Andyd Posted September 15, 2018 Share Posted September 15, 2018 This is a rare S&W M19-3 that was built for the French GIGN when Raymond Sassia was in charge of weapons procurement. Sassia trained with the FBI and this obviously influenced his firearms use. In 1972 they ordered 500 of these revolvers that have serial numbers in the M&P range from D639300 to 639800. With only 500 guns produced, this is the rarest M19 version and very few made it into the hands of private collectors through a dealer in Luxembourg. The model 19-3 has a fixed sight and is pinned & recessed. It has a three inch barrel. The M&P with a three inch barrel has a differently shaped frame and no ejector shroud. . 7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWARREN123 Posted September 15, 2018 Share Posted September 15, 2018 I like the way it looks! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G26S239 Posted September 15, 2018 Share Posted September 15, 2018 That's pretty cool. My brother has err had a 2.5" 19 but his wife likes it and claimed it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fnfalman Posted September 15, 2018 Share Posted September 15, 2018 GIGN used to love revolvers. They had SW M29 and Manhurin revolvers equipped with bipods and scopes. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeaDub Posted September 15, 2018 Share Posted September 15, 2018 Interesting. A pre-model 13? Going by wiki, the model 13 began production in '74. I wonder if this order spurred Smith to make a full production gun? I have a 65 and it is one of my favorite revolvers. The heavy 3" barrel gives it very good balance. If that is yours, well done indeed, sir. Beautiful. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Collim1 Posted September 16, 2018 Share Posted September 16, 2018 I love the fixed sight revolvers. That’s a sweet little gun. I’d be tempted to carry it if it wasn’t so collectible A 3” round but model 64 is one of my favorite guns to carry. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyd Posted September 16, 2018 Author Share Posted September 16, 2018 15 hours ago, Fnfalman said: GIGN used to love revolvers. They had SW M29 and Manhurin revolvers equipped with bipods and scopes. GIGN also uses S&W M686'es and they also had the MR88 that is a French licensed production of a Ruger. The pictured gun is indeed mine. I inherited it from an old friend and shooting mentor together with a few other guns, one of them a Browning High Power T series. Because of its history I am the custodian of this M19-3 which I consider a "family gun", something that will be passed on or given to my sons one day. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G26S239 Posted September 16, 2018 Share Posted September 16, 2018 Is that the original bluing? Because it looks real nice. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borg warner Posted September 16, 2018 Share Posted September 16, 2018 People wonder why I hate the newer Smith and Wessons with such a passion. It isn't JUST the idiotic safety lock. It's so much more than that. Look at the pictures posted by the OP and realize that this is the kind of gun Smith and Wesson used to make and compare to the kinds of guns they make today. There is no comparison. This gun is even more beautiful and unusual because f the addition of the barrel shroud and that's another thing I don't like about the newer Smith and Wessons, that they keep trying to "re-style' the look of the barrels and they end up turning a work of art into an absolute abomination. What a beautiful specimen. Thank you for posting pictures and telling the story. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valmet Posted September 16, 2018 Share Posted September 16, 2018 That’s a scarce piece for sure- thanks for sharing. I love vintage S&Ws. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyd Posted September 16, 2018 Author Share Posted September 16, 2018 (edited) 15 minutes ago, Borg warner said: People wonder why I hate the newer Smith and Wessons with such a passion. It isn't JUST the idiotic safety lock. It's so much more than that. Look at the pictures posted by the OP and realize that this is the kind of gun Smith and Wesson used to make and compare to the kinds of guns they make today. There is no comparison. This gun is even more beautiful and unusual because f the addition of the barrel shroud and that's another thing I don't like about the newer Smith and Wessons, that they keep trying to "re-style' the look of the barrels and they end up turning a work of art into an absolute abomination. What a beautiful specimen. Thank you for posting pictures and telling the story. I also got another very collectible fixed sighted S&W M-19, the elusive 19-P, made in 1987 for the Peruvian police. I got one of those and the barrel was overtorqued and canted, accuracy was dismal, I got rid of it - and good riddance. S&W had its ups and downs. I also had a S&W 27-2 that threw the rounds of one chamber to a very different point of aim than the other five ones did. Pretty as a picture and a great collectible but just not good enough for a shooting gun. I also had one very rare Korth that did not meet my accuracy requirements. It ain't easy to be me, I guess. Edited September 16, 2018 by Andyd 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borg warner Posted September 16, 2018 Share Posted September 16, 2018 4 minutes ago, Andyd said: I also got another very collectible fixed sighted S&W M-19, the elusive 19-P, made in 1987 for the Peruvian police. I got one of those and the barrel was overtorqued and canted, accuracy was dismal, I got rid of it - and good riddance. S&W had its ups and downs. I also had a S&W 27-2 that threw the rounds of one chamber to a very different point of aim than the other five ones