quote:

Originally posted by oddball:
As far as revolvers, I love the S&W 27-2 and 28-2 Highway Patrolman, just classic pieces, but since these also are not on the roster, after a year, I gave up my search for a decently priced 27-2 and went with a 28-2 locally. To find in-demand off roster handguns, one must spend a lot of time looking at classifieds in CA based gun forums. And be prepared to spend more than the national average price.

I have no first hand experience with the place, but I read about a Bay Area shop (Milpitas maybe?) that specialized in getting non-roster Smiths in. You buy the gun and have it shipped to them. You buy a spare hammer and modify the spare hammer by taking off the pawl that causes the cylinder to turn. You take the spare hammer to their shop, install it, then do the DROS paperwork on your Single Action roster-exempt revolver. You come back ten days later, pickup your revolver, take it home and replace the original hammer. Lord I can't wait for the roster to be struck down as unconstitutional!

The roster has really taken the fun out of buying handguns in CA. Most of the interesting stuff is off roster and if you can find someone selling one on CalGuns, they are really proud of it. I get that, as the seller would have a devil of a time replacing it, but it is really hard to get excited about paying 1200 or 1300 dollars for a Sig Sauer P320 for instance.

I haven't read every post, so forgive me if I am redundant, but it seems like you could use a good .22 handgun. I'd propose a mintish K22, specifically a 17- no or low dash, with box, papers and accessories. They turn up on Gunbroker or the S&W forum from time to time and would get you close to your $2000 figure, or less as the gun becomes less pristine. Just a thought.

Several have mentioned the P7M8.

I bought one ~10 years ago, had it as one of my carry pistols. I was attracted to it as the most lefty friendly pistol I was able to find.

I'd counsel against it. It has a capacity of 8+1, 9mm, and gets hot very fast. It also chokes on 147 gr. ammo. I believe it is designed for 120-125 gr. It is a very expensive pistol.

I liked the pistol for what I needed/wanted. HK service was top notch. A litle black doohicky broke inside one Sunday at the range. I called HK on Monday, shipped it Tuesday, got a call on Wednesday that it was fixed and cleaned and checked, and had it in my hand on Thursday.

I was able to deal with these drawbacks in Whackyland, but after I left, the appeal diminished.

There are other firearms that would be more "special" I think.

To me the best heirloom gun(or anything of that nature) is something that means something to you and as a plus factor is a bit showy for others to admire.

I have my great grandfather's fine English double barrel shotgun that he used for bird hinting and to keep the peace in the saloon and bordello he ran in Sherman Texas a century ago. It is pretty enough and the stories that go with it make it especially interesting.

Maybe several consecutively numbered shiny Colt 1911 depending on how many kids you may have & that is the start of the stories right there. You had planned your heritage guns early in the game.

quote:

Originally posted by Z06:
Back in '81 my bride bought me a Python as a wedding gift. $505. The "snake" will eventually go to the grandsons. They'll have to fight it out!

My current suggestion for you will fit in your budget and still be an heirloom down the road.
A S&W Model 27-2 in prime condition is near-Python perfection and affordable. I have 2 (one for EACH grandson!) 27-2s that I bought for $450 and $800 (nickel) some years back.

Good Lord, those are awesome pieces! They look like they rolled off the production line yesterday. Excellent photography helps.

Yeah, those really are beautiful pistols.

One of Gary Reeder's refinished Belgium Hi Powers.

How do we feel about .357 mag vs .44 mag in a revolver as a heritage gun?

.357 is cheaper and easier to shoot

quote:

Originally posted by sjtill:
Lots of good suggestions.
Consider a S&W Performance Center revolver such as the 627PC in .38 Super, and send it to Randy Lee at Apex to have him work his magic on it and take the trigger pull down to 5 lbs. and convert it to using 9 mm ammo in moon clips.
I recently had a young man shoot a number of my handguns and he liked that Apex 627PC the best. With apologies to Bruce, it's probably my favorite too.

Yes, should be under $2k.
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sjtill, are there any limitations on the types of 9mm ammo you can shoot out of that? Will modern defensive 9mm loads work (and work well?)

If you're seriously considering a 9mm revolver, I'd recommend taking a hard look at the S&W 929.

No need to convert it as it comes from the factory chamber in 9mm...then just get Apex to tune the action for you

Maybe consider a Browning T-Series HiPower?? Classic good looks!!