The early K-22's

au2183 said:
This first one isn't a K-22, but it is definitely a little older . . .
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(Just realized this thread was started 5 years ago. . . ) I would say all 22 Target revolvers are considered K22s, even though they are not stamped with a "K". Was lucky to pick up a first year K22 Outdoorsman, First Model this year. I have also found these target K frames to be hard to resist and started collecting a couple of years ago. Now have a birth year K22 & K38 Masterpiece, a K38 Heavy Barreled Masterpiece, and my first year production K22 Outdoorsman. They are great fun to shoot and enjoy taking them to the range.

Anyway, my well used K22 Outdoorsman (not my box) and my Masterpiece revolvers to date.
 

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I just have the one K22, but it's the last handgun I'd ever sell ...

 
glowe said:
. . . but the thread is only about early K22s, as were my comments . . . and post-war Masterpiece revolvers are not "early" to me.
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Your comment;

"......all .22 Target revolvers are considered K22s....."

Just spoofing you a bit..:)...... and I think folks forget about the 4 and 6 inch adjustable sighted 34s out there
 
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Light Freckling, orange color sometimes is dried gun oil. I got a deal on two k series s&w revolvers I thought were at least a shooter grade and sold for a 95% condition because of light freckling. After a good cleaning and polishing there near 99/99.9%. One is 99%, the other is 99.9%. Now I hate to take them shooting.
 
paplinker said:
Wow Great gun Don, That was a four inch? Can't be many of those out there. I could't blow the picture up enough to read the inscription. Training gun or retirement gun?
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It reads "Presented to Joseph Gaudreau by Victor Wesson 1930" It was presented to him following a chase involving him getting shot at by one of three men. This occurred in November of 1930. He did manage to get the car stopped and handcuff one of the three men. The others were captured later. The barrel was shortened by Smith & Wesson later.
 
I just picked up this beautiful K22 specimen today.
48 no dash serial # 371xxx Tomorrow will be our first range trip!
 
This one belonged to a friend of mine, It's a five screw with a serial number in the 20XXX range so it dates to 1948, I believe. I think his father actually bought it and he inherited it. We shot it some in the late 1950s and it was a hard gun to miss with. He sold me his collection about 10 years ago, and it had suffered various indignities in the interim. Chicoine waved his magic wand over it and it sure is a nice piece now. Shoots as well as it looks. I put the target grips on it, I think they're Italian.
 

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Lomax said:
I just purchased this k22 gun today for $300 from an old friend who is in his 70's and got from his father.I got the Holster with bulllet belt and 600 rounds ammo.Was this serial number made in 1948? I think I got a decent deal,guns has a couple small rust spots,What will remove the rust.Thanks for your reply.
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It could be light freckling from dried oil. I'd try polishing it first.
 
K-22 nickel

Received from relative.. ser# K 3240. Some holster wear. Minor cylinder ring. Shoots great! Any info from ser. # ? Dates of. Thanks.
 
1947. THere were 3 guns shipped in 1946, and by 1948 they were in the K50,000 range.

Nickel 99.99% was a later refinish.

Charlie
 
ScrapsJ said:
Received from relative.. ser# K 3240. Some holster wear. Minor cylinder ring. Shoots great! Any info from ser. # ? Dates of. Thanks.
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Also, your revolver probably has the large ejector rod knob seen on prewar and wartime revolvers. The first roughly 5500 K-22 revolvers made after the war utilized some leftover prewar parts. When those large knob rods were gone, the company began installing the new no-knob rods with knurled tips. Your gun will also have the single line address "MADE IN U.S.A." After April of 1948, the K-Masterpiece guns had the more familiar four-line address that includes the phrase "MARCAS REGISTRADAS."

The large knob and single line address are generally but not universally considered to impart a little extra value to the postwar Masterpiece revolvers.
 
ScrapsJ said:
Received from relative.. ser# K 3240. Some holster wear. Minor cylinder ring. Shoots great! Any info from ser. # ? Dates of. Thanks.
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It's not possible to be very precise about dating without getting a factory letter, but I would guess yours probably shipped in the late 1947-early 1948 period. The extractor rod knob mentioned earlier is shaped sort of like a knurled barrel. That was changed to a knurled rod tip (no knob) starting somewhere around SN K 4600, so yours should have the knob. Those having the knob are more desirable and valuable to collectors than the later K-22s due to the scarcity factor.
 
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Scrapsj, my K-22 Masterpiece is in the high K2700 serial number range and and shipped 8/22/47 so yours probably shipped within a month + or - of that date given that they didn't ship in exact serial number order but were going out of the factory as fast as they could make them with the high demand for that new model after the war.
 
Thanks all for the info. Mine does have the knobbed extractor and single line Made in the USA. Before today I thought 1970-1980 due to condition. Never would have guessed 47 !
 
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