But the 64 Smith was clean, and it locked up tight, and since the asking price wasn’t much, I paid it on the spot. “That might be the ugliest gun I’ve ever seen,” I said. The guy explained that the revolver was a trade-in from a private security company, which had evidently etched in the officer’s badge number. The engraving was suddenly revealed like a tattoo in swimsuit season. The guy behind the counter opened the cylinder and slowly turned the gun to where I could see the other side. That doesn’t mean it isn’t a good gun-and I’m a sucker for any double-action revolver. The gun is so boring, in fact, that California has never outlawed it, and at one time it was even authorized for duty use by the NYPD. 38 six-shooter carried by uniformed law enforcement back in the ’70s and ’80s. It would’ve gone unnoticed without the price tag, because it was a Smith & Wesson Model 64, the stainless K-frame military and police revolver with fixed sights-one of the most vanilla handguns ever made. It was sitting under glass with its good side up-and marked with a suspiciously low price tag. I couldn’t see the artwork at first, but that was a ploy by the gun shop owner who had the revolver for sale. That’s exactly what someone did to the side plate of my truck gun, once upon a time. IF YOU WANT to prove once and for all that your gun means no more to you than a hammer on your workbench, etch your brand into it with a Dremel tool.

Smith and wesson model 64 review