Smith and Wesson model 10 Police Trade in

**swack** · January 26th, 2012, 07:12 PM

So i have a few questions for the old school wheelgun guys. For starters, how are these guns?

The one i am looking am looking at has a 4 in barrel and is in slightly rough shape, no real rust, but not really any bluing left either. It has a Hogue monogrip on it, which while looks kinda silly, I really like the feel of it. The back strap of the grip is rough, seeming like it was handeled a lot but not cleaned very often. There was no real noticible play in the cylinder when the hammer was cocked, and it functioned smoothly. Timing appeared to be fine, and I checked it out to the best of my ability and aside from the rough finish, it seemed pretty nice. Now back to the questions....

What would a good price be on one of these? The shop is asking 250 which seemed pretty good to me (again, i dont know a whole lot about these).

How stout is the kick on something like this? I would like to get it not only for myself, but also to get my girlfriend shooting more as she is not a fan of most of the ones i currently own.

And finally, anything in specific i should look out for? frequent proplems, signs of abuse etc.

Thanks

**Sparxfly72** · January 26th, 2012, 07:29 PM

Model 10's are the blued version of the ss model 64's. 38spl does not "kick" per say, although the 38spl+p do add "umph". If it is in the condition you describe, then that is a fair price, not a collector piece, but a quality S&W just the same.

**mpan72** · January 26th, 2012, 07:35 PM

That seems like an o.k. price for what you describe. You can probably get a gun in a little better condition in that price range if you look around. Buds has a selection of trade ins they recently listed. (I prefer to stay local).
My first quality gun was a model10-8 that I bought over a decade ago for $175. It is still my edc and will be retired to home defense duties only in a couple months. It has served me well and I will never get rid of it. I have never had a problem with it but I am going semi-auto with my next edc.
They are great guns that will last for many generations if taken care of.

**cdeily** · January 26th, 2012, 08:27 PM

I highly recommend them. I picked one up about 2 years ago in very similar condition to the one you describe, except it had the original wood grips instead of a hogue. Mine was a police trade-in as well apparently.

It is one of my most accurate guns super-reliable after hundreds of rounds through it. Every time it goes out to the range, it performs flawlessly.

If you're looking for opinions - Price-wise, I would say 250 is a little high for the condition you describe it. I'm not real well-versed on prices in shops anymore, but privately that would be a 200 gun, not sure on shop price.

**Sparxfly72** · January 26th, 2012, 08:52 PM

I disagree. $200 will get you a used Rossi/Taurus. A used S&W that does not have timing issue with bluing faded average price is at ~$250+/-. Not great, but ballpark.

**pennlineman** · January 26th, 2012, 09:09 PM

The price seems a little bit high for the condition you describe. Model 10's are classics, there were a lot of them made so it isn't difficult to find nice examples at reasonable prices. The good thing about police trade ins is that many were carried a lot and fired little. Other than the cosmetic blemishes you may be looking at a very mechanically sound revolver.

The things I look for when buying a S&W revolver are as follows. To check the timing cock the revolver slowly in single action for all six charge holes. The cylinder should lock all six times. Do the same thing double action, the cylinder should lock before the hammer falls. By doing these two checks slowly you can see if it locks up without relying on cylinder momentum to do so.

Look at the gap between the barrel and cylinder. This is known as cylinder gap and less is better provided the cylinder does not rub up against the forcing cone (rearward part of the bbl). S&W has changed the specs on what is acceptable over the years, anywhere from .007-.012". Excessive cylinder gap robs you of velocity.

The gun should lock up tight. Check the cylinder for side to side wobble/play when the gun is in full lockup, hammer down trigger to the rear. Don't expect a welded to the frame feel, some play is normal and the cylinder should center itself when you let it go. You can also check for endshake. Push the cylinder rearwards, again some movement is normal but not a lot. The best way to get the hang of these checks is to handle a few different revolvers and you'll see the differences.

Hammer push off is an expensive repair. With the hammer cocked try to push it forward with your thumb, not too hard. The hammer should not release.

Look to see if the screwheads are buggered up, this is often a sign of amatuer gunsmithing.

**swack** · January 26th, 2012, 09:54 PM

Originally Posted by pennlineman

The price seems a little bit high for the condition you describe. Model 10's are classics, there were a lot of them made so it isn't difficult to find nice examples at reasonable prices. The good thing about police trade ins is that many were carried a lot and fired little. Other than the cosmetic blemishes you may be looking at a very mechanically sound revolver.

The things I look for when buying a S&W revolver are as follows. To check the timing cock the revolver slowly in single action for all six charge holes. The cylinder should lock all six times. Do the same thing double action, the cylinder should lock before the hammer falls. By doing these two checks slowly you can see if it locks up without relying on cylinder momentum to do so.

Look at the gap between the barrel and cylinder. This is known as cylinder gap and less is better provided the cylinder does not rub up against the forcing cone (rearward part of the bbl). S&W has changed the specs on what is acceptable over the years, anywhere from .007-.012". Excessive cylinder gap robs you of velocity.

The gun should lock up tight. Check the cylinder for side to side wobble/play when the gun is in full lockup, hammer down trigger to the rear. Don't expect a welded to the frame feel, some play is normal and the cylinder should center itself when you let it go. You can also check for endshake. Push the cylinder rearwards, again some movement is normal but not a lot. The best way to get the hang of these checks is to handle a few different revolvers and you'll see the differences.

Hammer push off is an expensive repair. With the hammer cocked try to push it forward with your thumb, not too hard. The hammer should not release.

Look to see if the screwheads are buggered up, this is often a sign of amatuer gunsmithing.

I checked most of this out and it seemed sound. I didn't check the hammer though, so I will keep that in mind. Also, is there any way to check if the firing pin if striking with sufficient force?

As far as price, I would just like to know that its not a rip off. I have no issue paying 10-15% more to keep my money local.

Thanks for the input guys.

**pennlineman** · January 26th, 2012, 10:11 PM

Originally Posted by swack

I checked most of this out and it seemed sound. I didn't check the hammer though, so I will keep that in mind. Also, is there any way to check if the firing pin if striking with sufficient force?

As far as price, I would just like to know that its not a rip off. I have no issue paying 10-15% more to keep my money local.

Thanks for the input guys.

The price is not over the top IMO. For a few more bucks you could find a much nicer one. I got this one for $300 last summer.

Weak strikes are usually the result of loosening up the strain screw screw in an attemp to reduce trigger pull weight. Some people have also bent the main spring trying to accomplish the same thing. Handle a few, you'll know when one feels weak. If the trigger seems slow to return forward or hangs up a little bit someone has probably taken a coil or two off othe the rebound slide spring again trying to reduce trigger pull.

**ScotsGuards** · January 26th, 2012, 10:59 PM

$250.00 Sounds like a very fair deal. I have several Model 10 trade-ins in my shop just now as well and priced very similerly. The Model 10 M&P is a classic and one would be hard pressed to do better for a good, solid, basic revolver. There is no suprise that the S&W M&P revolver has been the most widely produced and copied revolver in history. Though NO ONE does them as well as S&W themselves.