did. Pretty as a picture and a great collectible but just not good enough for a shooting gun. I also had one very rare Korth that did not meet my accuracy requirements. It ain't easy to be me, I guess. I wouldn't want a Korth that wasn't accurate. or a model 27 either. My most prized possession is a model 58 41 magnum. I got it from a dealer and someone in Canada had owned it. It had some holster wear but hadn't been shot much. the r4ifling on the barrel had such sharp edges that it cut the copper plating on some Berry's bullets that I loaded for it and parts of the jackets separated after they left the barrel and made marks on the paper target the width of the rifling. Another thing that happened when I fired the first 150 rounds out of the gun is that the cylinder bolt got stuck in the frame because it had a burr on it and my gunsmith had to remove it and smooth it up, Strangest thing I ever saw in both instances. This was a gun that I've wanted all my life ever since a friend of mine in high school bought one in 1965 and let me shoot it with some of the lead wadcutter "Police" loads which were very mild to shoot. The other S&W I've always wanted was a model 53 22 jet and I had a chance to buy one around the same time I got the model 58 but it was a 6 inch and not an 8 3/8th inch barrel and that's the one I wanted. Some of thoise guns came with spare 22 lr cylinders in addition to the chamber inserts, amazingly, 22 jet ammo is available to day at a reasonable price from Target sports. the ammo is made by Privi Partisan. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyd Posted September 17, 2018 Author Share Posted September 17, 2018 On 9/16/2018 at 5:54 AM, G26S239 said: Is that the original bluing? Because it looks real nice. Yes, it is all original but it wasn't carried and obviously not shot a lot but cared for very well. On S&W revolvers the wear on the ejector rod will let you guess how much it was shot. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyd Posted September 17, 2018 Author Share Posted September 17, 2018 (edited) A few years I bought a five inch barreled Korth in .32 S&W Long that was a nice addition to my Korth collection that has a six inch .32 S&W Long. The gun was bought over the internet and when it arrived, I took it to the range with my other .32 and some reloads with my hardcast bullets. The new addition did not group at 25 meters off hand, so I sat down and used a rest but the results did not improve. I shot the other Korth at 25 m offhand and it grouped okay. The smaller bullet holes in the center of the right target were shot with a .22 Korth to confirm, that I had not completely lost the touch ... I was very disappointed and took the gun home, cleaned it, took it apart and tried to figure out what it is. I slugged the chambers and the barrel, they were fine. Finally I looked closer at the forcing cone. The forcing cone was a farce! Obviously cut way too large. This is a 9mm bullet that fits into the oversized cone: .32 bullets in the cones Don't mind the colour of the bullet, I had no other colour at hand. Edited September 17, 2018 by Andyd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brasso Posted December 30, 2018 Share Posted December 30, 2018 That's my grail gun. Beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moshe Posted December 30, 2018 Share Posted December 30, 2018 19 hours ago, Brasso said: That's my grail gun. Beautiful. Shalom. I would love it too, in stainless. All my revolvers are stainless. Bluing loss makes me sad, so I go with stainless. Semi-autos, I love a stainless slide, but it isn't always a deal breaker. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PATCHMAN Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 For revolvers, fixed sight, 3-inch barrel and stainless. That's all I ask for! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norton Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 On 9/16/2018 at 5:43 PM, Borg warner said: People wonder why I hate the newer Smith and Wessons with such a passion. It isn't JUST the idiotic safety lock. It's so much more than that. Look at the pictures posted by the OP and realize that this is the kind of gun Smith and Wesson used to make and compare to the kinds of guns they make today. There is no comparison. This gun is even more beautiful and unusual because f the addition of the barrel shroud and that's another thing I don't like about the newer Smith and Wessons, that they keep trying to "re-style' the look of the barrels and they end up turning a work of art into an absolute abomination. What a beautiful specimen. Thank you for posting pictures and telling the story. You know the reason the S/W's built today don't match those from yesteryear. Its because the cost would be prohibitive. They couldn't sell enough of them to make profit, so they had to cut some corners to keep the pistols in the black. Personally I am grateful to S/W that they still build revolvers, and a good selection. Colt fell by the wayside long ago. I own Rugers too. I don't consider them to be better then the current crop of S/W revolvers. I purchased this model 19 last summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Historian Posted February 13, 2019 Share Posted February 13, 2019 On 9/15/2018 at 3:16 PM, Fnfalman said: GIGN used to love revolvers. They had SW M29 and Manhurin revolvers equipped with bipods and scopes. And they were wicked good with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t4terrific Posted February 16, 2019 Share Posted February 16, 2019 All Glock 19 Gen 3’s came with the same sights from the factory. They were soft plastic. Aftermarket sights of all sorts are available. [emoji6] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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