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Mainiac

Well-Known Member
Havent fired any revolvers for a long while.since i caught the 1911/210 bug..
Finally got the itch and am gonna test 10 different cast bullets,with 1 powder ,1 load,3.0 grs of clays.
The gun: mod14 w 8.375 barrell.i know from before,this sucka is some accurate,w 148 wc,,so this should be intresting,trying all these new bullets,in a revolver,instead of auto
 
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Mainiac

Well-Known Member
This gun was a police issue,as i read years ago.
I bought it,,and never realized,it had lighted front and rear sights!!
I researched it,and an outfit named kings sites,(i think),made this conversion,for police agencies,they was based in California, super high quality job!this was back around 1960,,real night sights!!!
Battery is under the grips.
Any of you guys,able to write about this company?
 
Wiresguy

Wiresguy

Active Member
I'm familiar with 1911's, but not with 1911/210. Is the 210 the bullet weight?

As to King, King's Gun Works was well known for its custom sights and action work. Here's a link you may find interesting, if not directly addressing your specific night sighted revolver:

King Sighted Guns ... and a Corny King Poem

I know that we have lots of threads about King sights. But that is because they are so dang cool. So I hope that you're not too offended that I start another one... A few months ago, at a local Show a
smith-wessonforum.com
 
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Mainiac

Well-Known Member
I think it was a different king company.this one has the battery in the grip panal,push button on the side of grip.
Wires lead to thebulbs,in the front and rear sight.they milled a slot down the flat rib,,very precise milling.
I painted over the light bulbs,with black marker,and changed the grips,in its day,it must have been hi tech!!
 
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Mainiac

Well-Known Member
Wiresguy said:
I'm familiar with 1911's, but not with 1911/210. Is the 210 the bullet weight?

As to King, King's Gun Works was well known for its custom sights and action work. Here's a link you may find interesting, if not directly addressing your specific night sighted revolver:

King Sighted Guns ... and a Corny King Poem

I know that we have lots of threads about King sights. But that is because they are so dang cool. So I hope that you're not too offended that I start another one... A few months ago, at a local Show a
smith-wessonforum.com
Click to expand...
210,,sig model 9mm,,very accurate gun!
 
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Petrol & Powder

Well-Known Member
Mainiac said:
Havent fired any revolvers for a long while.since i caught the 1911/210 bug..
Finally got the itch and am gonna test 10 different cast bullets,with 1 powder ,1 load,3.0 grs of clays.
The gun: mod14 w 8.375 barrell.i know from before,this sucka is some accurate,w 148 wc,,so this should be intresting,trying all these new bullets,in a revolver,instead of auto
Click to expand...
The 38 Special is by far my favorite handgun cartridge.
And cast bullets go with revolvers like butter & bread.

I think you will enjoy the exercise.
 
358156 hp

358156 hp

At large, whereabouts unknown.
Mainiac said:
I think it was a different king company.this one has the battery in the grip panal,push button on the side of grip.
Wires lead to thebulbs,in the front and rear sight.they milled a slot down the flat rib,,very precise milling.
I painted over the light bulbs,with black marker,and changed the grips,in its day,it must have been hi tech!!
Click to expand...
Got pics?
 
T

Thumbcocker

Active Member
I have a couple of foreign police trade in 10-8s. The sights are set to hit about 3" high at 25 yards with 148-158 grain projectiles. I have no idea why. The Lee 125 rnfp with 4.0 of promo/red dot shoots to the sights, i.e. what the front sight covers, in both of them. FWIW
 
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Petrol & Powder

Well-Known Member
DSCN0425.JPG

I also have a couple of foreigh police trade in model 10's. The blued one is a 10-7 Royal Hong Kong Police [RHKP] issue and is an excellent gun. The 10-7 is nearly the identical model as Thumbcocker's 10-8 except the 10-8 would be the heavy barrel version. The RHKP models also had a lanyard loop installed on the butt of the grip frame.

The 10-5 with the NP3 finish and Pachmayr grips may have been in foreign police service (likely French). It has a an importers stamp from when it came back into the U.S. It was in like new condition, maybe even unfired. It had some light marks from handling but was nearly perfect otherwise. Unfortunately, it also had a huge barrel to cylinder gap. (likely why it is was cheap and possibly unfired). I had the barrel set back and the breach face re-cut to correct that flaw. Decided to have it finished in NP3 after that work and installed the Pachmayr grips to fit its "working" gun status.

They both shoot 158ish grain bullets to the sights.
 
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Rushcreek

Well-Known Member
The .38 Special and .45 auto are my favorite handgun cartridges with the .22 LR coming in third.
3.5grs of Red Dot with the Speer 158gr SWCLHP hits just above the sights on my snub and my 4” fixed sight guns.
 
Creeker

Creeker

Well-Known Member
Petrol & Powder said:
View attachment 36003

I also have a couple of foreigh police trade in model 10's. The blued one is a 10-7 Royal Hong Kong Police [RHKP] issue and is an excellent gun. The 10-7 is nearly the identical model as Thumbcocker's 10-8 except the 10-8 would be the heavy barrel version. The RHKP models also had a lanyard loop installed on the butt of the grip frame.

