That's impressive, but, I don't want to fire a round from that gun without a welders jacket on(LEATHER SLEEVES).
jcelect

I post this NM #3 Target all the time because I'm just in awe of it. And I'm not sure if it was made before or after 1896. But it was extensively modified in the 20's out of necessity, not cosmetically. To have a fine .22 target pistol. The most complicated feature is the cylinder and extractor system. The firing pin was repositioned and the barrel was lined with a .22 rifle barrel lathed down, visible extending at the muzzle. Machinist's grand son said it was originally .44 Russian.

I'll put this up against any "practical mods" anyone has made. This is a 329PD I bought for backpacking. I often carried 300-gr hammerhead bullets in it, handloaded, or heavy-bullet ammo from Buffalo Bore, Cor Bon and Hornady.
I wanted to be able to use it in any light condition under any circumstances

329PD CTC XtrmDuty Ports 30.jpg
To handle recoil I installed Crimson Trace Laser Grips, that had the added benefit of an aiming device that can be used in otherwise total darkness.

It also had Mag-Na-Port Quad Ports to help with recoil. For doubters I still have an unmodified 329PD they can shoot side-by-side. They become believers.

I had a Big Dot tritium sight installed on the front, and tritium tubes in the Extreme Duty sight on the rear, the set adjusted for Cor Bon ammo at 50 feet. That serves in most low-light conditions, and are helpful in full daylight.

Then, a lanyard ring installed in the butt so I wouldn't lose the gun if I wound up rolling downhill and into a river. You can probably guess how THAT came about.

It's dirty and worn, as it should be for a working tool. Everything done to it was to increase utility and service. It works.

S&W 650 backstrap by Brooks Burt.jpgS&W 650 Brooks Burt crane front.jpg

S&W 650 both cylinders & grips 30.jpgS&W 650 Brooks Burt Engraving.jpg

S&W 650 engraved by Brooks Burt in WI.jpg

This is a S&W 650 with the .22LR and .22 Magnum cylinders, two grips and tool set.

There are a lot of gorgeous guns in this thread, so I don't know how this will compare. But, it's mine. The only hand-engraved handgun I own. Turns out it is unique.

I saw it at a gun show. The seller said he knew nothing about the engraving, saying only vaguely that it was done by an engraver in central Wisconsin.

I did some hunting and found it was Brooks Burt, who does chisel engraving. He had some amazing examples of other things he engraved, especially knives. Guns are not among his favorite subjects.

He recognized the gun immediately and remembered the person who commissioned the work. I asked him what he would have charged for that and he said $1,000. I got a bargain. I asked him to sign it for me, and he did, with engraving.

Hey, i build a good old smolth revolver from a mod 28-3, a 38-44 cylinder, colt python 4-ish” and melonite qpq finish

btw, color-fill white crayon sucks, dont mention it

Cheers

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These in no way are going to win any prizes, but with the addendum about Rube Goldberg they immediately came to mind.

When I purchased these they were described in the sub 10 dollar ebay auction as "Machine Gun Handles".









I knew the basic shape was Round Butt S&W, but what they actually fit was kind of baffling. Until...








In the "gun modified by it's stocks" category I also have a set of Ropers which are pretty fun.





If sadly molested on the inside in weird ways:






One side of the "trigger thing" is slightly longer then the other:





So when you use these you sort of rest the pad of your finger on the left panel's trigger thingy, and just sort of flex your finger so the knuckle flexes inward and the gun goes off.

I have a catalog here with a maker of this device that you can attach. When I find it I can scan it in. I forget the name of it. In this case Roper incorporated it into this set.

The notion is to improve your trigger pull or something. In practice it's just dang weird and I can see why it didn't really go anywhere.

ALL color fill has to be fingernail polish (your choice of color)......don't mention it.....

2.0shield1.jpg

2.0shield2.jpg

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Hipcocked45

Possibly the only part not modified/replaced on this 45 Colt pin gun is the donor 28-2 frame. The cylinder bas been bored and recessed to accommodate the larger round, 7.5"/1.05" dia. barrel, target hammer and smooth target trigger contoured for a left handed shooter. If the killer bowling pins attack Warsaw I may be the sole survivor.

