This may get a little wordy but please bear with me. Some time ago, I determined that I wanted a legal bush carry pistol for times when a long gun would be inconvenient or for when I was bow hunting (crossbows not being known for quick reload). My first choice, back then, was a Webley in .455 but I was shocked at the cost of a good one. I stumbled upon a decently priced S&W in .44 Russian and upon doing research, I found that it was just about the most powerful of the antique caliber revolver rounds readily available. I now reload that caliber. From what I've read, .44 American, .45 Schofield, or .41 Colt have their issues, either in power or getting reloading components. I've had 6 of them pass through my hands which I moved on for one reason or another while I was refining my exact "want" list. Essentially, I wanted a very good condition 6" barrel blued 1st. Mod. Double Action and I bought one from an excellent gentleman in the US. Even with the currency conversion rate and the duty, I still paid considerably less than a comparable pistol would cost me in Canada. I've been giving it a thorough going over and cleaning. Mechanically it's perfect which may have something to do with the fact that in Aug. of 1921 it was shipped back to S&W for some work and I assume it was refurbed by Smith & Wesson at that time. The bore is good with strong rifling but a lot of evidence of black powder corrosion though no severe pitting. I am admittedly biased in favour of these pistols given the years of research I've done, but I would not hesitate to recommend this model of pistol for anyone looking for a good reliable antique. For me, my hunt for my "forever" pistol has stopped.
