Over the last year I have been lucky enough to acquire three Japanese Navy Contract, S&W New Model No. 3s. The top and bottom guns in the picture were in the second shipment of 600 guns shipped in 1880. They are only 272 numbers apart. The bottom gun (with the guard spur) has a matching cylinder and the Japanese acceptance mark of an anchor with two wavy lines across it. In the picture the gun is wearing replica grips as the original hard rubber grips have an old crack repair and I removed them to conserve them. This gun is pictured in Neal and Jenks book. The top gun has a mismatched cylinder which is also from a gun in the second shipment and a barely visible acceptance mark of an anchor with no wavy lines stamped just below the knuckle of the backstrap. The checkered walnut grips are numbered to the gun.
The gun in the middle is one of only 786 Frontier NM#3s converted by S&W to .44 Russian for a Japanese Navy contract and shipped in 1895-96. The guns were originally .44WCF. It has a 6 ˝” barrel and smooth walnut grips that are numbered to the gun. It has no Japanese markings which I understand it typical of Frontier conversion contract guns. It evidently made its way to England (following WWII?) as it bears British proofs on the frame, barrel, and over each chamber of the cylinder. Below the cylinder on the right side of the frame is stamped “NOT ENGLISH MAKE”. At some point, the chambers were bored out to .44 Special length. I have no idea where/when this was done, possibly after it found its way to the U.S.
All three are in similar condition, mostly a smooth brown patina with good mechanics and very good to excellent bores. Not exceptional but nice specimens of Japanese Navy Contract Smiths that I am very pleased to own.
Japanese Contract New Model No. 3s
Linear Mode