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here is a 64-2 that began life as a sq butt 4". first I got bored and rounded the butt: then I cut the barrel to about 3" and made and installed the front sight. later on I got bored again and polished it a little. enjoy. lee

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What's that got, 1/2 cylinder gap? Bullet will probably get lost on it's way to the barrel!

I think you are seeing the barrel there, it's in the white or stainless?

Oh, sure! I knew you would bring that one out!

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Everybody could shoot

Just a little barrel reduction, nothing serious here.

Stu

Questions about my S&W dual carbine,

No it doesn't have a 1/2" B/C gap, its .005, Unblued barrel shank doesn't show up well in photo because of white background in frame window area is all.

No you don't need a welders jacket, although I do run a long sleeve shirt. Think about how you hold a fore stock, your elbow is dropped down and is under the frame itself and some distance from the gap. Gap blast has never bothered me one bit. Make a big tube.about 3" in diameter of construction paper or card board, stick a revolver in it and check out the blast pattern sometime. Nothing on the bottom 30 degree arc because of the bottom of frame blocking it.

Why a 45 colt/acp cylinder when it started as a 45acp?
A: because I could
B: because I love 45 colt and heavy slugs. White tail in the brush anyone?

Here are some generic mods
A 8 3/8 25-5 cut to 5" and fitted with a reamed 44 mag cylindeer to get a pinned and RECESSed
45 colt


Here is a 1917 with a chopped 1950 barrel, adjustable sights, round butt cut down grip frame and bobbed hammer. Shroud was relieved to retain big ejector knob

Model 29 revolver converted to top break 1.50 CAL single shot 'Howdah' pistol with bright blue refinish for Tiger hunting in India (read with tongue in cheek).

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Here are two of mine. A 3” 60-3 with boot grips, bobbed dao hammer, a tuned action and dehorned. A 66-1 with Hogue desert ironwood grips, a bobbed dao hammer, a tuned action and magnaported.

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Well what did you expect when you are wavin' this one around?

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Eccentric old coot

Three Fifty Seven / Forty Four Spl. / First year Registered Magnum




OutdoorsmanLock...Forty Four Special



Twenty Seven...Forty Four Special





Twenty Two Super Jet

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"

There needs to be at least one Smython in the mix... So here's a Highway Patrolman N Frame Smython - very nicely done and Magna-Ported to boot:

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Was the Smython barrel relined? I'm leaning towards OutdoorLock (Keith44spl Outdoorsman/Triple Lock Hybrid) so far as Best of show!

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PTLAPTA!

No. The Python Barrel has a significantly smaller outside diameter than the N-Frame barrel opening, so it looks like the gunsmith "collared" the Python Barrel to thread into the Highway Patrolman Frame. It is very well done.

I have to agree that the OutdoorsmanLock .44 Spl. is one of my very favorite guns of all of them that have been posted. It is a beauty in craftsmanship, creativity, function and appearance.

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

What the ..........?!

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Everybody could shoot

Aww, Dave's just showin' off!!

Got to admit that OutdoorsmanLock...Forty Four Special is one cool outfit though.

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Eccentric old coot

Richard, This is not the first Smith/Colt hybrid I've ever seen. There is an old timer here in South Florida (get that, "me" calling someone else and old-timer") who was a LEO armorer who showed up at one of our short lived South Florida Bunch meetings.

Although not as meticulously finished as yours it was just a knee-jerk reacction that I shook my head in amazement. I still can't wrap my mind around "why". I also saw one other, years back. All that I've seen had Python barrels.

This retired LEO Armorer also created a few 52/39 cross-breeds. Like a Model 52 with an interchangeable 9mm extended upper and vice versa, a 52 upper on a 39-2 frame. He also had (on his cell phone) videos of the amazing accuracy of all of his creations. I cannot recall who that was but will look it up. I can say, if ever Isis boats start landing on the Florida shores, I'd want to be standing along side this guy. He shoots the black out of the x-ring at 50 feet. Allen-Frame and Engine49Guy know this gent better than I. I only met him twice.

Then the 29 Frame flare guns ... I've seen only a few of the original productions but nothing customized.

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ANTIQUESMITHS
LM1300 SWHF425

LOL..........The 'Remuda' is kinda gettin thin around the camp here.

And one or two of 'em is on the block now.


.

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"

How does it lock???

