[J_Rico]

S&W 19-3 I've owned coming up on 50 years February 2026. Most aesthetically pleasing snub IMO. View attachment 1403009
View attachment 1403010

I just bought one of those (19-7, close enough) after wanting one for a long time. Not embarrassed to admit that looks were a factor in my purchase.

 

[Old School]

 

[Bren]

The Hi Power.

 

[Onkel Walther]

Despite the quality fluctuations, I love the design of Colt's old Anaconda and King Cobra revolvers.

 

[Mikej3412]

 

[fredj338]

Any gen Colt SAA, classic Gun elegance.

 

[bac1023]

I’ll agree the BHP looks great. Terrible shooter though

 

[Pred8tory]

 

[Deputy Scott 14]

I like blued revolvers and wood grips. These two are my favorite as far as “looks” that I have.

View attachment 1403006
View attachment 1403007

Both are keepers. Really miss those 3in K frames. M10,13, 64,65, Had 1 which was a M13 FBI type model. Also had the M49 Snubbie in nickel plate finish. S&W reported sales losses this year too. Bring back those retros!

 

[Old School]

Terrible shooter though

I posted a pic of the Browning BPS Upland Special. I think it is the most elegant firearm out there. But it is also a terrible shooter. Granted the 16 ga "target" loads were closer to field loads, but still. It was just unnecessarily unpleasant to shoot. I could shoot 100 12 ga rounds through an inertia Browning (like the A5) and it would feel better than 4 rounds through the BPS.

But she is a good looker, tho.

 

[Just Plain Cliff]

I think this is the most beautiful handgun I own...

 

[MrWest]

Some good looking guns here:

 

[The Night Rider]

 

[ScotchWhisky]

Something like this. Not mine.

 

[DannyB]

This pistol will go down in history as the one that changed everything, the one that revolutionized pistols. Prior to this most semi-autos were all steel, heavy, with limited rounds.

 

[Trencher1]

 

[Trencher1]

 

[Trencher1]

 

[45caldan]

This pistol will go down in history as the one that changed everything, the one that revolutionized pistols. Prior to this most semi-autos were all steel, heavy, with limited rounds.

View attachment 1403106

But universally agreed not pretty…

 

[SargeMO]

From an industrial design perspective…like the Oreo cookie or the blue tip match box. Guns with lines that please you and endure. I name a 1860 Colt Army. This a 2nd Gen, electroless nickel. What is your pick? View attachment 1402959

A word or two about the 1860 Army Model is in order. This was ultimate evolution of Colt’s cap & ball revolvers. As executed by Colt, it lived up to that standard through the Civil War and Westward Migration. In addition to having the most elegant lines of any Colt ever built, it has the finest single action revolver grip ever contrived.

You can rest assured if I was kicking an old black mustang around the countryside between 1860 and 1872, there would be a brace of ’60 Colts at my side. The last 1860’s were offered in 1873 and many originals are still shootable, some 140 years later. Colt’s reputation, military contracts and future in the marketplace was riding on every gun. Colt understood what parts needed to be hardened, how they needed to be fitted and how to balance the design to keep it from kicking itself apart. Those sleek lines begin in a very small frame junction and taper upward along the loading lever. It lacks heavy, square frame/barrel junction of the 1851 or Dragoons. Primary support for the 1860’s barrel assembly comes from a perfectly fitted arbor, precise frame/barrel assembly fit and a hardened wedge of the proper taper and dimensions.

“El Californio”: The Italian 1860 Army | The Sixgun Journal