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Korth short

5K views 86 replies 15 participants last post by  PzGren 
#1 ·
Well, I found another Korth at a very favorable price. I have not received it yet and know very little about the details for this specific gun. It is a Sport model in the Target configuration with micro adjustable sights, Nill adjustable grips, a trigger shoe. Price was listed in the 2007 price list as €5525 plus $415 for the Target configuration. It appears to be in the quite rare "short" 5 1/4" barrel length. Calibre is .32 S&W Long. I got a set of normal Sport model grips in my spare parts box and they will quickly replace those grips for single handed shooting.

It might interest Brian that the blued Combat with the 9mm conversion was €7,444. the leather case was €300 and that was in 2007!

 
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#3 ·
I was in a gun club when I was still a student and had the opportunity to shoot fine firearms from the other members; Korths, SIG P210s, MR73s, Hämmerlis and so on. It spoiled me but it took a long time until I decided to buy a Korth and the first SIG P210 for myself.

I have a tricked out Glock 17 with a Vanek trigger that I can shoot as well as my P210 and a S&W 14-2 and an old K-22 that is every bit as accurate as any of my Korth revolvers but a P210-4 and a .22 Korth are especially dear to me. I gave the P210-4 to one of my sons and enjoy a P210-6 now.

 
#5 ·
Brian,

I have a set of spare Sport grips but will probably get another set of bigger Nills for it. I usually do not shoot single handed, neither do I run the 100 yards just jumping on one leg:supergrin:. This is the first 5 1/2 inch gun I will have. I am waiting for the Korth and the BÜHAG rifle now.
 
#7 ·
That is very cool Andy, congrats. Post some more pics and a review when you get it in your hands.
 
#8 ·
Very cool [emoji41]

Yeah, I don't generally do any one handed shooting either. I even put the standard black plastic grips on my HK P9S Sport due to that.


When I shot Tom's P9 the grips seemed very limiting. If you had the right size hands I'm sure they would be awesome. If you don't, as I apparently don't, they felt very awkward. On another note everyone should practice some with shooting one handed as they should shooting with your off hand.
 
#13 ·
OK, I have NO basis for an opinion, HOWEVER, those are the ugliest excuse for grips I have seen in my life for such an exquisite revolver. I have seen better designs in an 8th grade shop class. It looks like the Korth tried to mate with a Glock during an EMP detonation. It appears the grips' main purpose is to provide a surface for skateboard tape. I have not seen anything more atrociously contradictory bolted on a firearm.

Aside from that minor flaw, it is a stunning find, congrats!!
 
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#21 ·
#24 ·
Thanks,

some of them are extremely accurate and have triggers that help to use their accuracy potential. I think you could make a Korth come alive and unbind that potential!

They are usually very well made and extremely durable.Brian and I got our first Korth revolvers about the same time; back in 2008. I got a 1969 Korth rimfire revolver then that has been going to the range with me ever since then and has not been pampered and it still looks pretty decent and shoots like the day when I picked it up (used). The fact that the cylinder bores are swaged with a hardened ball bearing leads to a glass-like surface and easy extraction, unlike my beloved S&W K-22.
 
#25 ·
Very cool find. I am led to believe that quite some time back it was not completely unusual for guys to target shoot with .22, .32 and .38.


I am not sure how popular those grips are but similar ones have been around a while



And there were other oddities grip wise at lower prices. The old Fitz Ten O grips spring to mind. Or some like these

 
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#26 ·
Very cool find. I am led to believe that quite some time back it was not completely unusual for guys to target shoot with .22, .32 and .38.


I am not sure how popular those grips are but similar ones have been around a while



And there were other oddities grip wise at lower prices. The old Fitz Ten O grips spring to mind. Or some like these

The
 
#27 ·
Bruce,

in Germany the .32 S&W Long is the smallest and lightest cartridge permissible for DSB sanctioned centerfire competitions. Since all the traditional competitions are shot single handed, those orthopedic grips do give a big advantage in a repeatable grip and hand positioning. I shot one of my best scores ever with a borrowed Hämmerli 240 in .32 S&W Long and also had shot a Hämmerli 230 back in the days ...

 
#28 ·
Sadly I have never been to Germany - the "closest" I have come is Alex's Schnitzel Haus down on 79th Street. But it seems somewhat before my time a bunch of handgun shooting was done one handed. I have seen photos of guys lined up with the left hand on the hip shooting with the right hand learning combat shooting, which of course seems somewhat antiquated today. I am led to believe that the K-22 K-32 and K-38 had some following at least informally some time back.
 
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#29 ·
Congrats on your new purchase to what looks like a fantastic gun. We don't see many exotic revolvers in my locale.
 