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

Being a perfected it should have two locks, one with the regular cylinder release, and one with the lock on top.

Thing is I'd personally not want to shoot it missing the lock on top, that seems like a lot of the stress of shooting should be soaked up there...

Still super cool.

I was staring at the missing top latch and didn't see the cylinder latch.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

It appears the back half of the barrel lock latch has been cut off to speed the opening of the frame. The front half is still present to retain the rear sight.

The cyl pin still locks the frame closed, but as mentioned by others above, all the strain on the frame when fired transfers to the small diameter cyl ctr locking pin.

I believe a Top Break Model 38 DA barrel lock latch will be a drop in replacement.

.38 PERFECTED MODEL

Made from 1909 to 1920, serial # range 1 thru 59400, on the P frame. It has a .38 DA Top Break barrel and cylinder assembly but the same action and grip size concurrently used on the Model of 1903 32 Hand Ejector made on the I frame with a side swing cylinder.

The thumb latch in addition to the barrel latch takes two hands to open, and was designed to prevent a thug from reaching over the top of the gun, pulling the latch up and disabling the gun. S&W chose the Perfected name
to denote this model as the pinnacle of the top break design evolution, and back in the day, the term was a marketing fad word. Not unlike today's Smart word as in Smart Phone, etc.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

That Odd 1st Model .44 DA "HANDLE" is surely unusual, at very least. Surely bouncing off the Rube orbit, there.

But those Ropers ... they have to be "the" nicest and most unique set of Roper's I've seen in a long time. Congrats on that find.

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ANTIQUESMITHS
LM1300 SWHF425

Okay here goes my entry. This is a Model 29-2 that had the action worked over by Magnaport, ports cut and a crane lock installed. Then I had it engraved by Weldon Lister. The sword on the right is taken from a logo from my security business. Had electroless nickel applied. Has a set of Roy Fishpaw grips. Next was carried while I was still a narcotics agent.

I need help to get someone to post the pics for me.

I humbly submit for your consideration a modified S&W M64-5 which had been upgraded out of necessity--the previous owner had dropped the revolver on to a hard surface. Fortunately, the crown and muzzle were not damaged, although the front sight was DOA. I purchased the revolver, found a local custom shop which offered to mill off the front sight and replace with a pinned patridge sight of identical height of the original.
He found dove-tailing the front sight gave it a better appearance, and when I saw the finished product, I totally agreed. The yellow sighting dot is NOT tritium, but simple yellow paint.
I consider it a significant upgrade from the original fixed front sight, yet simple in the execution.
What do you think?
Echo47

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Here's my entry, a .38 cal, pre model 10 square butt HE that I re-rebarreled, Fitzed, bobbed and parkerized. It's got a really great trigger. Before anyone gets upset, it had been rebarreled before I got it. It's also got a few pits where the larger grips covered the frame.

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I like turning some of my guns into non-factory Pintos. My most recent is the 29-2 with 4 inch barrel put together by a master gunsmith. I am fortunate to be surrounded by several guys that have been working on S&W's for longer than I have been alive.


29-2 SN#N170000ish with Culina Grips


29-2 SN#N720,000ish with Culina grips later modified by me to fit my hand. I had it drilled and tapped for a scope mount and stuck a cheap reflex red dot sight on it. Hard to miss with this one.


14-3 Early 80's gun with 8 3/8in barrel I grabbed off e-bay with a red post factory installed front sight.


Pre-36 that has a rough blue finish with what I believe are factory maple J frame grips that I snagged off e-bay a few months ago.

I built this beast in 1976 as a hunting revolver. I had a beat up old 28 laying around and a spare 29 cylinder. The barrel was made from a Douglas blank and is 7.5 " long. It has interchangeable front sights and a front cyl pin lock up. It shoots extremely well and has taken a number of big game critters.

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I tried putting in a poll to vote. I did not get the required results.

Someone queue me in on how to place a ballot box on this thread for votes on:
1. best modified (sincerely) 2. most outrageous "Rube"

If you guys would like, add a 3rd category for best / nicest accessory.

PM me instructions.

