Raw Steel to Smith & Wesson (Pic HEAVY)

handejector · Jun 21, 2010

Aparently I deleted this thread somewhere along the line.

The pics are so interesting I am putting them back up.

I believe this is from a 1954 Gun Digest article.

I left the scans large because it is worth scrolling for the detail.
If you would like to view them even LARGER, open the album- Article

Iggy · Jun 21, 2010

Fascinating. Thanks for posting

Mitch_D · Jun 21, 2010

Lee:

Thank you for re-posting this in a large resolution format. The photos are great and provide some wonderful insight.

That handcrafted quality of the 50's is why we love those 4 & 5 screw guns.

firearmsunlimited · Jun 21, 2010

Lee,
Thanks for sharing the pics. It is cool to see how things were back in the day. Which one is Roy pictured in? LOL

j38 · Jun 21, 2010

Lee,

Thanks for re-posting this. These photos are fascinating - in the technology we appreciate, and the times I was too young to remember. This should be a permanent fixture on the Forum.

Best Regards,

Jerry

GregG · Jun 22, 2010

I never knew........

Makes me even happier that I have a Pre-29 on the way knowing how it was made.

Sgt 127 · Jun 22, 2010

THAT, is America and, THOSE are American craftsman. I look at those pictures and, I swear, I can smell the cutting oil.

SDH · Jun 22, 2010

Yes, it is the 1954, 8th Edition of Gun Digest. Also has info on the newly released Centennial Model, holster info featuring Berns & Martin an three-persons by Myers as well as the catalog pages with models and prices.

With a 1954 vintage .357 Magnum.

gaucho1 · Jun 22, 2010

Amazing. Thank You.

bassoneer · Jun 22, 2010

I love the shot of the engineering department with all those guys using the large drafting tables. I've been an engineer since I graduated college in 1986 and have seen manual drafting and the large drafting tables disappear. When I started out as a structural engineer we worked about four years on a drafting table, drawing up things designed by the older, licensed engineers and occasionally checking their calculations or doing a small design of our own. We had to work our way up the ladder so to speak and we had to learn how things were built and how they were supposed to look. Then, when we took the state exam and got our own professional engineer's license we got a desk, which was a huge status symbol in an engineering firm. Now everybody uses a computer and the new grads don't even know what a drafting table was. I've seen many of the younger engineers try to draw something up with a pencil and straight edge and it usually looks awful...manual drafting is an artform that we've all but lost.

Thanks for sharing the cool photos, B

girvin02 · Jun 22, 2010

Thanks for posting this. I work in manufacturing (mostly automotive parts) and it is very cool to see how they did it, in the days before CNC machining.

gunlovingirl · Jun 22, 2010

Interesting! Thanks Lee.

old bear · Jun 22, 2010

Just great

What a Treat, thank you.

contender85 · Jun 22, 2010

Thanks for posting!

arrowhd · Jun 22, 2010

Wow, how cool is that? Thanks for sharing.

RussellD · Jun 22, 2010

Wonder which one of those guys made my old K22?

Homie · Jun 22, 2010

Picture #54 is a gentleman named Charley Hadley. He grew up and lived in Westfield, and was a good friend of my Father's. He is also the one responsible for me shooting my first shot from a .44 Magnum- on Good Friday, 1956! It was an experience I'll never forget.

Good shooting!

wogentry · Jun 22, 2010

Thank you for posting this article. While technology is great ( I guess) it is awesome to see real craftsman at work. I've no doubt those folks took a lot of pride in their work and it is evident in the quality of the revolvers produced in that era. What is interesting as well are all those old milling machines, grinders, forges and steel etc were made in the USA.

Andy Griffith · Jun 22, 2010

To think that the drafting and stock departments are gone...
The drafting is all done on computers, and the stocks are all "farmed out."

There are still a few craftsmen with very long tenures still working at S&W, but they are few and far between. I would venture to think that the comradeship of working there is...gone for the most part. That usually happens when a company goes from single ownership to a bunch of investors.

smitholdtimer · Jun 22, 2010

Early S&W Revolvers As They Are Produced

Nice presentation, interesting what pride in workmanship could produce when times were so much less complicated, thanks Lee!

Raw Steel to Smith & Wesson (Pic HEAVY)

handejector

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