Bringing out such a small-caliber “snake” would make a fine bookend for what is now certainly one of the finest large-frame revolvers in the world— the new .44 Mag. Colt Anaconda.

44 magnum was the most powerful commercial handgun cartridge in those times. Popularized through the acting of Clint Eastwood as “Dirty Harry,” this made a Smith & Wesson revolver an object of ...