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ANTIQUESMITHS
LM1300 SWHF425

1917 Barrel Conversion Project

This WW I 1917 Army came pretty cheap; all original except it had a cut down .455 Mk II barrel (bore dimensions all wrong for 45 ACP.)
Here it is converted to a barrel w/shroud the way the factory should have made them pre war, (at least after the military production), the same as the 44 Military 1st and 3rd models, and 38/44 HD.




Should have been a simple barrel change if I could have found a Classic or Thunder Ranch 1917 Model barrel with shroud. But all I could acquire is a SS tapered target barrel with rib for a 45 Colt Mtn Gun.

Modified it to a factory pre war style 4" non-ribbed, tapered, and shrouded barrel and had it blued. Mushroom knob replaced with proper vintage with ‘barrel’ style knob/extractor rod for a shrouded barrel. I should have finished the barrel with a finer grit to better match the original WW I blue. Next time I have stainless blued I’ll know to match the polish better.

I milled off the rib and milled down the integral front sight ramp base to match the pre war integral fixed sight base:





Here is the rough milled barrel mounted on the gun:




Notice below that late model shrouds have the shroud bulge on the right side that extends all the way to the front:




So that was another contour I had to add to match the pre war (and early post war) contour shown here on a pre Model 26:





Made a half penny front sight blade replacement (pinned into base). It’s a full 1/10” wide and the rear sight notch has been opened up to target sight notch width of .124”:




Sometimes it takes a little work to get exactly what one likes. The only time I'm glad to find a cheap non-original model to start with.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Well, I hope this gun still looks this good. Reports say that it does, that it survived my house fire unscathed. EXCELENT!!!



This is how it looked before:



I bought it as a re-imported Model 64, DAO, bobbed hammer, kind of rough, worst trigger I ever used, at least 15 pounds. I got a bee in my bonnet from the pictures of another gun that THESHOOTIST1894 customized and was posted on the Forum. It might be above and I plan to look for it.

On this gun I supplied a 2" barrel from a blown up Model 12, which I bought from a Forum member. Shootist installed it, did a great triger job, recessed the trigger guard, opened the rear sight, smoothed out the bobbed hammer, and did some technical internal work that I cannot explain. Then he gave it the black Cerakote and engraved it with my Senior Chief anchor. He refitted the stocks and gave them a high polish. The gun shoots great and looks great and is my EDC most days.

Oh, I almost forgot the checkered backstrap. I can't find a picture but it looks the same as two-bit cowboy's in post number 4. Shootist did both of our guns.

Model 58 converted to 5" 45 Colt with combat sights by Hamilton Bowen. Grips are by Keith Brown.

How about a .455 converted to .45 Colt and barrel nipped. The lanyard ring was also removed and plugged the hole:

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My sgntr is mor thn 30 chrctrs

Although most of the cool, custom work was done by the PC, I had the cylinder, ejector rod and Ed Brown cylinder release black nitrided; while I was at it, I added one of Dave Lauck’s fixed rear sights. I was bored...

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Big improvement in looks and caliber. How does it shoot with that oversize bore?

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Ok.I do have one thing to submit. It was originally a .455 British second model hand ejector.

It was converted to .22LR and adjustable sights were added (from a 27). I didn't do it. Just found it that way.

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Expect the unexpected

Bem fixe meu amigo!

I'm sure glad I don't have to choose just ONE !!! these are GREAT !!!!

It's converted to .45 Colt, not .45 ACP.

.455 Eley (aka Webley) and .45 Colt have the same bullet diameter.

It shoots great.

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My sgntr is mor thn 30 chrctrs

BY NO MEANS A CONTEST WINNER, BUT HERE IS MY "PERSONALIZED", 4" M617-6, 10 SHOOTER......

THE PARTRIDGE FRONT SIGHT WAS REPLACED BY A S&W RED RAMP. THE REAR SIGHT WAS REPLACED WITH A .125 NOTCH, WEIGAND COMBAT, REAR SIGHT. SIGHT ACQUISITION, AND ACCURACY, IS GREATLY IMPROVED........

THE FINAL TOUCHES WERE THE REPLACEMENT OF THE IL, WITH A GREAT FITTING STAINLESS STEEL "PLUG", OFFERED BY ONE OF OUR FORUM MEMBERS, WHO IS A VENDOR......

