From time to time you might hear about someone that says they dropped a gun and it went off all by itself. Well I'm here to tell you that it can't happen with Smith & Wesson revolvers, unless of course, they did some unauthorized "gun plumbing". During the 80's part of my job was drop testing all revolvers. The "standard" for the industry, at the time, were drop testing specifications set forth by the Small Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers Institute (S.A.A.M.I.). We used "primed cases" to check for any indent or indent sufficient enough to achieve ignition. All were dropped from a height of 4 feet. We had a fixture where the revolver was secured muzzle down onto a brass dowel and a tall rail that was incremented up to and including 4 feet where weights were able to be attached. The weights used were equal to the weight of the gun fully loaded and dropped directly onto the hammer cocked in single action or hammer fully forward. The worse case scenario (weight wise) at that time was a model 29, 44 mag. with a 8 3/8" barrel. Of all the drop tests I conducted I never had a gun indent. Bob St.George

A friend of mine still insists on carrying his S&W double action on an empty chamber.
He also carrys his semi-autos without a round in the chamber.
I hope for his sake he never has to struggle to chamber a round in a defense situation.
I just shrug my shoulders.

On any modern WELL MADE gun it never bothered me. with the older Spanish 'copies' I wouldn't trust to be safe.

Hi Hillbilly77,
That's too bad and like you say dangerous in the event he has to use it in a hurry. But its typical of people that aren't very knowledgeable about the gun they carry and aren't interested in learning.
Bob

You know, I've often wondered what this "drop test" is all about. I was close to buying a 6" Model 66 on GunBroker from a California dealer several years ago but wanted better photos than the out-of-focus ones he posted. During a conversation, he told me that he couldn't sell the gun to anyone in California because it was not approved for sale there due to failing the "drop test" so he was trying to sell it online. I asked how a gun with a transfer bar ignition system could discharge if dropped but he could only say that he sold mostly black guns and knew little about revolvers.

I never did get the requested photos so I didn't buy the gun.

Ed

There is no changing those whose mindset is in the 1800s. There is no reason at all for carrying a modern S&W with the hammer down on an empty cylinder but then you know that.

Same sort of person believes the Apollo moon landings were done at a Hollywood film set. Sigh, dinosaurs among us.

As far as the OP goes, I'm not at all surprised that there were no failures in S&W's drop testing. Don

MA requires (yup) all handguns to be submitted and approved by our AG to ensure certain 'consumer protection' attibutes have been complied with.

One of the tests is a drop test.

I suspect the requirement is in part to hassle the manufacturers and in part, based on issues with older guns (SAA or models that pre-date hammer blocks).

In part, because of this drop test, the ONLY single action army revolvers we can buy new, are Ruger Vaqueros (with a hammer block).

Can the same be said for straight single-action revolvers? I know they've added some blocking bars and the like over the years. Anybody know about the Blackhawk design?

Years ago, I was standing next to a friend on a paved range when he dropped his loaded S&W 41 on the ground between us. Yep, it went off. First thing I did was look at him for any bloody holes in his dumb ***, and he me. None found...

Any "new model" Ruger SA will pas the drop test. Any Colt style SA that is original in design will not. Neither will a S&W revolver that pre-dates the hammer block used in modern DA's.

Larry

The cali approved firearm list consists of 3 firearms of each model ( ie SW 66, 2.5", 357,fluted cylinder,) they are submitted for testing by the manufacturer for testing @ a cost of 5000$ per weapon ( last price I can verify) Each gun is tested if it passes it then is submitted to cali for inclusion on the list. I you have a 4", 6", black nitron coated 2.5", all require testing. 2 guns of same make, model, caliber, sights, would require separate testing if one was blue and the other case colored. That is why a SW 39 ( which is no longer made by Smith ) would not be submitted for testing to allow it to be sold in cali. That is part of the reason why certain firearms that are in cali ( grandfathered ) may command a premium in cali that you would not see in Mi/Tx and other free states. Be Aware that davis,sundance, bryco, etc, that were being manufactured in ca always made the list BECAUSE they were submitted. Confusing?? Ma,Ca,Ny,Md are a few states that require certain "items" ( external safety ) to be legal in the state. I have dealt with it twice: Kahr 9, Taurus revolver, that were not legal for civilians due to nitron finish, and case coloring. Same make, model, cal,safeties- the only difference being finish!!! Be Safe,

__________________
I BACK OUR BLUE

Jesse,
Yep very possible, pre series 80,. I dropped those too. They did not have firing pin safety. They did have a half cock notch which, if the gun were dropped in SA, and the hammer fell forward, it would be caught by the half cock notch.

Just curious how many hammers broke?

I read stories of dropping and the hammer spur breaks off.

wheelgun,
ya I broke many hammer spurs off and hammer studs also. Read my next post on more drop testing.
Bob