Blasphemy! Safe queen dethroned

[murf205]

At the range yesterday, a guy 2 benches down was watching me shoot my well worn 4" 29-2 Smith&Wesson. He walked down and asked me if I liked it. I told him that I did and was a self confessed S&W addict. He went back to a backpack and pulled out an ufired and (looked like) unturned 8-3/8" nickel 29-2 with box and all the tools and paperwork, The cylinder had only 3 stain marks on every other hole and the recoil plate was spotless. It was a beautiful specimen if I ever saw one. He then preceded to load the gun and run about 25 or 30 rounds through it, not hitting the steel plate at 25 yds 1 single time. Then he put it in an old wool sock and dumped it back in the back pack. He also asked me if $1700 was too much to pay for it. I told him (of course) that he got a great deal but since I am not in the $1700 club, I really couldn't attest to that fact. I wonder what monetary damage he did to that gun by shooting it. I did tell him that using 44 Spl ammo in it would help his shooting and be kinder to the gun. I do remember that it had a N prefix in the 50000 range serial number. I don't fault him for shooting the pristine gun, it's his after all, but somewhere somebody is cringing at the thought.

[contender1]

Boy do I understand your thoughts.
I collect,, and I also shoot. It's MUCH easier to buy a "shooter" already used a bit,, than to find a minty vintage gun.

I know folks who say; "I won't own a gun that I won't shoot!" I FULLY accept & appreciate their view. But instead of buying a minty gun & then shooting it,, buy a "shooter" & enjoy it. And if a minty gun come along,, at a very good price,, buy it,, and find a collector, who may want to buy it, swap it for an upgrade to their collection, or whatever.
Everytime a minty vintage gun get used,, and devalued,, the value of the others goes up. then people complain about the prices of these fine guns. I say appreciate the minty ones in collections, and find shooters already devalued a bit.

In fact,, I have a few guns,, that I'll never shoot, and I have identical guns that were bought already shot,, and BOTH are very precious to me. I get "one to shoot & one to admire on display.!"

[murf205]

I have a few that I don't, and will never, shoot as well. Not because I am a S&W snob but because I consider it the preservation of the history and days gone by from a company that had to change the way they manufacture and finishing process to stay in business or had to move the manufacturing location to a more friendly law state. I have a couple of Hillary Hole guns that serve well but the older guns escalate in value quicker that a 401k. When a guy lays their money down, the decision to shoot or not is up to them. But it still was kinda' unusual to see this happen.

[rockrat]

He probably could have bought a slightly used gun for a whole lot less. Was one at our last show, that I just missed, for $850. A 1990 gun shot very little. LGS had one, with box, but lightly used, like the guy at the range had, 1974 ish year of mfg, for a lot less. Blue felt from the box needed replacing.

[Ramjet-SS]

I shoot everything I own…..

[TNsailorman]

Everyone to his own wants and wishes. I have never been a collector and for me a firearm is useless if it is not to be shot. I do understand collectors though as I have one in my family. He collects old military stuff and rarely ever does any shooting and when he does it is with the modern "tupperware" stuff. james

[slim1836]

I to shoot every weapon I own, however, I have several I acquired I have yet to shoot. Life is good, but life is better if one has rifles and pistols to look forward to shoot.

Slim

[Mk42gunner]

I'm more of an accumulator than a collector, and it is a whole lot cheaper to accumulate shooter grade guns than it is collector grade ones.

That said, I have shot some very nice guns with out hurting there value. If I were to somehow acquire a LNIB N frame like murf205 described, I probably wouldn't shoot it.

And if I did, I would hope to at least hit the target.

Robert

[Winger Ed.]

I think the 3 stains on the cylinder face is from the proof house.
I've heard S&W fires 3 shots to proof their revolvers.
If that's correct, it was unfired until you saw him with it.

[elmacgyver0]

Someone has to shoot those new guns or there wouldn't be used ones for us shooters to enjoy!

[murf205]

Someone has to shoot those new guns or there wouldn't be used ones for us shooters to enjoy!

That is probably the best way to look at it and if I had my druthers, I would buy a really nice one and shoot it. Heck, I gave too much for a 4" nickel 29-2 that had some freckling from being carried and having rubber grips on it for too long but it was as tight as a new one with perfect timing and lock up. BUT...it rewarded me with outstanding accuracy and I'm not afraid to stuff it in a holster and go on a walkabout like I would be a pristine gun. My old 629 has been dunked in the Kenai river twice (along with yours truly) and to dunk an unfired 29 would be a baaaaad idea.

[wwmartin]

When S&W quit counterboring cylinders my gun runner offered me a counterbored model 57 distributor sample because the current version wasn't counterbored. New and unfired 8 3/8 nickle with 3 power burned chambers. I probably shouldn't have but it didn't take long to make them all look the same. It hasn't been shot much in the past years and I still own it. Recoil wasn't much different than the 629 no- that I was shooting and the 44 was easier to find ammo for. Recoil finally effected my shooting and I went back to the 38 special and 45acp. Like others I have some that are unfired but not because of collector values. I don't ever plan on selling them andwhat they do with them when I'm gone ain't my problem.
Bill

[Winger Ed.]

Someone has to shoot those new guns

I try to convince people that if you don't fire your guns once in awhile they'll get 'lot rot' like old cars people never drive.

[Mal Paso]

Early this year I was looking to replace my warn out 629, none available. Well what about the new Anaconda? Not available in california, didn't pay the extortion but we happen to have a Classic Anaconda here in the case. The trigger was perfect and now it's my regular range gun.

A friend at the range said CZ bought Colt and the new Anaconda is Czech. Maybe they'll make the list next year meanwhile I'll shoot the USA made one.

[megasupermagnum]

Maybe if it was something rare or super expensive I could care. As far as I'm concerned the a S&W 29-2 is a good sedan that people treat like a sports car. Great guns, but not hard to find, nothing special about them. Everyone and their brother has one with a 6" or 8 3/8" barrel. The only reason they are worth so much is because people pay that much. Maybe if it were the more rare 10 5/8" silhouette model I could see putting it in a glass case to look at. I will never understand why someone would take a basic N frame, or a Ruger Redhawk (maybe the 3 screw blackhawk is a better example?) and just sit and look at them. What do I know, I wouldn't pay $1700 for that unless I really wanted a pinned and recessed nickel 44 mag N frame either. I guess that's what you get from those who will pay $300 for standard off the shelf grips too.

[imashooter2]

Guns are for shooting. A few hundred dollars more in your estate won’t make up for a lifetime of pleasures lost.

[murf205]

"S&W 29-2 is a good sedan that people treat like a sports car." In more ways than one. Those don't have the Endurance Package of the later 29's and I have seen people load them with some very high pressure handloads. I know because I was one of those people when I was a lot younger and the club I shot silhouette matches with in the 70's had a lot of people shooting some loads that I would not dream of now. 29-2's are fine guns but not when we try to make bazooka's out of them.

[Bmi48219]

I shoot everything I own…..

^^^ This ^^^
Many are 40+ Y.O and don’t get out much but at least 4-6 times a year. Then again for the most part they don’t see full power loads.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

In 1976 I bought a Colt Python and a Diamondback 22, both new in the box for $500. I bought them fom a coworker who wanted to buy a set of tires for his dunne-buggy. I bought them for my brother. He passed away in March. His son owns them now. I never owned a Python but I do have Diamondback and a S&W 29-2. Here are their pictures.

[dogdoc]

I have dethroned several and will continue to do so when the opportunity presents. I do t buy guns as investments and don’t get pleasure just looking at them. I want to shoot them! Hell I am going to die someday so why save it for somebody else to enjoy?