On Sunday I bought what was labeled as a Model 17. It was not. It appears to be a K200 converted in the 40's to 22LR. I have little knowledge if this and I will post some photos for you to look at and then wait for the knowledge to pour back in.

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Corripe Cervisiam

No real knowledge to offer, but I think that's a very cool conversion. They put a lot of work into that gun. I'd like to see how they handled the firing pin change to rimfire.

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"I also cook."

Looks like they off set the cylinder inserts so the firing pin lands on the rim of the cartridge.
Probably offset the barrel insert too?

I think both P-H and Cogswell & Harrison made these.

I've posted before about reading an article in, "South African Panorama" back about 1980 about a fellow who lived in the bush and wore one of these .22 conversions. He mentioned the advantage of cheaper .22 ammo. Keep in mind that SA was under UN sanctions then, and ammo costs were probably pretty high for most calibers.

Yours are the best photos that I've seen of one of these guns, and I think most conversions were carried out on six-inch barrels.

People here keep asking, although the info is in most books on S&W and about military small arms of the era, but here goes again:

Prior to April, 1942, four, five, and six-inch barrels were furnished to the Commonwealth on K-200 revolvers. After that date, only dull finished (looks like Parkerizing but called Midnight Black) finishes and smooth stocks were sent. Earlier finishes were blue, then sort of brushed blue. I've never seen one of those brushed transition guns. I suspect they're the rarest of the .38-200 ones.

In all, over 568,000 British Victory Models were sent, and many were defaced by surplus dealers after the war. Barrels were cut down, sometimes eliminating the front lock, and some were made into .22's. I think the .22 conversions were among the nicer modifications. I don't know how well they work, but Parker-Hale was a staple of the UK gun trade, and their military conversions of .303 rifles were also popular. Their gun cleaning supplies were the standard over there and throughout the former Empire.

Gun author Geoffrey Boothroyd mentioned that due to currency restrictions in the 1950's, new US guns were rare in Britain. He made up a fast draw Victory Model with some Askins-like mods and that gun appeared on the hardcover edition of his friend Ian Fleming's James Bond book, "From Russia, With Love." I would appreciate it if one of the more computer savvy members will find that book in a Search and post links here. I guess we can't post the photo for copyright reasons.

Due to the money/import restrictions, Fleming couldn't find a new Centennial and he wanted one after Boothroyd convinced him that Bond should have one. He had to get his on a visit to New York, of all places! You can see pics of him with it on the back cover of some of hs paperbacks, in the old editions. (Others had him holding a Colt Official Police .38 given to him by the head of the OSS. His actual carry gun while a Naval Intelligence operator was a Browning Baby .25.)

This may be more than you want to know, but the mods to the postwar surplus .38-200's were many and varied. Most were unfortunate.

Frankly, I think your converted .22 is a collector's item, but you can learn more on Gunboards in the British Gun Pub forum there. It should interest not just S&W colletors, but those who collect British arms.

I earnestly entreat you to find a copy of Geoff Boothroyd's book, "The Handgun." It is quite probably the finest single volume ever on its subject, and has been reprinted several times since its appearance in the 1960's. I think it turns up on sites like Amazon.com You can often get one pretty cheaply, as it's never had the legions of fans here after it like original copies of Keith's books. Boothroyd was little known in the USA, but was one of the most knowledgeable gun writers of all time. His expertise spanned the whole range of handguns, from matchlock to modern wondernines. That book is copiously illustrated, and is a fine item to have. Skip a movie or something and locate and buy a copy. It'll save you asking a lot of questions here.

That is a beautiful gun and a very cool conversion! I enjoy shooting .22s more than anything, and I'd love to have that gun, along with the Model 2 converted to .22 that is currently on Gunbroker.

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Peter #2091

Thanks for the info. I did not know the history of this revolver but I did think that it was interesting.

I just ordered a copy of the book you mentioned from abebooks.com they have a database of books available from many bookstores. I use them to find older books that are not available form local stores.

Here is the link if others have an interest in the book that you mentioned.

Boothroyd - The Handgun - AbeBooks

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Corripe Cervisiam

I have seen both 6" target versions like this and 4" fixed sight versions. I would like to buy a 4" to play with but owners value them much too highly for my taste.

Seems like I saw advertisements for this or similar S&Ws in old "American Rifleman" magazines of the late-1950s/early 1960s. The guns were in ads by one or more big dealers back then, featured along with other used/surplus weapons.

One of those dealers was selling the 6" Coast Guard fixed-sight "K22s" for a couple of issues before they were all sold!

Here ya go.

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kbgrips.com

Saw this one recently in Illinois.

I think ya got a keeper. We'll shoot it next time you come up. Saturday was cold and windy (thank God for antifreeze) and the time before that we just about melted from the heat.

I found out that this was a 38/200 British service Model shipped in February 1940.

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Corripe Cervisiam

Joe-

That is a month or two sooner than I realized they were shipping them. Good to know!

I think you'll like the Boothroyd book very much. Tell us when it arrives. I've seen printings by both Crown and Bonanza.

It's a big book; don't drop it on your toe! You got a swell price, too.

BTW, the author looked nothing like the actor who played him in the movie version of, "Dr. No." That role was actually fictional, although Fleming used his friend's name for the character. I don't think Boothroyd actually worked for MI-6/SIS. Besides his gun books, he was a TV writer.

I've had Boothroyd's book for years. I will guarantee you will see guns in there that you never knew existed....

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Dean
SWCA #680 SWHF #446

My price shipped was $19.95. Scheduled delivery date is 3/4.

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Corripe Cervisiam

The book came in today and It was published in 1970 by Bonanza. I glanced thru the book and it looks like it has a lot of info in it. I will look into it in more detail later.

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Corripe Cervisiam

great find id like to know how it shoots. are they still 39 dollars

It was marked as a Model 17 at Cabela's and I paid $325 for it.

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Corripe Cervisiam

I know this is an old thread but.....
I just bought a gun matching this, without the flat stamp on the side of the barrel. It has the same sights front and rear.
I paid $250 out the door for it. I just like 22 pistols, and like that it was well cared for when modified.

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I'd have won the match if I had just missed less and shot faster!!!!!!