Quote:
Originally Posted by BMur
. . . The introduction of smokeless powder brought on a lot of significant problems for the older guns . . . Pressure spikes that exceeded their design would occur with smokeless powder use. The latch and catch were not engineered to sustain this type of abuse. Hense the damage . . .
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The top-break S&W revolver was manufactured up to WWII and remained in S&W catalogs for almost the first half of the Twentieth Century with no mention of black powder being required. Almost all guns made the transition from black powder to smokeless without notice, by the early 1900s. There were no significant design changes made to these guns from pre-1899 days and ammunition companies still manufacture 32 S&W, 38 S&W, 44 Russian, 44-40, etc.
The 38 Perfected revolver was the only top-break to add the thumb latch and was not a popular gun, partly since it was competing with new solid frame revolvers that shot more powerful higher velocity ammunition than was available with previous models and calibers. Take a look around the Forum for many threads and posts with differing opinions, many backed by research, and experiences.