ALSO, I REPLACED THE S&W, FINGER GROOVED, SYNTHETIC GRIPS, WITH A PAIR FROM AHRENDS. THESE ARE SMOOTH TACTICAL CONVERSION GRIPS (ROUND BUTT FRAME TO SQUARE BUTT GRIPS). THE WOOD IS TUNG OIL FINISHED, MORADILLO........

CHAMPION PISTOLERO, MASSAD AYOOB, OPINES THAT FINGER GROOVED GRIPS, FIT ONLY 10% OF SHOOTERS. I AM NOT ONE OF THEM. I DO MUCH BETTER WITH AHRENDS. THEY FIT MY HAND, GIVE ME GOOD PURCHASE AND CONTROL OF THE WEAPON, AND HANDLE RECOIL WELL. I USE THEM AS REPLACEMENTS, FOR ANY GOODYEARS, ON S&W REVOLVERS, THAT I PURCHASE.......

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'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.

A matched pair of very closely serial numbered 38/44’s converted to .44 Spl by Jim Stroh. A ton of work done including changeable front sights. Walrus ivory hand fitted by Patrick Grashorn. They are amazing in person.

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Jim Clark Sr. smython. I have seen a lot of these, and this is by far he best Smython I have ever handled. Model 19 based gun. The action is simply perfect. Guy Hogue handmade asymmetrical stocks complete this amazing beauty.

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Couple more guns probably should go in this thread. Seems like there are other multiple entries, so why not!

This one was done by some particularly talented gun makers as a gift for my dad, the sights are real and added to the already pretty fantastic base gun:






This 1917 is in my top 5 favorite guns, and will always remain there I believe. It was sold to me by a wonderful gentleman that I will certainly be buying more stuff from in the future as soon as my post-married life settles down a bit financially.











Some of you may recognize the work, at least some of the work as being listed in your King catalog:



A couple of interesting notes about it:

The stocks are walrus ivory, and despite Elmer Keith's note about how much they shrink they seem to have done well over the years.






The barrel band is interesting. One of the things I love about old King work was that if they could save time by grabbing something already made, they would (I have another favorite gun that went to the SFPD which illustrates this). In this case to get the proper height they seem to have grabbed a rifle band. I'm not sure if the person who had the gun done wanted the mirror, or if that was just a bonus.











Also the hammer is actually a Registered Magnum hammer. This results in an interesting and distinct stage in the action. I think King was doing this intentionally, I have another with an RM hammer on it to, but a bit more plain:




This gun just had a factory rear sight added, and a king front sight, along with the RM hammer addition and action work.

In the case of this gun the distinct stage isn't present, but it's a faster, snappier, pull then any other pre-war S&W I have. It's extremely nice in DA shooting, and I'm very keen to buy more RM hammer modified 1917s to see if there as anything else people did with this job. In my limited experience it seems to have been a thing.

Another favorite of mine is one that I know won't win any prizes, but I love it for being an example of what King would do for you if you asked.







The front sight is marked king, and the rear sight appears to be a King blade that they just tossed in there, backwards, so that the white outline was facing forward.



I love this because it really says something about the shop. This gun being something a local police officer, or someone who got it from the police at some point, needed to have good sights on it. Dropped by and King tossed a blade they had already made in there to save time on the job.

I wasn't sure this was actually a King job initially. I thought maybe someone had just ordered King parts. I still can't prove it's a king, but when Roy's lovely wife completed the letter for it, all doubt was erased in my mind based on where it had shipped:



Ultimately though that's a big part of why you might say I'm more of a King collector then anything now. I just love this bit that they put into their catalogs:



Boy, if I had a time machine what special jobs I would have for them!

There are some dream guns I hope to find some day that they did. For example an I-Frame, or better yet a Baby Chief with the super police sights and set of ropers. I bet it exists, but I have yet to see one outside of a particularly ornate example that also had a fitz job done to it.

The notion that King would do basically whatever, with clear examples of that willingness, really makes for a fun collecting field for me.

Although, I must admit, it does result in me foraying into Colts a lot more often then I ever thought I would, but when modified I really love some of my old Colts too. That said I could never imagine pairing up any set of S&W and Colt competitor pistols straight from the factory and choosing the Colt. Even one of my Colt Factory Modified guns used a S&W rear sight on it. There's something utterly fantastic about the guys at Colt doing up a pistol custom for someone, and getting a S&W part to put on it...