The 10-5 with the NP3 finish and Pachmayr grips may have been in foreign police service (likely French). It has a an importers stamp from when it came back into the U.S. It was in like new condition, maybe even unfired. It had some light marks from handling but was nearly perfect otherwise. Unfortunately, it also had a huge barrel to cylinder gap. (likely why it is was cheap and possibly unfired). I had the barrel set back and the breach face re-cut to correct that flaw. Decided to have it finished in NP3 after that work and installed the Pachmayr grips to fit its "working" gun status.

They both shoot 158ish grain bullets to the sights.
Click to expand...
Tell me about the NP3 finish.
 
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Petrol & Powder

Well-Known Member
NP3 was an electroless nickel plating process that embedded Teflon into the chemical nickel plating. The resulting finish is VERY tough, rust resistant, and self-lubricating (to a degree). The process is not cheap but the finish is nearly indestructible.

NP3 was replaced NT7 and Wright Armory is the company that provides this service.

NT7 & Metal Finishing | Wright Armory

wrightarmory.com wrightarmory.com

I would put the NP3 product on the same level as hard chrome and give it an extra point for being slick.

It doesn’t add significant thickness to parts, so there’s no interference with closely fitted parts that need to interact. Unlike most spray-on coatings, NP3 will not wear off under high usage. In fact, you pretty much have to machine or chemically strip it off once applied.

It is about as close as you can get to the weather resistance and toughness of stainless steel without using stainless steel.

S&W offered a similar Satin Nickel finish in the early 1990's on alloy J-frames but it wasn't quite identical. It was discontinued in 1997.
 
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CZ93X62

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
The 38 Special--Everyman's Revolver Caliber.

It's user-friendly to the shooter and reloader. It was the law enforcement standard for at least 75 years, and only began losing its luster when firing upon fleeing felons became less palatable to The Powers That Be.

I think the zenith of 38 Special development came roughly 30 years after it appeared when both S&W and Colt came out with large-frame 38 Special revolvers sold as "38/44" or "38 Heavy Duty" with enhanced loadings. These loads could elicit 1050-1100 FPS from a 158 grain bullet instead of the 750-825 FPS of standard pressure 38 Special loads. Such loads found their way into light-frame 38 Special platforms and did them no favors. The answer was the 357 Magnum in 1935 by S&W, and it was and is a good answer--but if people read cartridge boxes the world might be a better place. Never underestimate the potential of a highly-motivated idiot to wreak unlimited havoc.

It is very difficult to fault the 38 Special's "FBI Load", a 158 grain LSWCHP +P recipe that I have clocked at 925-940 FPS from my 5" S&W Model 10. I think that is about as good as it gets in 38 Special as far as factory loads go, and I would keep them out of all Colt D-frames made prior to 1969 and S&W J-frames not made as "+P-rated". Same caveats apply to S&W K-frames made prior to ~1970. I have a c. 1949-made Colt I-frame Officer's Model Target that isn't fed +P loads, either. When you have 5 other 357 Magnum arms on hand, there's no need for undue strain on that fine old Colt. It is stone accurate with standard-pressure cast bullets like the #358429 at 850 FPS; it is a fine field & hunting arm for small game & varmints.
 
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Petrol & Powder

Well-Known Member
CZ93X62 said:
.........Never underestimate the potential of a highly-motivated idiot to wreak unlimited havoc........
Click to expand...
/\ Very True /\

While the 38/44 revolvers and the corresponding ammunition loading for those heavy-duty revolvers were a good idea, they didn’t take idiots into account.

The standard pressure 38 Special is a great cartridge, capable of fine accuracy. Round nose bullets did the cartridge no favors in the category of terminal performance.

The 38 Special +P isn’t a huge leap in pressure (only 3K psi more under the current SAAMI specifications). With that modest increase in pressure and coupled with the proper bullet, the 38 Special +P can do very good work. The FBI load represents that blend of reasonable pressure (velocity) and correct bullet (soft lead SWC HP).

While the .357 magnum takes the form of the 38 Special to a whole different level, it does so with a tremendous increase in pressure. (35K psi). Of course, it also has the .135” longer case to help protect idiots (and their guns) from those idiots.

The 38 Special got a lot of grief for allegedly poor stopping performance that it didn’t really deserve. Largely due to bullet construction and a little from not always utilizing it to maximum allowable pressure. The FBI load fixed most of that but frankly, that should have been obvious decades before that load appeared and was widely accepted.
 
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RBHarter

RBHarter

West Central AR
9mm 147 gr pick a shape 35kpsi 950 fps MV.
38 Special 158 gr pick a shape 875 factory standard 975 +p ......
9mm 125 1250 fps
38 125 1050 +p 1100 .
If not for the closed chamber vs cyl gap there's just not enough difference to warrant all of the hoop lah about the infinite superiority of the 9mm .
I don't see one
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
Interestingly enough, the 1940 "Shooter's Bible" shows Colt advertising that ALL of their 38 Special revolvers were rated for "Hi-Speed" and "38/44 S&W" ammunition. S&W, on the other hand, only lists it for the "38 Heavy Duty" and "Outdoorsman" revolvers. FWIW
 
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