell anything, but the last one to go would be a well worn NM Blackhawk 41 mag that was my dads. super accurate and accompanies me in the woods whenever I go.

[metricmonkeywrench]

I’m in the none camp as well, most everything I have worth having to me and I worked to earn each and every one of them.

[tinsnips]

My Colt Python old version bright stainless steel papers box everything paid 327.00 for it years ago. Been offered 5000.00 for it by someone with to much money. NO Sale

[Mule]

Two.
Grand dads 12ga Parker Brothers
Builder unknown, 9mm pinfire revolver. Liberated in Germany

[skeet1]

Newly acquired S&W Model 10 heavy barrel .38 spl. I have owned numerous S&W revolvers in the past, all were good but the model 10 with the heavy barrel is the best! It is extremely accurate and shoots to the point of aim. What a wonderful revolver. This particular revolver is an escapee from the HDSP (High Desert State Prison, California). Very fortunate to have gotten out of California!

[jonp]

Newly acquired S&W Model 10 heavy barrel .38 spl. I have owned numerous S&W revolvers in the past, all were good but the model 10 with the heavy barrel is the best! It is extremely accurate and shoots to the point of aim. What a wonderful revolver. This particular revolver is an escapee from the HDSP (High Desert State Prison, California). Very fortunate to have gotten out of California!

Is it stamped with HDSP? I posted a thread over on the SW forum about revolvers with various stamps and what they did to the value. At that time I was looking at a San Francisco PD stamped. Nice shape and I wasn't interested in the stamp but was curious. Seems there are collectors out there interested in those and some very specific in the PD they are after.

[skeet1]

The revolver is engraved on the left side near the trigger guard "CDC" and is eletro penciled on the right side plate "HDSP".

[armoredman]

What handgun will I never sell? None of them - mechanical devices do fail and wear out, and shoot as much as I possibly can. I have nothing that is a real collectors item, (not yet), ultra rare OR ultra cool, no family heirlooms sidearms, so, no, if I need to or want to, I'll sell any handgun I own without a qualm as long as I can upgrade.

[Idaho45guy]

I have a bunch of handguns, but listing the ones I would sell would be easier than the opposite.

I have a Ruger 22/45 Lite that I am going to sell. Mushy trigger and finicky with ammo. I also have a Glock G23 Gen 5 that I really don't love. Same with a Glock G35 that I bought for GSSF match use and never really shot it well. My Taurus G2c was bought for under $200 and just works way too well for the price. It is my official loaner pistol so will likely never sell it. May give it away if needed.

I will also never sell the Colt 1911 that my dad gave me the Christmas before he died. It was a project of his. He had some nice custom work done, but lost interest and gave it to me.

319047

The S&W Model 29 that was his and in very good condition is another that will stay with me to the grave...

319049