A S&W No.2 in mint condition

[Patbar]

Recently, I was lucky enough to become the happy owner of a minty S&W No.2 "old army".

It has never been fired, as can be seen by the very shiny bore and chambers and the front of the cylinder without any trace of powder burns. The gorgeous deep blue is present evrywhere except on the cylinder where it is turning brown, and the case hardening on the shell extractor and hammer is present too.

Beside that, The gun is of the first type, which can be seen by the long recoil shield, uncheckered trigger, particular checkering of the hammer and flat grip screw. About this screw, I discovered that it was brass plated to match with its surrounding.

All this to say that one thing puzzles me : how come the cylinder finish is turning brown while the rest of the gun still has its beautifull blue ?

[Patbar]

Additional photos :

[Jtown]

Very nice, great condition, wish it was mine

Walt

[H Richard]

Wouldn't you love to know just where it has been for the last 150 years. Hidden away in a trunk somewhere?

[S&WsRsweet]

That cylinder turning brown is not something a high end collector would even want you better send that to me so as not to ruin your reputation PM me for address I'll even pay shipping.Seriously that's nice thanks for shareing ,I wish it could talk.

[glowe]

Originally Posted by Patbar

. . .
It has never been fired, as can be seen by the very shiny bore and chambers and the front of the cylinder without any trace of powder burns . . .

Very very nice Model 2, well into the upper 1% of all out there, however one thing bugs me. I see sellers on websites and at auctions making the "never been fired" claim and no one can validate that fact for 140+ years old gun. There is the clear turn line, there are lots of handling marks on the gun and stocks, and the only places I can find rust is on the face of the cylinder and around the recoil shield. To me evidence of shooting black powder. Can it be said the gun is As New Without Box - for me no.

With the condition of the finish, I would rate it an Excellent+, which is worth a hefty chunk of change. Great that you found it before someone else got their hands on it.

[murphydog]

Bienvenu! It is a very nice example but may have been fired and expertly cleaned afterward to leave very little evidence of use.

The cylinder's metal composition, surface preparation and finish may have been slightly different from the rest of the gun, so the bluing "aged" differently as well. Even in late 20th century S & W revolvers the barrel and cylinder finish looked different than the frame for the same reasons.

Enjoy!

[Patbar]

Yes, H Richard and S&WsRsweet, I'd give a lot to know what happened to this gun during the last 150 years. I bought it in France from a professional gunsmith who knows a lot about modern guns but very little about antique American guns.

I can add that I got it for $750, which is really a very good deal since the normal price here for a No.2 in this condition is around $1,800.

[glowe]

Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson 4th states $4000 value for Excellent+ back here in the states. Would guess that it would be worth more than that in France, so I would say you got a great deal! I wonder what a factory letter might say??

[mmaher94087]

"..how come the cylinder finish is turning brown while the rest of the gun still has its beautifull blue ?" I read that the cylinders were blued over a case hardened steel and that accounted for the difference in the finish turning brown. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to locate the source of that statement in my literature so take it as hearsay.

[Patbar]

Forgot to say, S&WsRsweet, sorry but I can't send you my No.2 because I already promised it to somebody else.

Perhaps would you like me to send you the other one below, which is also in .32 RF caliber ?

[bcowern]

Patbar,

That's a particularly nice Model 2, thanks for posting. I am a little confused by what you mean by a "long recoil shield". I thought the Type 1 and Type 2 Model No.2 had a two pin frame.

Regards,
bcowern

[Patbar]

You're right, bcowern. I shouldn't have used the term "first type", which doesn't correspond to the different types described on Smith and Wesson Model 2 Army Revolver

I just got mixed up by all the minor changes which occured during the production of the No.2 and are a little confusing.

As for the "long recoil shield", here is a picture of the long and short one.

[wedgeguns]

Very nice If you check my website it will help with some information. model2project.com I would appreciate if you take the survey

Ron Curtis #20

[sniper007]

Wow, very nice...

[Patbar]

Originally Posted by wedgeguns

Very nice If you check my website it will help with some information. model 2 project.com I would appreciate if you take the survey

Ron Curtis #20

Done, Ron. I'm eagerly waiting for your book to be published !

[JSR III]

Very nice. Many times S&W's will color age differently due to the structure of the steel in the part being blued. As someone mentioned, parts that have been hardened have had their molecular structure changed and therefore will accept the bluing process differently. Overtime, this difference tends to show up as brown as opposed to a deep blue.

One must remember that browning or bluing is basically a rusting process using chemicals and they react differently to different metals and also can be affected by the strength of the solution when the part was immersed. Many times the first parts blued will have a deeper finish than those parts done several batches later. In essence, the solution loses its strength as more batches of parts are done.

Chances are that the gun is not "unfired" but it looks so nice I wouldn't worry about it.

[mrcvs]

As others have stated, it is extremely unlikely that your No 2 Army is unfired. I know you want to prove it is unfired, but to disprove this, soak a WHITE piece of cloth with gun oil or Hoppe's No 9 and run it down the barrel. If it comes out soiled, then your gun is likely fired. If it comes out clean, it could mean your gun is unfired. This is unlikely. It is more likely that a previous owner cleaned the barrel well. If your patch comes out clean, then run a dry patch down the barrel. Shine light down the barrel. If you see any pitting, this is likely from corrosive black powder and mercuric primers. If you see no pitting, it still remains unlikely this is unfired...

[Patbar]

I was so happy to get this beautifull gun for such a good price that I was perhaps over enthusiastic when I described it, but I can say that its bore is really as shiny as a mirror, with very sharp rifling and not the slightest trace of dirtyness or corrosion. Same for the chambers.

[Patbar]

I was so happy to get such a beautifull gun at such a good price that I was perhaps toot enthusiastic when I described it.
But I can say that its bore is as shiny as a mirror, with very sharp rifling and not the slightest trace of dirtyness or corrosion. Same for the chambers.