Know This: The Model 27 is true to its original design — and remains a potent revolver.

American firearm designs are some of the best in the world — and known the world over. One of the best of the best is Smith & Wesson, a company that almost single-handedly advanced firearm technology in the United States. Smith & Wesson offers a very diverse lineup of semi-automatic pistols as well as rifles, though the nearly 170-year-old company continues to manufacture revolvers, a design that S&W arguable perfected.

Of particular note is Smith & Wesson’s Model 27.

The Model 27 is part of Smith & Wesson's Classics lineup, revolvers that are “the finest new handguns possible with designs harkening back to the most famous and collectible guns that Smith & Wesson ever constructed,” blending historic designs with modern components. Each classics revolver is “based on a model known for legendary performance then enhanced with modern advantages.” 

Smith & Wesson originally introduced the Model 27 in 1935, and despite the ongoing Great Depression, was an instant hit. The revolver, then named Registered Magnum, enjoyed popularity with lawmen and criminals alike and was valued for its high-quality of manufacture as well as simple, robust design. General George S. Patton, the legendary American tank general of World War II fame, carried an ivory-handled version of the Registered Magnum and reportedly called his Smith & Wesson revolver his “killing gun.”

The Model 27 is based on Smith & Wesson’s N-frame, a large-sized revolver that is sufficiently robust to handle some of the stiffest Magnum cartridges, including the .44 Magnum, though this revolver is chambered in .357 Magnum, and like most classic revolvers, can accommodate six cartridges in its cylinder.

As the Model 27 is chambered in .357 Magnum, it can also safely chamber and fire the .38 Special cartridge, a slightly shorter and less powerful cartridge that has a bullet of the same diameter as the .357 Magnum. This cartridge flexibility offers a cheaper and easier-to-handle cartridge when compared to the powerful .357 Magnum and is ideal for newer shooters or weekend blinkers who want to practice on the cheap.

True to its original design, the Model 27 is made of polished carbon steel and features checkered wooden grips as well as a 4-inch barrel.

When compared to some of Smith & Wesson’s other, more expensive revolvers, the Model 27 is relatively affordable and retails on the Smith & Wesson website for just over $1,000. Though there are certainly more affordable revolvers similar to the Model 27 on the market today, the revolver is backed by Smith & Wesson’s lifetime service policy and should therefore be free of manufacturing defects.

In the Model 27, Smith & Wesson has resurrected a class and influential revolver design, offering a piece of firearm history at an affordable price point. For those who want a piece of American firearm history, look no further than the Model 27.

Caleb Larson is a Defense Writer with The National Interest. He holds a Master of Public Policy and covers U.S. and Russian security, European defense issues, and German politics and culture.