4" 1950 Model Target 44 (Pre 24) With Smooth Goncalo Alves Target Grips

[bmg60]

hi
buff
are you sure the finish is orginal the Bright blue finish was not a option
until the late 54 55 time frame.
It would have to be a special order in that time frame. or else the ship date is wrong what is the serial number.
jim

 

[rburg]

Jim, back on the first page its stated the gun was a 1955 ship date, with an S143,000 serial. I have a nickel one with an S103,000s serial. My impression (may be wrong) is that both bright blue and nickel were made available at the same time.

 

[BUFF]

Jim:

The letter says it is a special order. I would guess that most 5 inchers were special orders. Original finish? I don't have the box, the letter didn't say, but it doesn't look refinished to me.

"... your handgun, with serial number S86130, was shipped from our factory on February 25, 1952, and delivered to Salt Lake Hardware Co., Salt Lake City, Utah. This revolver was a special order and was produced with a five inch barrel. The factory record do not indicate how many five inch handguns of this model were manufactured."

When is your letter dated?

My 4 incher is a bit newer, S118324. It is bright blue, as are all of the other original 4 inchers I have seen photos of.

Were all 4 inch 1950 Targets bright blue?

I just noticed that my 4 incher is only 3 numbers from Tom/230grfmj's. I wonder if mine was part of the same order? It's rr/wo, too.

 

[rck281]

Jim:

The letter says it is a special order. I would guess that most 5 inchers were special orders. Original finish? I don't have the box, the letter didn't say, but it doesn't look refinished to me.

"... your handgun, with serial number S86130, was shipped from our factory on February 25, 1952, and delivered to Salt Lake Hardware Co., Salt Lake City, Utah. This revolver was a special order and was produced with a five inch barrel. The factory record do not indicate how many five inch handguns of this model were manufactured."

When is your letter dated?

My 4 incher is a bit newer, S118324. It is bright blue, as are all of the other original 4 inchers I have seen photos of.

Were all 4 inch 1950 Targets bright blue?

I just noticed that my 4 incher is only 3 numbers from Tom/230grfmj's. I wonder if mine was part of the same order? It's rr/wo, too.

Buff, I currently own Tom's gun. As stated in the letter, it was shipped January 26, 1955 to Olympic Wholesale Co. When was yours shipped?

A number of years ago, I owned S118311 which was of the same configuration. I have also seen 4" guns that were standard blue.

 

[BUFF]

I haven't lettered mine. I will have to.

 

[rck281]

Jim, back on the first page its stated the gun was a 1955 ship date, with an S143,000 serial. I have a nickel one with an S103,000s serial. My impression (may be wrong) is that both bright blue and nickel were made available at the same time.

What date do you have for your S103000 gun? My 4" pinto with a serial number of S98034 letters as being shipped November 10, 1954.

 

[bmg60]

Hi Buff and dick King
My letter is dated 2006.
I have owned 4 5 inch model 24,s over the years and I own two now
one of mine is bright and one was shipped with standard finish and is now engraved.
the other two that I owned were both standard finish.
all have been in the 140xxx to 150xxx range.
Buff your gun is the earliest serial number I have seen.
you need to get a ship date.
as dick king said they were 4 inch with standard finish.
I have two four inch and both are like toms gun and both were shipped in dec of 1955 with bright blue finish, I think all the 4 inch in this same range were all shipped in 1955.
I hope this helps.
serial numbers of 4 inch S107879 and S120190 both dec 1955
serial numbers of 5 inch s161292 shipped 11/18/1955
and s146573 shipped 6/27/1955

 

[Dave T]

You guys with 5" Model 1950 44 Targets are killing me. I had to buy a cut down M24-3 to get a 5" and it pales in comparison to the ones shown here.

Apologies for getting off track from the original thread,
Dave

 

[BUFF]

"Buff your gun is the earliest serial number I have seen.
you need to get a ship date."

You must have missed it. My 5 inch ( S86130 ) letters as having been shipped February 25, 1952, to Salt Lake Hardware in Salt Lake City, UT. I bought it from Jim Supica's Old Town Station in Lenexa, Kansas in 1996. He had it pictured in his sort-of-monthly catalog.

I haven't lettered my 4 inch yet.

