New Acquisition: S&W Victory Model .38 Special!

[imarangemaster]

Assessment: I've had the Victory long enough to have had an opportunity to shoot it several times, clean it thoroughly, and do an detailed inspection.

-The condition is well worn, with lots of patina, but no real pitting.

-The bore is bright and shiny, though on close inspection it has a faint ring about 1.5" from the muzzle. There is no visible bulge on the exterior, even under oblique lighting. Based on my 10 yard target, this has no effect on accuracy.

-The cylinder is replaced, and has .020" gap. While it is double the civilian Model 10 gap, it also does not affect accuracy. There is no lead shaving and the timing is dead on. fore and after cylinder shake is nil.

-It was missing the lanyard ring, and had NOS GI replacement grips (un-serial numbered) that were oversized. I had a used set of serial numbered grips that had wear equal to the weapon, that were a good fit. I also had a Victory Model lanyard ring I put on.

I paid $300 "Buy it Now". Was it worth it? I think it was, at least to me. It is a shooter, and a representative model of the Victory Model my dad carried on Iwo Jima in 1945. It goes well with my Inland M1 Carbine and all of his WW2 stuff.