Anyone remember this little derringer?

[BOB THE PALINDROME]

It's big brother in .357, stainless, was my first carry gun. You had almost 1/4" of barrel and my game plan was to stick it in the bad guys belly button and go bang, bang and then run like Hell.

 

[Blacksmith58]

Yep! Got One! It's a sweet little gun!

 

[624 Fan]

My dad bought the .22LR version for my mom when he was working the night shift back in the late 60s. It was the first real gun I ever fired and my brother and I still talk about that day 30 years later. Mom still keeps it around with it's original box and some loose ammo.

 

[westkybanded]

I would LOVE to find one in operating condition. The last few I've seen were at gun shows and had problems.

 

[jimmyj]

Hi:
I still have mine (.22 Mag). Like me it shows a lot of use.
Jimmy

 

[gamedic]

Mine is a 22mag it is the first pistol my father gave me, I was about 12. Strange how times have changed, no one would give a 12 year old a derringer now. I still have it and for some reason like shooting the thing. I have to place my thumb on top of the barrel just above the locking mechanism to get both barrels to fire. I have gotten so used to doing it I had to think for a second to remember that it is the top barrel that won't fire if I don't do it.

 

[VonFatman]

Sure do...we have a pair in the safe. REALLY horrible triggers which means you NEVER had to worry about a negligent discharge in the pocket because you have to WANT to pull the trigger!!! (and you had to be a 300lb. gorilla to pull it!)
And I will add...accuracy has never been easy for me. Both of these guns are .22 Magnum.
Bob

 

[GRIZZLYBEAR]

I still have my 22 Mag High Standard. I carried it as BUG from the early '70's until about '85 or '86. I wouldn't trade the old friend.

grizz

 

[S-W4EVER]

I toyed with the idea of buying one for a BUG but never got around to it. For the first dozen years or so after I got out of the Army, I had S&W-itus and by the time I got over it, HS derringers were kinda hard to find.

 

[sigp220.45]

Here's an article by the late, great, never to be equaled Skeeter Skelton in which he talks about these little guns:

Handguns by Skeeter Skelton March 1967

Nobody today writes like Skeeter did:

"Waiting one day for my partner to bring the horsetrailer and collect me and my broomtail after a long ride, I idly fired the Remington into a creosoted power pole. The hollowbased heel of the outside-lubricated slug gazed owlishly at me, not even buried in the wood. Horrified, I let go another round, with the same results. Later, I found that the .41 frequently failed to penetrate heavy tin cans. I traded the gun to a collector."

 

[Smithboomer]

A .22 magnum version (sans grips) rode in the front chest pocket of my denim jacket during fishing trips back in the 80's. I carried a .22 mag shotshell in the first barrel and a HP in the other.

I never had a problem with just one barrel shooting. +1 to what was said about the muzzle flash, and shooting with the middle finger on the trigger.

 

[mstuhr]

Neat little guns

Howdy,
They are neat little guns. I had a mag that I shot a ton of long rifles out of. I'd throw a can and point and shoot and it did well. I never remember splitting a case. It would get the extractor over the L.R. cases so you had to open and get them started and then pick the empties out.
I guess that is not a recomendation but I ran boxes of bulk LR through mine.
Good luck
Mike

 

[sigp220.45]

I thought I'd resurrect this thread, so I could post in it for a third time....

Santa finally came through and brought me my first High Standard .22 magnum derringer. Its a later version, with the black grips and black "crinkle" finish:

I tried it at dusk and was rewarded with a three-foot fireball and an impressive boom.

I first shot one of these going through firearms instructor school at the FBI Academy at Quantico. They still had some in the gun vault - at the time they were occasionally loaned out to undercover guys. The theory was nobody would think it was a cop gun, and if the guy had to shoot it, every backup in the area would hear it and come running.

 

[rburg]

Up in post #14 a guy complained about his hand hurting. I agree with that. And it wasn't the normal pain, it was because the gun vibrated as well as fired and recoiled. We once tried to shoot up the last half of a box of magnums. My buddy and I shared maybe 25 shots, and it was enough for us. It made me realize the .25 autos weren't all that bad after all!

 

[Bat Guano]

Always liked them but never quite got around to actually buying one in my younger days. Then they got a bit scarce and most seemed to be .22 Magnums; I wanted one in the lowly .22 LR. Finally found a nice specimen a couple of years back for $265 and glommed onto it.

I intended to do a detail strip and clean it up, but after popping the side plate I decided it really, really wasn't broke and very carefully buttoned it up again.

Interesting little stingy guns, though. I like the things.

 

[feralmerril]

I guess I am behind the times huh?

 

[PALADIN85020]

Just as a side note on these things. The magnums WILL loosen up with use, and they are impossible to fix thereafter. If you are considering getting a magnum, be sure it's tight before buying it, and don't use it a whole lot.

The .22 LR version never had that problem; you can shoot it until the cows come home, and it won't loosen.

John

P.S. To date your gun, here is the info you need:

Welcome to Adobe GoLive 5

 

[bugbeliever]

New to this forum but have read a lot on here due to being a big smith fan and owning a few smiths but always seeing ones from the past and new ones I could use...want.

I have the High standard in 22lr and I love it. 15 feet I can get 5-6 inch groups and it never fails. I carry it in my back pocket as a bug to my M&P or if I need to wear a suit I carry just this little guy as it is a whole lot better than no gun.

 

[WR Moore]

I bought one of the magnums as a backup in the late 1960's. I did manage to break a firing pin and replaced it without incident, maybe 10 years ago. You can fire .22lr in the magnum version, but accuracy suffers. IIRC, the lower barrel is off on windage.

Mine is a bit loose, but the looseness is between the sideplates and the pivot pin. Lockup of the breech is tight, the breech & barrels just wobble a mite.

 

[feralmerril]

I had one same as yours but I cant remember if I even fired it. I gave it to my daughter and havent heard anything about it since.