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New barrel or new revolver?


portugeejn

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I’ve come to realize in my in my maturity that I prefer the 7 1/2” barrel on the Single Action Army & clones. I’ve got a few 4 5/8” barrel revolvers that I’d like change for the the 7 1/2”. My opinion question is this. Is it better to:

 

A-Buy new guns in the barrel length you want, then sell the ones you don’t (or vice-versa).
 

B-Trade them for the barrel length you want. 
 

C-Purchase barrels and change them.  Or have them changed out by a gunsmith if it is beyond my abilities. 


Portugee John

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I'd say, depends on caliber and availability of what you actually want. I looked for a year for a Ruger old model stainless 44-40 4.62" barrel to match one I already had. Finally I bought a 7 1/2" 44-40 and a 4.62" 44 magnum and swapped the barrels. It is not difficult, but requires some special tools and patience to get it right.

 

If the guns you want are readily available, buy them and sell the old ones. If not, break out the barrel vice and rent the tools needed.

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Go with "A" when you have a model that lots of pards will want.  The 4 5/8" is very popular.  The 7 1/2 is least popular, and you may find them used pretty easily.  So, A but with a cheaper way to swap over.

 

good luck, GJ

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If you are buying Colts, a 7 1/2 inch barrel revolver is usually a bit cheaper than a shorter barreled Colt. Changing the barrel on a Colt can devalue it if you don't keep the original barrel to reinstall and I would pay a good gunsmith to change the or if you can still get it done by Colt, I would have them do it and get a factory letter with it. I have found most people buying and trading Colts are real funny about them if they have been modified.

 

If it is a clone, and you can get the barrel, it may be better to change barrel as a used revolver will not bring enough to replace it with a new one. if you change your mind, you can always change the barrel back and if you were to sell it down the road, having 2 barrels for a revolver may make it a bit more desirable.

 

if it was a Ruger, I would probably sell it and replace it with a different Ruger.  If you can not get the one you want in a Ruger, change the barrel and keep the old one as you probably will not harm the value of the gun.

 

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How much do you like what you have?  The action, finish, caliber, sentimental value, etc all should play into your decision.  Then I’d look at availability of replacement pistols vs barrels, now a days who knows what you’re going to be able to find. 

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That’s for sure. I am finding some of the replacements I want, some just barrels, and some much more than I can afford to pay right now. 

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