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#30 ·
Really cool handgun and I'll bet the farm that it is extremely accurate. I have a plain Jane H&R 4 inch barrel chambered in 32 S&W Long that belonged to my father, and I used to have an S&W K Frame 4 inch barrel in the same caliber. With either one, I could nearly write my name on a target at 30-40 feet. Something about that round, besides zilch for recoil, makes it very very accurate. Great find. Happy Shooting!
 
#47 ·
A friend inherited his grandfather's S&W .32, asked me to check it out as it was (in his words) very old (actually made in 1934, so not that old) and wasn't sure if it was safe to fire. 4" barrel, stag grips that looked a bit homemade with slight finger grooves that fit me right handed like a glove.

Not only was it safe, but an incredible shooter that had obviously been tuned up at some point, had one of the shortest breaks I've shot and the top sight had been filed down a bit and a gold bead mounted, as well as the rear sight widened a bit. It was scary accurate, told him due to the light trigger would not recommend it for carry, but was one hell of a range toy.

He was talking to his great uncle, who told him his granddad would compete in turkey shoots back when that was a big thing for fundraising, would shoot one handed against long rifles out to 50 yards and won regularly.
 
#32 ·
I am fortunate in that there is a fairly large (by local standards) gun show a few hours north of here in Lakeland that sometimes has Korth, a couple times has had a Singer, and more often than not has a Registered Magnum, some SAAs sometimes some Lugers displayed.
 
#43 ·
Lovely acquisition. .32 is a great target shooting round for 25 yards. Such a soft recoiling round.

Those ergo grips make perfect sense for one handed competition like bullseye. They provide a distinct advantage over normal grips in those shooting competitions. Ideally, you'd have them fitted to you. When I bought my Pardini SP Bullseye 22lr, they had me send in a photocopy and measurements of my hand to ensure proper fit.
 
#48 ·
Surprise, surprise.

The gun that showed up is the pictured gun in the sales ad but now came with regular Sport model grips and no trigger shoe! The Sport grips are original to the gun, so I figure it came with two sets of grips. Of course, the guy I talked to is not in today. Guess whom I will call tomorrow and ask what happened ...

Overall, the gun checks out good. Hasn't been shot much and from the adjustments the former owner wouldn't have hit the broad side of the barn. It is a tad shorter than my other .32, making it a short Korth, indeed.

 
#51 ·
Thanks guys,

I am waiting for my next range visit on the week end to see how it shoots. I will compare it to the other .32 S&W Long Korth and maybe will bring the S&W M14-2 along to set the bar higher. I will need to reload some .32s before that.

I changed the match sight out to a regular sport sight and was surprised that it fits right away. Normally even grips need plenty of fitting, especially for the older guns that were still made when Willi was around.
 
#57 · (Edited)
I agree wholeheartedly! Actually Brian and I had discussed just that last week end. I have seen 21, 22, and one 24 series revolver that were by far below my expectations but have a 34xxx from 1983 that performs great. I know from a German friend where the outsourcing for the cylinders and barrel shrouds were done, the hardening was done by Schütte, who also work/worked for SIG Sauer.

Veit was a good friend of Willi and we have to look at some of his remarks as coming from a very personal standpoint.
Yeah, I tend to think some of his writings were biased based on his personal friendship with Willi. I just picked up my 36 Series from 1985 and it's at least the equal of my '76, if not nicer.
 
#58 ·
Brian,

since you did not formally introduce your latest addition on GT, I am looking forward to the picture-laden post. From what I have seen, it is in outstanding condition but that is to be expected considering where it is coming from.
 
#63 ·
I went to the range yesterday night with "my" new Korth .32 Sport and got ready to compare it to my most accurate revolver; a S&W 14-2. I warmed up with a few rounds of CCI .22 l.r through one of my Korths that I know to be a great performer.

In trying the new .32 Korth, I fired a few shots to see how the elevation worked but found out very quickly that there was something wrong with this gun that appeared like new. To put it simple, it is a piece of crap!

It just does not group. I shot at the same target at 25 meters with the .22 Korth -already being solemnly upset- and afterwards shot my other .32 Korth for comparsion. I had it dialed in for hotter ammo but even though it shot low, it still grouped at 25 meters. The last addition is probably a special run for collectors instead of shooters:supergrin:! This one is going back to where got it from.

I did not even need to get the S&W M14-2 out, it would have been an insult to that fine sporting arm to be compared to such a piece of garbage.

I am left with but 15 great Korth revolvers again.


Shoots fired with the new .32 are circled in black/blue. Shots from the .22 are circled in yellow on the right target. The left target was my warm-up.


Shots from my old .32 are low but at least a group on the right target!
 
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