Are S&W prices really this crazy?

Elkins45 said:

This is making me think I need to sell the very nice model 13 Sacramento Sheriff’s Department gun I bought for $425 a few years ago. Nice shape, P&R, police trade-in - - - should be worth $1k at least, right?

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I think Model 13"s in general have commanded a high price for a while.

Thats pretty rough.

I picked up a 4” Model 15 a couple of years ago that had faded bluing on the grip and where holsters rub, and the $475 price tag reflected the cosmetic issues. Restoration bluing brought it back to a respectable state.



I stripped the orangy finish off the grips, it looks like this now.


Same for my 4” Model 57, which is always very expensive. This gun was pitted on the frame at the left grip panel but was otherwise pristine, and the price was 2/3 what they usually sell for as a result. This gun also had bluing redone at the scene of the damage.



Model 19’s are nice, and a P&R model in great mechanical shape is a pricy endeavor indeed, but that gun is not only bluing challenged externally but very badly rust freckled or pitted just about all over. Lord knows what the insides, chambers and bore look like.

That is one specimen I would bypass at $700.

Stay safe.

Here's my 19-3 I bought at auction last year. $725 and well worth it to me. Changed the Bill Jordan grips, they are just too big for me.

That price is nowhere near the "crazy" zone. After seeing a bidding war on a S$W 66 snub end at over $3000 2 years ago i will never again be shocked at what 'desperate' people are willing to pay.

The gunbroker prices are very high. I suggest you hit every gun shop and pawn shop in your area.... buy a box of ammo from each and tell them what you are looking for. Tell them you and leave your name and number. Then check in every week or so mentioning what you seek. That's how I got a 431pd (without box) for $410.

I had been thinking about selling off my S&W collection recently as I'm getting up in years. When I see posts like these it makes me think I should start selling.

If the lockup was tight and the bore in really good shape I would pay $500 and get it cerakoted. No way I would pay $689 on an auction without being able to inspect. Yes the prices are pretty crazy

$500 around here. I wouldn't expect to get more than that if I were selling. Pre lock and non-MIM Smiths are going up however. I just purchased a 28-2 on a popular auction sight. Looked awful in the pics and nobody else bid. She cleaned up real nice and was barely used. Eight fiddy. Everyone thought it had finish issues due to some really bad powder residue but it just had not been cleaned in a very long time. Bore was great, locked up tight and looked like a new penny when I got all the powder residue off of it.

I have two model 19's and I'm going to keep them.

someguy2800 said:

If the lockup was tight and the bore in really good shape I would pay $500 and get it cerakoted. No way I would pay $689 on an auction without being able to inspect. Yes the prices are pretty crazy

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Good plan. Buy one that looks like hell and have it refinished. That's probably the only way to get a pre-lock pre-MIM shooter in good condition for not much these days.

I would rather leave it as it is than ceracote it but I certainly wouldn't give the asking price to start with.

trackskippy said:

All the old S&W's are up and climbing. That gun would be a hard sell at $500, let alone $700. Clean, it would be around $850-900 around here. Most of the 2.5" 19's I seen in decent shape of late were at or just over $1000. The last one I bought cost me close to that.

The rear sight on that gun is an easy fix. You dont need a new rear sight. There is a small threaded stud that slides into a slot on the frame, that the elevation screw threads into.

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Model 19 snubs were $750 6 years ago around here. That's when I bought mine. Box, docs and 95% with stocks that matched the SN. I put the Ahrends on it and even those are hard to find now. She's a keeper.