Ideas wanted: what to do with a classic S&W?

[rainman]

I have one of the almost NYSP Smith N-frame .357 / fixed sights / polished blue / Model 520.

Said piece has been a safe queen for many years...never fired...in truly beautiful condition.

I haven't been able to bring myself to shoot it, but can't seem to part with it (even though prices have risen substantially since I bought it).

While I don't shoot revolver much, I have a soft spot in my heart for classic S&Ws...quality we may never see again.

I do prefer K-frame actions and round butt to the N-frame square butt.

So asking for opinions. Should I...


Sell to someone who will appreciate it more than I?

Shoot it as-is?

Put back in the safe for another 5 years?

Have customized: modify to K-frame round-butt and add some high-vis sights (Bowen Arms has some nice ones)?

Thoughts welcome...thanks in advance!


-Rainman

[TOrrock]

Well, if you keep it, don't modify it.

I had one of those guns, and like an idiot, I sold it. I sold it to a guy I know who is a very serious collector, as in first name basis and personal calls to Roy Jinks, and he shoots it.

I also have a soft spot for the N frames. The only one I currently have is a M28 Highway Patrolman, which I bought because I couldn't afford another Model 520.

If you really want a K frame, then buy a nice used Model 19 and just keep the 520 laying around. If you get into a tight financial spot, sure, sell it, but if not, keep it.

[Kevin P]

Keep it!

If you sell it you will regret it. I think everyone needs a good revolver in their safe. Also doing a round butt conversion on an N-frame is a waste IMO. There are plenty good grips out there if you desire something different. I would leave it alone plus I would shoot it alot more and enjoy it.

[Alpha Sierra]

If you modify it, think of it as setting anywhere between $500 and $1000 on fire.

[S. Kelly]

I had 2 of them, sold both. That move is up there with Russia selling us Alaska. If you keep it, do NOT modify it. If you sell it, get something you want and modify that.

[300WM]

1) Shoot it as is, but not too much.
2) Definitely do not customize it.
3) Keep it as a safe queen (except when you are shooting it).
4) Give it to one of your kids later on.

Every gun person has sold a gun they wish they had kept. Don't put yourself in that category. Keep it.

[rainman]

Thanks to all, for the thoughtful input.

I agree with not modifying it...keeping it (as-is) or selling it. The M520 is truly a beautiful piece.

If I keep it, I may not be able to resist the temptation to shoot it, however! :D



-Rainman

[citizensoldier16]

The worst thing anyone can do to a classic firearm is modify it. If you plan on keeping it and watching its value grow, put it in a box back in the safe. Pull it out once a month and clean it. The worst thing you can do to it is modify it.

[Dienekes]

The 520 is a neat gun but pretty much a retro throwback, but a very limited production one at that. I could and should have laid one in back in 1981 when they were easy to find, but with small kids and a mortgage I had other priorities.

A Model 28 is a fine, common blaster and actually a better all around gun than the 520 to shoot. The new Model 21s and 22s are about the same gun but still in production if a fixed sight, 4" N frame is wanted. I like those kinds of N frames a lot--very high cool factor--but they are awfully big guns for my hand size and not all that practical.

But they make great show and tell pieces and everybody loves them...

[dewatters]

Back in the late 1980s-early '90s, there was a matched pair of 520 on the Texas gunshow circuit. They had been modified with gold bead front sights. The dealer claimed that they had been customized for a county sheriff.

[Entropy]

I have one of the almost NYSP Smith N-frame .357 / fixed sights / polished blue / Model 520.

Said piece has been a safe queen for many years...never fired...in truly beautiful condition.

I haven't been able to bring myself to shoot it, but can't seem to part with it (even though prices have risen substantially since I bought it).

While I don't shoot revolver much, I have a soft spot in my heart for classic S&Ws...quality we may never see again.

I do prefer K-frame actions and round butt to the N-frame square butt.

So asking for opinions. Should I...


Sell to someone who will appreciate it more than I?

Shoot it as-is?

Put back in the safe for another 5 years?

Have customized: modify to K-frame round-butt and add some high-vis sights (Bowen Arms has some nice ones)?

Thoughts welcome...thanks in advance!


-Rainman

It's all up to you. Personally, I've never been a fan of not shooting a firearm. Even my collectables such as my Luger, Webley, and Colt Peacemaker get a few rounds shot through them every now and then. A gun was meant to be shot, and full appreciation of the firearm just isn't achieved without feeling it shoot too.

I would keep it, and keep it in its original condition. If you have the urge to shoot it, go for it. It might be something that you'll want to pass onto your son someday.

[Alpha Sierra]

If I keep it, I may not be able to resist the temptation to shoot it, however! :D
-Rainman

That's what they are for. So do it.

[Army Chief]

http://i807.photobucket.com/albums/yy358/SuperiorFirearms/smith%20add/SWPackAdcolor.jpg

AC

[Alpha Sierra]

Not on a 520.

[Army Chief]

Perhaps not, but the larger point is that Joe at Superior really has a special place in his heart for S&W wheelguns (and lever actions), and he strikes me as a very good guy to talk to if the intent was to actually have some kind of work done on the gun.

AC