I bought my 4 inch 1950 from a retired gentleman in Florida in 2002. He had advertised it in ShotGun News. Usually, all the good stuff in ShotGun News was sold by the time I got my issue, but I thought I would take a chance and called him. He said he had bought the gun new when he lived in Pennsylvania and had hunted deer with it. He had listed the assembly number in the yoke cutout as the serial number, and when I suggested to him that it might not be, he cut me off and told me that all sorts of young whippersnappers had called him, told him he was wrong about the serial number and then tried to buy it from him cheap. I could picture him staring defiantly into the phone as he talked. He knew what he knew, and that was that, and I could take it or leave it.

The price was fair if the gun was correct, but not so fair if the gun was something other than he said it was. So, I bought it. The target stocks covered the s/n on the bottom of the grip frame, and the assembly number turned out to be just that, an assembly number, not the serial number. The gun is lovely. I was and am still pretty happy with it. It is and was my grail gun.

 

[BUFF]

DaveT:

Don't sweat your 1950 being a 24-3. They are pretty sweet guns themselves. And you can shoot it all you want! I was tickled pink when S&W started making them, as the original 5,050 1950 Target .44 Specials made between 1950 and 1966 didn't go too far, and I figured I'd be unlikely to ever find one of them aound here. Who new that Al Gore was about to invent the internet and make finding rare guns so much easier!

 

[Doc44]

I owned a 1950 Target with a 5-inch barrel and standard blue finish. It has serial number S78599 and was shipped on April 17, 1951. It was a little different than most 1950 Targets in that the front sight ramp was not fitted to the barrel rib and sat on top of it like you see on the 44 Magnum. Also, the roll mark on the right side of the barrel was like that seen on the Model of 1926 (S&W may have used an old barrel to make it). The revolver has Magna stocks numbered to the frame. It is the only S&W I sold that I wish I would have kept. I bought it in the 1980s from Harrison Carroll.

I have owned three 1950 Targets with a 4-inch barrel and bright blue finish...S131155, shipped on March 28, 1955, S118255 shipped on January 24, 1955, and S141883, shipped on February 2, 1956 with Class A engraving by Harry Jarvis. Each of these guns had target stocks and a red ramp front sight blade. I also owned S97119, 6 1/2-inch, nickel, with Class B engraving by Russ Smith and shipped sometime in 1954.

I know nickel and bright blue were options for this model as early as April 1954 (and probably as early as their introduction) as I have a price list from then and it shows these finishes as available for the 1950 Target 44.

Bill

 

[BUFF]

I have three other 1950 Targets. They are 6-1/2 inch guns, two are .44 Special, one .45 ACP.

One .44 Special ( S98543 ) and the .45 ACP ( S100373 ) are the conventional soft blue. The third, another .44 Special ( S146562 ) is bright blue. They seem to fit in with what would be expected, finish-wise.

 

[dhm146]

I now own this Smith pre-24

Hey there,
I was just searching the SWCA site and found this gun.
I was shocked to see that it is the one that I now own and purchased from David Carroll last winter. It is a real beauty, and another great addition to my 1950's collection.

 

[crofoot629]

That would be new favorite!
Thank you for sharing such a rare gem.

Emory

 

[Retired W4]

Hey there,
I was just searching the SWCA site and found this gun.
I was shocked to see that it is the one that I now own and purchased from David Carroll last winter. It is a real beauty, and another great addition to my 1950's collection.

Congratulations on such a great addition to your collection, and thank you for revitalizing the thread.

 

[Stirling]

I have to say that is a real beauty! Who needs a mountain gun when you can have one of these?! This forum really can be very educational.

 

[Mickey D]

Resurrection of an old thread, but thank God. I haven't seen this one or this 4" .44 Model of 1950.
I have a 6.5" copy that I cherish. Love to find a 4" someday.

 

[BUFF]

Roy Jinks just wrote that my 4 inch 1950 Target S118324 shipped in January, 1955.

 

[peppercorn]

Great resurrection thread!

Please enlighten me on the original stocks for these guns.

Were target stocks an option in the pre 24 1950 target, and, if so, were they checkered or smooth, cokes or otherwise?

Were magnas considered to be the 'standard' stocks on these?

 

[Sebago Son]

That'll leave a mark...

Dave,
If Tom will allow me this one little highjack of his thread...

I really need a 4" 1950 HE 4th Change in the remuda...
But for now I guess this ol' 5" pre-model number 44 Special will just have to do.
S978XX - Shipped 12-18-52 as a 5 inch w/ blue finish - engraved by Jim Russell - Harlington, Tex.

Su Amigo,
Dave

Capn,

Didja throw a rawhide hitch through the trigger guard and make a drag or two with it?