S&W 686 ?!?!!!!!!
Are you kidding me? What am I missing. Sold for $1,100?
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=329207307
WOW! I didn't pay that much for my Andy Cannon 686
by Rob Leahy 
, Prescott, Arizona, Friday, May 10, 2013, 15:30 (4219 days ago) @ Norm
nor for my 686+...Hey, more power to em, someone wanted that, and bad.
Rob
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Of the Troops & For the Troops
Is that Pesos
by Dave B , Alamogordo New Mexico, Friday, May 10, 2013, 17:07 (4219 days ago) @ Norm
Or Turkish Lira?
It's a RARE CS-1 version!
Which means what, I do not know.
Customs Service.
by Andrew , Bloomington, IN, Friday, May 10, 2013, 22:15 (4219 days ago) @ cas
According to the internet hype, the Customs Service set sky-high standards for accuracy and reliability. I'd rather have the Model 520 that Jack has on his GB auctions.
No, I don't think so....
...the CS-1 was a 3" round-butt 686 made for the Customs Service. There were about 7000 made, all in all. They were being surplused by the federal government in the early '90s, and sold off through dealers. About halfway through this process, Clinton discovered that his administration was selling handguns designed for concealed carry at the same time they were promoting the Brady Bill, and he immediately suspended all further sales and had the rest of the guns destroyed. So there are approximately 3500 of them out there. They are fine little guns.
Here's a picture
....of a CS-1 with custom birdseye maple finger-groove grips on it. The bead-blast matte finish is typical for these guns.
![[image]](images/uploaded/20130511034543518dbee7803a7.jpg)
No, I don't think so....
There were 4" CS-1s built. I've owned a couple. Have a friend a couple towns over who currently owns one.
Were they also....
...bead-blasted? And did the 4" CS-1s have the upper edge of the yolk (where it meets with the frame) beveled?
Were they also....
I've seen them both bead blasted and with a brushed finish. Don't recall about the beveling and can't find pictures of mine to check. I sold them a few years ago to buy something else - most likely a TLA.
I first saw them at the LGS in 1989
They were 'overrun' guns, NIB, 3-inch and 4-inch barrels, round-butt frames, bead blasted, black sights. I thought they were interesting, but I was selling, not buying at the time, so I passed.
I read about them later, possibly in The Standard Catalog Of Smith & Wesson (SCSW), maybe American Handgunner, or perhaps some other magazine. It was there I learned about the US Customs Service spec concerning the beveled yoke; when I first saw it in person, I had taken it as merely 'bad workmanship'.
Since it isn't supposed to be, but it isn't 'standard' for the 686 either, it wouldn't surprise me if there are CS-1 guns out there that don't have it.
Even if it *was* standard, there would probably be 686s that didn't have it.
Furthermore, there are probably standard 686s that *do* have it.
If there is one 'rule' with S&Ws, it must go something like this: There *are* no rules, only trends marked by exceptions, many of the latter well beyond counting.
In addition, the books are nothing more than guides. I've never seen one that didn't contain errors or otherwise contradict experience, and the SCSW is certainly no exception. I had the 1st Edition for many years, skipped the 2nd, and only recently picked up the 3rd.
The 1st Edition was rife with errors, and the 3rd contains its share, too. Perhaps I should have got the 2nd...
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![[image]](http://www.sixshootercommunity.com/share/awkward.gif)
The *upside* of the SCSW and similar books
If you're like me, you will literally see things you never knew existed.
For example, the 3rd Edition of the SCSW shows a small photograph of a post-war, 5-inch .38/44 Outdoorsman with an *alloy frame* and *nickel finish*. 
According to the accompanying story, it was called the 'Light Heavy Duty' (even though it has adjustable sights).
I suppose if you can believe the story/caption, the picture sometimes says enough: I would *love* to have that gun...
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