Korth Combat .357 Magnum Ratzeburg

Pick this Korth up and the first thing you notice is the barrel length. At roughly 3 1/4 inches, it sits between the carry guns and the full-size target revolvers, and Korth never made many in this configuration. The frame carries the early Korth roundel on the sideplate, and the underside reads MADE IN W. GERMANY, WAFFENFABRIK KORTH, RATZEBURG / LBG. That last line matters. It places this revolver squarely in the Ratzeburg era, the period collectors chase hardest, when Willi Korth's shop was hand-fitting each gun to tolerances no production house could touch.

The finish is a deep, glassy blue that runs across the frame, cylinder, and the ribbed barrel. Look down the muzzle end and you can see the heavy underlug and the polished flats catching light. The .357 MAGNUM roll mark sits clean on the right side of the barrel. The six-round cylinder shows the recessed chambers and that mirror-bright Korth polish on the flutes.

The grips are the highlight for a lot of buyers. These are contoured walnut combat stocks with a heavily stippled center panel and smooth, figured edges, sculpted to fill the hand. They show honest use, with darkening and handling wear across the high spots, which only makes the wood look more alive.

Up top you get a fully adjustable rear sight paired with a serrated ramp front. The hammer wears Korth's signature fine checkering, and the trigger work is what made the name. Single action breaks like glass, double action rolls smooth and even.

This one comes in the original Korth locking briefcase. For a collector building a serious European revolver shelf, a Ratzeburg Korth in an uncommon barrel length, complete with its case, is the kind of piece you wait years to find.