I’ve been a K22 fan for some time and own a few of the early 5-screw examples. At the Tulsa gun show last month I brought home a late 5-screw K22 Masterpiece s/n K254351 with a March 1956 ship date.

I’ve researched several earlier threads and learned a few things:
• a March/April 1956 ship date for 5-screw K22s is late, but not that unusual
• the high-speed hammer did appear on K22s as late as ’55 – ‘56
• the bright blue finish is correct as it was being standardized in the late 5-screw ’55 – ’56 period

What I haven’t found is a discussion of the barrel profile change . . . from the tapered barrel with narrow rib to a straight-walled barrel and wide rib. From my experience with the early K22s, I learned that there was a subtle change in barrel and rib profiles with the change from 1/10” to 1/8” sight blade, but I wasn’t aware of the later change to what appears to be a “heavy” version. What can the knowledgeable folks here tell me about this change?

Here are some pictures that attempt to show the barrel and rib profile from several perspectives.










I have noticed that both the tapered and the straight-walled barrel profiles appear inter-mixed in the late 5-screw period. For others interested in these late 5-screw K22 variations, here are two earlier threads I found interesting and very informative.

Late 5 screw K22 Masterpiece..now with pics

Someone said it's a k22?

Thanks for any insights you can provide,

Russ