Possibly S&W's ugliest gun ever?

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CH47gunner said:
In the eye of the beholder I believe - The goodyear grips are truly hideous tho, they will also snag & print thru clothing. Not good in a hide-out gun.
Add a set of pearls & T-Grip adapter and she turns into a swan.
Just sayin'.

Bruce

S&W M649
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You are correct Sir, rubber grips do nothing for a good revolver like the Bodyguard...

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Although Pachmayr grips aren't all that bad looking:

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And the original Uncle Mike's grips are very concealable:

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Didn't I already say that? LOL
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LOL - Not exactly. There were some Sc frame J frames chambered in .38 Spl that were marked Airweight. You also left out that the stronger non-Sc J Frame is properly known as the J Magnum frame.
 
Beauty is in the eye and hand of the beholder. Can you cock those guns with the hammer shroud by hand. Perhaps I should get out to gunstores more often but back in the day being weak willed pretty little guns sometimes followed me home.
 
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"Wow... what color lipstick did you put on tht pig?"

Yeah, grips don't help... witness the Hogue/S&W .500 Magnum monogrips on my Governor:

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Still an ugo... but it has a loving home!

Stainz
 
I like the 49, you can still cock it and fire single action. I have a sixties vintage one still in the box with all the goodies. Dead on accurate, I see nothing to criticize... So I suppose beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

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No. I don't find the old bodyguard style to be ugly.

Ugliest S&W? Hmm...... There are so many choices! ;)

I'd vote for that hideous 8 shot scandium 357 N-frame. The one with all the rails on it.

That or the so called "governor". Hard to choose since S&W has not made a good looking revolver in over a decade. :)
 
GOPGUY - What a beaut. I'm in love. Remember the song from the 60's - If you want to be happy for the rest of your life, never make a pretty woman your wife.
 
Smith & Wesson was well aware of bobbed hammers, but the model 38 was designed at the request of the U.S. Secret Service/Presidential Protection Detail. They wanted a revolver that could be fired from within a coat (not pants) pocket, and yet have a single as well as double action system. They didn't give a hoot about how it looked, just how it worked. - Old Fuff
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Now that's interesting. I always figured the modern "humpbacks" were just the natural evolution of the .38 S&W "Lemon Squeezers."
 
While it's undeniably unattractive - in a Boston Terrier sort of way - I think there are several current offerings which are unattractive with no redeeming qualifiers... To wit..
 

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nothing ugly about them to me

I like the Bodyguards...the original ones. I thought it was way strange that S&W decided to use that name again on some really ugly guns and call them Bodyguards. Blasphemy I say. :cuss:

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Of course those model 40's ain't too bad either.

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I like them all. I wish I had one sample of each and every SW model ever made.
But, to be honest, the Governor... ummmm, well... not for me. I think it´s a shame for a reputed manufacturer, sorry, the most reputed one (maybe), to....
 
Smith & Wesson was well aware of bobbed hammers, but the model 38 was designed at the request of the U.S. Secret Service/Presidential Protection Detail. They wanted a revolver that could be fired from within a coat (not pants) pocket, and yet have a single as well as double action system. They didn't give a hoot about how it looked, just how it worked.
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I shoot the 638 better than my 642. It's my go to ankle gun. So +1 for function over form.
 
How about the S&W 296? I have one and its one of the oddest modern S&Ws. Its a .44 Spl, L Frame, five shot with a 2.5" barrel. The frame is aluminum and the cylinder is titanium. It has an enclosed hammer as found in the Centennials but the back of the frame is humpbacked...There is no exposed hammer spur as found in the Bodyguard revolvers. It's a very strange looking revolver but it's so ugly that it's cool...
 
Governor is the ugliest. I have a nickel model38 and it's great. The one in the pics just needs some smaller grips, like a boot grip or some wood
 
I present to you my family's S&W Model 38 Airweight Bodyguard.
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I've actually always liked the 38/638 guns with their shrouded hammers. Admittedly the grips on that gun are hideous. I like a nice set of wooden boot grips best for J-Frames.

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The governor is much, much, much uglier. Who'd have though that Smith would copy Taurus in making a very ugly and very silly gun. If people buy them I guess you can't blame them though. I don't mind the hump backs. I do find the grips on the OPs gun to be less than beautiful and not what I would put on a J frame for either looks or function.
 
I love snubbies, I have a bunch of em. After reading this thread, I decided I needed a 638, so here is the one I picked up yesterday. Im very happy with it. It shoots to POA at 7 yards, and is comfortable to pocket carry. I prefer pocket carry and have an KLCR that is/was my EDC. Now this Smith will be my EDC. I like it that much, and shoot it better than the LCR. I have an Altamont wood boot grip on order for it. Cant wait for that. New in box, the 638 was $369+ tax

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Personally, I think the 'humpback' has its own special kind of beauty.

Now the Chiappa Rhino....that's another story. Yeeesh.
 
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