jsmith
Member
I have been looking for a Triple Lock for years with terrible luck. All I kept finding were the problem guns and the ones that sellers wanted way too much for [being problem guns]. Problems such as being resleeved, non-matching numbers, cut barrels, and ones that were poorly refinished. But yesterday was a different story.
A friend I know of showed me this gun awhile back and was debating on whether to sell it. He knows that I buy and collect older firearms and gave me first opportunity to buy. Well, he finally decided to sell it! He said he's had this for about 30 years. And now it has found another good home.
What I bought off of him is a 1st year S&W .44 Triple Lock. This gun is in excellent condition. It is nickeled and its the original nickel. There is just a little nickel loss on the face of the cylinder and a tiny bit of nickel flake on the left side just below the thumb release. There is no rust or pitting to be found. It has the standard 6-1/2" barrel with an excellent bore which just needs a good cleaning. The grips that are on this gun are real mother-of-pearl but I am almost positive that they are after-market.
The best part is the serial number which is 689. That's right! A three-digit serial number. And being that low puts this gun at first year production. I checked this gun over and all the numbers match. An interesting thing about the serial number is it reads 689 whether the gun is held right side-up or upside-down. Early and low serial numbers are always sought after!
The lock-up on this gun is excellent with almost no play. The trigger pull is nice and easy, real smooth. This is exactly the kind of gun I have been looking for. It is in its original condition and hasn't been messed with. And it has been well taken care of and not ignored and allowed to detoriate as I see with a lot of guns.
Some of you out there may think I paid too much or got a great deal for the price. When it comes to Triple Lock's you might as well ignore the prices in the SCSW3 or the Blue Book because often you can't even find them at those prices. I paid $2000 for it! And I know I paid top dollar for it. Triple Lock's don't come up for sale often and sometimes you have to pay the money for one.
The SCSW3 states that there were 15,375 were made between serial numbers 1-15,375 from about 1907-1915. According to the prices in the SCSW3 and Blue Book I believe I did real good on this one.
I am definately going to get this one factory lettered. It will be posted here when I get it. If the grips are wrong, which I am sure of, I will find the right ones for it.
I do recall from memory that my gun is not the earliest serial numbered .44 Triple Lock to be posted here but it is an early one. It will be keeping my Model 1917 with serial #45 company in my safe.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...army-revolver-serial-45-factory-lettered.html
Any comments out there, especially from the experts!
jsmith
This is the best picture I could get of the serial number. My camera just dosn't have the resolution for fine details.
A friend I know of showed me this gun awhile back and was debating on whether to sell it. He knows that I buy and collect older firearms and gave me first opportunity to buy. Well, he finally decided to sell it! He said he's had this for about 30 years. And now it has found another good home.
What I bought off of him is a 1st year S&W .44 Triple Lock. This gun is in excellent condition. It is nickeled and its the original nickel. There is just a little nickel loss on the face of the cylinder and a tiny bit of nickel flake on the left side just below the thumb release. There is no rust or pitting to be found. It has the standard 6-1/2" barrel with an excellent bore which just needs a good cleaning. The grips that are on this gun are real mother-of-pearl but I am almost positive that they are after-market.
The best part is the serial number which is 689. That's right! A three-digit serial number. And being that low puts this gun at first year production. I checked this gun over and all the numbers match. An interesting thing about the serial number is it reads 689 whether the gun is held right side-up or upside-down. Early and low serial numbers are always sought after!
The lock-up on this gun is excellent with almost no play. The trigger pull is nice and easy, real smooth. This is exactly the kind of gun I have been looking for. It is in its original condition and hasn't been messed with. And it has been well taken care of and not ignored and allowed to detoriate as I see with a lot of guns.
Some of you out there may think I paid too much or got a great deal for the price. When it comes to Triple Lock's you might as well ignore the prices in the SCSW3 or the Blue Book because often you can't even find them at those prices. I paid $2000 for it! And I know I paid top dollar for it. Triple Lock's don't come up for sale often and sometimes you have to pay the money for one.
The SCSW3 states that there were 15,375 were made between serial numbers 1-15,375 from about 1907-1915. According to the prices in the SCSW3 and Blue Book I believe I did real good on this one.
I am definately going to get this one factory lettered. It will be posted here when I get it. If the grips are wrong, which I am sure of, I will find the right ones for it.
I do recall from memory that my gun is not the earliest serial numbered .44 Triple Lock to be posted here but it is an early one. It will be keeping my Model 1917 with serial #45 company in my safe.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...army-revolver-serial-45-factory-lettered.html
Any comments out there, especially from the experts!
jsmith
This is the best picture I could get of the serial number. My camera just dosn't have the resolution for fine details.
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