I have 2 k-frames: 43xxx and 55xxx, both supposed to be 1948 guns according to all you knowledgable people in here, but there are 2 pretty significant differences A) different blades up front and B) different cylinder stops. The earlier one has the tall sight and the later one has the tall sharp cylinder stop. Are these just mixed up parts and changes or were these changes that did happen in some at least partially orchestrated fashion during 1948 and I happen to catch them both right between 43 and 55 thousand? Or were they custom options?

Thanks

I'm not sure why the cylinder stops would differ. I would expect those parts to be a fixed part of fundamental engineering.

On the front sight blades, do you mean one is a ramp and the other a Patridge? I would suspect that the ramp might be a replacement blade on a gun that came with a Patridge sight originally. When S&W introduced the "combat" models of their K-masterpiece guns in 1950, they were equipped with Baughman ramp sights, so they were certainly available a couple of years after yours came off the line. I'm not sure if ramp sights were available any earlier than that.

Or are you talking about a different distinction between sight types?

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David Wilson

I also have a question about K frames from 1948. Just recently I picked up a K22 made in 1948. It is a habit of mine to disassemble any new (or old) to me S&W I have purchased.

After removing the trigger, I was just about to remove the hand when I noticed something I'd never seen before. There was a leaf and coil spring that powered the hand, not the usual style you see of wound wire. All one had to do to see this, is to (make sure it's unloaded of course) pull the hammer to full cock and then look at the front of the trigger up high next to the frame. A coil spring? When? Why? The oldest S&W I've ever completely stripped was a 1910 Triple Lock. Oldly enough it used what looked to be the standard hand spring for many decades. Interesting to say the least.

Murphy2000

I have seen that style of hand spring on prewar revolvers but haven't paid much attention to it other than to think, "That's sure more expensive engineering than is needed to accomplish a purpose." The most recent guns I have been working on were prewar I-frames, and they had this style of spring. A postwar I-frame I had apart at the same time had the simpler two-arm loop spring (like an open safety pin) you describe. I can't speak to early K and N frame revolvers, because the last time I had any of those apart I wasn't paying attention to hands and hand springs. I usually just leave them on the hammer when I do a teardown cleaning.

I remember to this day the problems I had with a "safety pin" spring on a 1950 K-38, the first S&W I ever took apart. That was an education.

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David Wilson

Just different height. I'll get some pictures up after awhile.

You didn't say what caliber these guns are----------or if you did, I wasn't paying proper attention. If they're both the same caliber, the front sight blades should be the same height. If they're not the same caliber, the front sight blades will be different heights. Specif. The 22 has the lowest sight blade. The 32 has one some higher. The 38 has one a lot higher. Think about the comparative ballistics (trajectories (sp?)).

Ralph Tremaine

And if they're the same caliber, then somebody screwed the pooch somewhere along the line.

[QUOTE=rct269;135944456]If they're both the same caliber, the front sight blades should be the same height. And if they're the same caliber, then somebody screwed the pooch somewhere along the line.[/QUOTE

Ralph,

I should probably wait for beagleye to post his pictures but there was a slight change in the height of the barrel rib and a corresponding change in the height of the sight blade on K-22s. I believe the change took place around K75000 when the Masterpiece series were redesigned to be of equal weight.

Here is a photo of two of my K-22s . . . the one on the right is K10495 and the one on the left is K185890.



This may or may not be what the OP was referring to but I wanted to share this while we're waiting . . . and on behalf of the pooch!

Russ

Okay---I don't know what I'm looking at here------are both these guns narrow rib models? If yes, then we're back to the pooch. If not, then we're doing apples and oranges. It seems to me the dimension of interest should be bore centerline to top of sight blade. I have no clue about how to measure from the bore centerline. I reckon if one were to measure from the top of a cleaning rod placed in the bore, it'd be close enough for government work. And up there where I said "apples and oranges", I just stared at the muzzle end of a narrow rib side by side with the muzzle end of a wide rib-----------there are a bunch of differences-----barrel diameter/rib height/sight height. Right about then I decided we're still not looking at enough stuff-----I decided we need to be comparing the height of the sight plane from bore centerline (or the cleaning rod). Then I decided I wasn't sure if I should be saying sight plane or sight plain (plane is correct). Then the Boss Lady said the food's ready-----and I said, Thank God!!!----because I was starting to get plumb aggravated with all this! So I'm going to go eat----and if anybody wants to fool with measuring comparative sight planes, make sure the rear sights are in the same position----like all the way down.

Later!!!

Ralph Tremaine

That's it! Thanks, I am comparing a 22 to a 38. Seems a little obvious in retrospect, except it seems backwards in my mind. I would have expected the 22 to have a flatter trajectory. I guess I should study on that. I will post the pictures anyway.

Thanks, Pete

Hi,

I have a 1948 K-22 and see that on my trigger the "hand torsion spring" isn't a torsion spring it's a coil spring. The hand moves a lever which compresses a coil spring. I was having an issue where the hand would sometimes prematurely disengage and tracked it to this spring being a bit mangled on the end that is pressed by the lever. (Sorry, I am new to this and don't know all the proper part names.) Anyway, I pulled the spring and flipped it 180-degrees so the lever presses on the non-mangled end of the coil spring. Seems to work fine now. But, I wanted to track down a replacement spring...

I found some K-22 diagrams but they indicate "torsion spring" and haven't had any luck searching the web.

Any advice would be appreciated!

Thanks! Mark.

Mark,

It sounds like you came up with the right "field expedient" and will likely have little or no additional problem out of that spring! OTOH if, like me, you can't leave well enough alone, and want to actually replace that spring because it "just isn't right," you might try one of the specialty dealers in the older parts like Dave Chicoine. He might be able to help you out. Good luck with it.

Froggie

The part names are:
Hand Lever
Hand Lever Spring

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Regards,
Lee Jarrett

One of the reasons I seldom ever remove the hand from the trigger. I did reshape a small screwdriver blade to just fit inside the trigger to compress the spring for reassembly. I don't see any reason to take the hand off the trigger. A little brake & parts cleaner and blow off with air compressor and leave alone.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

Googled this, found oldwestgunsmith.com and they have the "hand lever spring" = part K-39! Bingo--

Thanks!! Mark.

Hello David
Years ago, I rescued a Bady corroded K-22 that Dated 1948. I shot it awhile and it was deadly accurate. I felt it deserved a new finish as it was very ugly so I sent it off to Ford's in Florida. I got a call from them and we had a Problem, a Big Problem. Apparently they remove the cylinder stop's when refinishing guns and oddly Mine broke when they tried to place it back in the gun. Horace Ford the Master Gun smith was sick over it as he tried to locate a replacement Cylinder stop but shared with me that the 1948 K-22's differed in their cylinder stops for just that year, and he offered to Machine me a replacement one. I then called the Factory and hooked up with my connection and he scrounged up Two of them telling me as well that the 1948 K-22's differed from any other cylinder stops, and that he had sent me the Last Two in Factory existence. I sent them Both to Ford's one went in my gun and one was placed in their Part's stash. Here is that 1948 K-22 They refinished for me I don't know if you can see any difference in it's cylinder stop ? Regards, Hammerdown