Hi everyone,
I just inherited a couple S&W pistols. I believe one is a K-22 and the other a .22/32. They appear to be in great shape. Can anyone help confirm that's what i have and any idea on value? Thank you for any information.


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First Welcome to the forum.

Your very fortunate to be given these family heirlooms. They are both before WWII and are a lot of fun to shoot.

The larger gun of the two with a red front sight is call a K22 Outdoorsman. Its a K frame gun and appears that it might have a special front sight. If you give us the serial number off the butt we could pin down a timeframe for you.

The second smaller gun I am unable to make larger

Welcome aboard, jweigand27. It appears that you have two very nice pre-War (WW II) S&W 22 revolvers. The one in the upper picture is known as the Heavy Frame Target Model or the 22/32 (because it was built on the frame designed for the 32 S&W Long.) these were discontinued during the war, but later a new improved design that came to be built on S&W’s slightly larger J- frame was sold as the Model 35.

The second image is also a pre-War gun that appears to be built on the K-frame. The lack of a barrel rib identifies it as per-War, but these are out of my wheelhouse. I do know that it was discontinued during the war as well, but came back right after the war with a ribbed barrel and the designation 22 Masterpiece or just the K-22. Somebody will be along soon with more info, I’m sure.

Froggie

PS the 22/32 was built on the I-frame and is also sometimes (especially if an early one) called the Beakert Model after the man who supposedly persuaded S&W to make them.

Rich types faster than I do!

Thanks for the insight. I really appreciate it. I've attached a larger image of the second gun.

The K-22 serial number is 669933

The 22/32 is 551555

Based on the ejector rod ends, they both look to be 1930's guns.

As said above , providing serial numbers will narrow things down.

They both look to be in very nice shape.

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SWCA #3356, SWHF#611

Thanks for the information, to my untrained eye they are in great shape.

Its interesting your relative is into red post front sights. They are not seen often and when original to the gun they bring a bump in price. The fact you have two is really cool. If you look closely at the front sights do either have the word King stamped on the side?

Pictured are some of the kinds of red front sights offered by King in the same era as your guns

Can you please look again at the serial number for the .22/32 and confirm that it begins with 551? You can check it against the number that should be stamped on the underside of the barrel as well as on the back of the cylinder. Those two numbers should be identical to the one on the forestrap of the grip frame.

Yes, it looks like a prewar .22/32 Target, but no regular production prewar I-frame .22 would have had a serial number above the 534xxx range. If that serial number really has a 5 in the second position, it almost has to be a revolver manufactured after the war when S&W got around to resuming commercial production. If that's the case, most collectors would call it a Postwar Transitional .22/32 Target.

The important thing about that designation is that the model is so little seen that some people think it doesn't even exist. It is true that S&W made a postwar transitional .22/32 Kit Gun with a four inch barrel. It is possible that the gun you have, if the serial number is correct, was originally shipped as a kit gun but had the longer six-inch barrel installed at the original owner's request. But in your interest, I sincerely hope it letters as shipping in the late '40s with a six-inch barrel. If it's legit and went up in an auction, it's anybody's guess what the hammer price would be. Lots, I bet.

That's a fascinating revolver, and I hope we will be able to discover more about it.


EDITED TO ADD: Note taken of the corrected serial number. More comments in a post below.

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David Wilson

Hello and another welcome from PA. Very nice inheritance. I would estimate that both of your guns were made in the late 30's (1936-1938); an historical letter will tell you when they shipped and where they got shipped to. I'm no expert on the pre-war target 22's, but here is some value information from the Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson (SCSW4):

22/32 in VG condition @ $700; Exc. condition @ $2000

K-22 Outdoorsman in VG condition @ $1850; Exc. condition @ $2400

I think those are a little optimistic myself, but I am a cheap person.

Welcome to the a Forum.
You have two nice revolvers. My hunch is that a good gunsmith installed the red post front sights on both guns.

Yes the front sights do have the name "king" written across them. Does this change the overall value of the guns?

In a word, yes. If they letter as having been equipped with King sights at the factory (a special order item) that would be wonderful, but even if they were so equipped after they left the factory, many S&W folks would still look favorably on them. Did you recheck the SN on your 22/32 yet? Of everything that has come up in this thread, that one feature is the biggest deal in the whole story.

Froggie

Looking at the serial number again it the number is actually 531355 on the grip, cylinder and barrel. On the frame behind the cylinder there is also the number 46,381.

Count your blessings! shoot and enjoy these fine revolvers

Ya gots yeseff a couple a nice shootin irons there......

Those are both very nice and very collectible. You'll likely get offer to buy them, but if they were my inheritance, my grandchildren would would be their caretaker one day.

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

I've heard that those older style actions were better for double action shooting. I've never had the chance to try. You are very lucky.

Thank you! I do plan to shoot them some but am considering selling some of what I inherited and am trying to decide what I want to keep/let go. This thread has already helped a lot in giving values and letting me know what I have.

Looks like I have some deciding to do...

Thanks for the corrected serial number, which confirms the revolver's prewar origin that others reported above. I will continue looking for a .22/32 Target with a serial number between 550000 and 600000, the loose range where one is likeliest to be found.

Your revolver's serial number is very close to numbers on some .22/32 Kit Guns which shipped in the first half of 1938. There's no guarantee your gun shipped in the same time frame, but it's not unreasonable as a provisional date.

In case you are curious about statistics, S&W made about 20,000 .22/32 Targets in the nearly three decades following their 1911 introduction.

If you decide to sell either of those revolvers, no local gun store will give you more than about half what it is worth, and any auction house will consume a chunk of the hammer price in fees and the house percentage. Some of the best buyers you can find are right here on this forum. Check out the classifieds and the buyer/seller feedback to see how numerous and reliable the forum-based transactions are.

Very nice specimen, and very cool King sight. The K-22 Outdoorsman is no slouch either.

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David Wilson

Jweigand27
A little over a month ago I purchased K22 Outdoorsman, serial #669933.
The purchase included a Historical Letter that stated that there was no shipping information available because the gun was " Open in the Books".
If you have the time, I would appreciate knowing the story of the individual who willed the guns to you.
Thanks so much for your time and best regards to you.
Jake

You might try to email him if he allows that. He has not been on for three years after selling the Outdoorsman.

This is a resurrected 3 year old thread however, since it has resurfaced, I am adding to the general knowledge.

The .22/32 HFT that was listed in the original thread is in my database and was shipped 7/25/1938 to Sportsman's Supply, Pitt., PA.

The OP sold the K 22 that was listed and has not posted since. I am guessing that his thoughts about keeping "these family heirlooms" or selling them was decided rather quickly once members supplied 4 figure price ranges.

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James Redfield
LM #497