Just added a .38/44 Heavy Duty Model of 1950 to my collection last week (ci. 1951). Originally added to the S&W line, I believe, in the early 30s, many think of it as the transition piece from the .38 Special to the .357 Magnum. Thanks to John Culina, it was his parting deal for me as he left for Oregon last week.

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Ed

Exelente,muy lindo revolver,
gracias por mostrarlo

That's a dandy!

I have one of those on my want list, but I keep stumbling to more old Chiefs. (I couldn't resist.)

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Wrangler of stray Chiefs
Bob

The .38/44 Outdoorsman is definitely a super strong .38, and will handle the hottest .38 Specials around. Extremely accurate in the later target version with 6.5" barrel and target sights.
I have a 1951 vintage 6.5" and haven't had it more than a few months. But it shoots better than I can hold.

Being in California, I can't pick up my revolver until Monday the 8th of Oct (10 day wait). John assured me that it's a shooter so I'm sure it is. I took the pictures at the gun shop.

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Ed

OP the hammer spur on your HD looks a bit different from the norm to
me. I have a renickeled shooter grade 4" HD that dates to 1950 that
has a standard width trigger and a hammer that has a similar shape to
the one on your new to you HD from 1951. Is there any significance to
this style hammer or just something random? Anyone have an answer?

Looks to me the hammer is of the then new style short action style. Just after WWII S&W developed a system with shorter lock time and it was gradually phased in as old parts (long action fish hook hammers) were used up.

It's my understanding from everything I've read that my revolver should have a short action. Also, I'm not a purest when it comes to collecting, I collect to shoot.

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Ed

S&W developed the short throw action before WWII and implemented it on the K22 Masterpiece (K22/40). After the war, they implemented the short throw "speed hammer" on all the K frame target guns and extended the short throw to all its guns beginning in 1948. The action on Ed's .38/44 is short throw.

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Guy
SWHF #474 SWCA LM#2629

Your hammer appears to be the same as my 1951 6.5" .38/44 target model. At least I see no difference in yours and mine? I see numerous other differences, but yours is the standard Outdoorsman, and those differences are correct.

I believe the "fish hook" hammer was a early short action design.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

Your HD may be from a bit later than 1951. If you can provide the SN it can be approximately dated. The target grips may not be original, but a worthwhile addition as they do not have the football-shaped cutout on the left panel. It is not unusual to find .38/44 HDs which have had their chambers elongated to accept .357 Magnum cartridges, and you should check for that. I don't believe that the N-frames ever used the fish hook-style "high speed hammer" as the K-frames did in 1948 and later. They went straight to the semi-target style hammer around 1950-51

"Your hammer appears to be the same as my 1951 6.5" .38/44 target model. At least I see no difference in yours and mine? I see numerous other differences, but yours is the standard Outdoorsman, and those differences are correct."

It's a Heavy Duty, not an Outdoorsman.

The OP's 38-44 HD has either a modified high speed action hammer or more likely the new 1950 standard medium wide target hammer from the N target models.

This is the N frame narrow high speed action hammer used on fixed sight guns from 1950 to the mid '50s ('48 to mid '50s on the K frame):


Photo by Hoosier45

K frame short actions used the high speed hammer; narrow on fixed sight guns and the same as the N frame,
BUT on target guns, the K used a unique to K frames, med wide target high speed hammer that actually spawned the "fishhook" nickname:


Photo by RdrBill


Short actions began in 1948 on the K frame and 1950 on the N frames.
NOTE: I frames did not have an action change.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

High-speed hammers began to show up on non Target K frame guns in 1948.

Guy

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Guy
SWHF #474 SWCA LM#2629

Guy,

That's correct as you posted in post #9 and I, in post #13.

And the OP's HD hammer started life as a 38-44 Outdoorsman (all N frame targets) hammer like this:

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Jim
S&WCA #819

I had the same thought, but then I realized he was referring to only the hammer, not the revolver itself.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

There are no long action fishhook hammers. The introduction of the speed action (short action) introduced the new style hammers at the same time:

Narrow style on fixed sight guns like the 38-44 Heavy Duty and M&Ps. The speed action semi target (fishhook) hammer only on the K frame targets. (With the exception of the pre war K22/40 which has the speed action (short action) but a modified pre war hammer.)

But the N frames with target sights like the 38-44 Outdoorsman got the current style med target standard hammer. That's the hammer on the OP's HD, but it's had the course checkering removed and fine checkering applied which extends onto the spur in front of the wide pad:


Photo by OldChief

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Jim
S&WCA #819

The OP's gun has a standard hammer that has been altered to add a wide spur.

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Regards,
Lee Jarrett

I can buy that too. That was my 1st option in post #13.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

The SN is S82187, I researched it in the 4th ed. of the catalog and came up with 1951.

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Ed

The first of the short-actioned N-frames appear to have begun shipping in September 1950, in the S79xxx SN range. The closest SN I have on my list to yours is S828xx which shipped in 2/52.

The dates in the SCSW are closer to production dates rather than ship dates, so you're likely right and it could have shipped in 1952. There's no telling how long it sat in the vault.

That's why I prefer a production date anyway because it will more likely match features on the gun compared to a ship date, when the timing of change transition happens to be close to the production date.

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Jim
S&WCA #819