I have a 2nd Model .455. which has only two proof marks. Every other S&W I have seen is tattooed with a zillion proof marks and inspection stamps. Mine only has a crown over 30 on the butt and a fairly large C with opposing arrows stamped inside it on the left side up near the hammer which look like British Sold Out Of Service marks. Other than that, the gun is clean of any other marks. So...am I correct that this revolver was Canadian issue and...is it normal for a 2nd Model to have so few stamps. How did it escape the inspection process ?

The real question is whether it has been converted to .45 Colt or .45 ACP.

The large "C" stamp on the left side of the frame is the Canadian military acceptance stamp. Canada did not proof stamp their revolvers, so your gun probably went to England first, received the English stamp and then was issued to a Canadian unit and after the war was sold as surplus. We collectors often criticize the English practice of stamping numerous marks on their gun, however it actually is an excellent road map to when, where and sometime , whom, the gun was issued and saw duty. Ed.

Canada doesn't have a proof house, so those are not proof marks. They do sound like Canadian ownership marks.

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Tom
1560

Yes, I was a little too quick to use that term when inspection or acceptance stamps would have been more to the point. It doesn't have a proof mark on it at all. What does the crown over 30 stamp indicate ?

Regarding conversion...yes, it has been converted to 45 Colt but not by shaving the cylinder. Looks like they shaved the plate instead. The conversion was done well. It's doesn't have that Bubba aura about it.

My best guess (only a guess) is that is an inspector's mark. IE, it was accepted into service of the king by inspector number 30.

Definitely Canadian property at some point, although who ultimately wound up with it is anyone's guess.

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You're shy a few manners.

I ran into this from another forum:
"There were some 14,500 S&W .455 Mk II,2nd Models manufactured for Canada during the 1st War. I have owned several and

none caried British proofs. Remington was the receiving agent for the Empire during the war and forwarded the guns onto whever they were destined for."

So the one I have fits that description and the military acceptance stamp matches one on a picture of a Canadian holster.

The best conversions were made by rechambering using a .45 Colt reamer, and slightly recessing the chambers for the .45 Colt rims. As the .45 Colt had a smaller rim diameter and thicker rim than the .455, both cartridges could be used with no headspace problems and no frame modifications or cylinder face machining. Be aware that nothing other than standard factory .45 Colt loadings (or equivalent handloads) should ever be used in it. The cylinders were not heat-treated at that time, and will not withstand high pressure .45 Colt loads.

Thanks, DWalt. I go easy on all of my older Smiths and this 2nd Model does real well with tame loads. It's had a long and not too gentle past but it has found a good home. I'm glad to be able to finally confirm that it has a Canadian lineage. Others that I have seen were covered in stamps so this one threw me. Thanks to all for the responses.

The C with a broad arrow in the center is a Canadian ownership mark. The Crown with 30 under it is an inspection mark. Rather than being for an individual inspector this stamp was used by a number of inspectors, which is different to the British method of each inspector having his own individual number/stamp. Canada certainly did have its own military proof facility's the mark being DCP -intertwined through two crossed pennants. DCP standing for Dominion of Canada Proof. This mark will be found on Ross rifles and Winchester Model 1892 carbines and Remington Model 14 1/2 rifles that were inspected/proofed on behalf of the British government in WW1.
the DCP mark has also been found on revolvers that have seen Canadian serive, but this is not common. I will try and find a photo of this to post.

Regards

AlanD
Sydney

Attached Images

DCP PROOF.jpg (40.1 KB, 46 views)