This is a model 19-3. There are many like it, but this one’s mine.
The Model 19 is the descendant of the Combat Magnum, introduced in 1955 at the behest of Bill Jordan. Jordan recognized that the K-Frames were a marvelous balance of weight and accuracy, but he wanted a Magnum, and Smith & Wesson’s N-Frames were a bit heavy to be carried all day.
So the engineers started brainstorming. They gave it a heavy barrel and an underlug (like the N-Frames), and thanks to advances in heat-treating, the steel was strong enough to handle the increased chamber pressures of the .357 (1).
It was an immediate hit with law enforcement, and when Smith & Wesson starting numbering their revolvers, the Combat Magnum became the Model 19. The 19 was produced until 1999.