Bekeart models and .22/32 HFT's

[Hondo44]

Don,

Very cool! Well given your screen name and the # starting with a zero I thought that was the case. So were there at least 345 HFT Club Guns produced? Does it have a grip number or what period of production was it from?

 

[Club Gun Fan]

Don,

Very cool! Well given your screen name and the # starting with a zero I thought that was the case. So were there at least 345 HFT Club Guns produced? Does it have a grip number or what period of production was it from?

The Club Guns started in 1899. There were at least 18 .22/32 HFT's. Mine was shipped in 1928. It now has a pair of Mother of Pearl stocks with the gold medallions.

 

[JSR III]

Bringing this thread back to the top

 

[H Richard]

I can add one for you. s/n 441727, Shipped Sept. 1926. 2 screw target stocks w/o medallions. Patridge front sight. Mushroom Ejector rod knob. Non-recessed chambers. Right stock pencil #'d to the frame. Any other info you want let me know.

 

[DCWilson]

I must have been asleep in most of August. How else could I have missed this thread?

Jim, you may have picked up my very late prewar specimen (533038) from the list archives, but in case not there are details in the old thread that I link to below. Looks like I never actually lettered the gun, so I don't know where it went. I know of only one other six-inch prewar .22/32 with a higher serial number - 533049. You may be able to find that one in an archive search, as it was posted on the forum a couple or three years back.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...-32-target-revolver-very-late-production.html

Another .22/32 in my safe, 364316, started life as a .22/32 HFT in 1921. It was modified by the factory in 1946 with a new recessed cylinder and four-inch barrel, coming to look like a .22/32 Kit Gun after its surgery. It also got postwar Regulation Police stocks at that time. The serial number reveals its roots, though. The front sight is the wide variety of the USRA pocket revolver sight.

 

[kickback]

.22/32

I am putting together a database of information about the Bekeart models and the subsequent .22/32 HFT's. I have close to 350 guns in the database so far and I am asking for your help to add any additional numbers to the list. I have obvious headings like serial number, stock sequence number, date shipped, destination, stock style, front sight, recessed chambers, condition and modifications/inclusions.

Things like bobbed hammers, knob style etc., are listed under the modifications.

If anyone has any that they would like to add to the list, please supply the details. Should you not want to post the information publicly, feel free to PM or email me and no names will be attached to any information.

If you own a .22/32 and just want to see if I have any information about your gun, please feel free to ask.

Many folks think that if their gun is numbered between 138,226 and 139,275 that it went to Bekeart, however, that is not correct. For example, 138,226 did not and neither did 139,274.

Thanks in advance for your help.

I have serial # 138226. Per letter from Mr. Jinks, it was shipped on August 12, 1912 to Walter H. Wesson, President of S & W. 6 inch barrel with Patridge front sight, blue finish, and checkered walnut extension target gold medallion grips. The only problem with the gun is somehow the rear sight is missing.
Any ideas on locating a replacement? Thanks.

 

[JSR III]

kickback, can you recheck that serial number? According to my information, that gun shipped in June of 1911 and went to a distributor in NYC. Guns shipped in 1912 typically have a serial number in excess of 159,000.

 

[JSR III]

Richard, thanks for the info on 441,727. I am assuming that it has a small logo on the left side, and Made in the USA on the right. What condition is it in and do you have box or any additional stuff with the gun?

David, I do have that gun in the DB, thank you. As an added bit of info, I show 534,506 as my highest serial number for a 6" .22/32 HFT shipped in June of 1940. It is shown in the SWCA SDR forum.

Also for those that care. I start seeing a transition from LERK's to MERK's around 488,XXX.

 

[Blind Boy]

Nice walnut grip adaptor...

…as mentioned back in post #47. The numbered stocks have great grain. As a bonus this grip adaptor not only closely matches the grain but helps make this my most accurate .22lr in my hands. I recently tested all my .22lr revolvers and this one came out on top by a good margin. That's nice, because this is my favorite model. Hondo44, you asked if this was factory. The checking quality makes me doubt that. However, perhaps they got the wood from S&W, as it has nice grain that matches well but may be hard to see in the photos.

 

[Cricker]

Currently in my possesion is serial #368893.
Non medallion stocks w/ pat Jun 5, 1917 stamp on bottom.
Large ejector knob
Patridge front and square notch rear sight.
I'm guessing early to mid 20's vintage?

 

[DCWilson]

Cricker, early '20s would be about right. The patent stamp you mention means that the gun has Regulation Police stocks ("small square butt," in some factory descriptions) as opposed to the two-screw extension stocks ("large square butt" in some letters). There was a brief period in the early '20s when the RP stocks were standard for the .22/32 revolvers; before and after that period the larger extension stocks were standard, though after 1917 the RP stocks could be ordered as an option. I'm not sure how often that option was exercised, though.

 

[Hondo44]

I agree. Based on my database, I'd estimate it shipped Feb, Mar or April 1923.

 

[JSR III]

Sorry, I have been away from this thread for a while.

Cricker, your gun, according to my database, shipped on 5-7-1923 and was shipped to J.E. Steele with no address listed. It wore regulation police style stocks without medallions, had a large extractor knob, small S&W logo on the left and patent dated stocks. Although the change order to stamp all S&W's with the "Made in USA" marking was issued a year earlier in May of 1922, they don't show up in my database until around October of 1923 .

This could be due to using up old inventory or it could merely be that I don't have any examples in the database prior to October 1923. My sampling for all of 1923 consists of 15 guns.

Hope that helps.

 

[OldDominion]

Really enjoying this thread. One of the last three guns I need to complete my Centennial Catalog collection is a transitional .22/32 HFT that would have shipped in 1952. The odds of finding one and of capturing Big Foot are about the same.

 

[Hondo44]

It might even be harder. History records killings/captures of Big Foot.

But take heart, Transitional Targets w/6" barrel are very rare but have been reported as posted by Roy Jinks on the members side of this forum.

I have personally seen two finished 6" barrels w/o the extractor rod notch under the barrel for the pre war style 'barrel' shaped knob.

Happy hunting,

 

[Green Frog]

It might even be harder. History records killings/captures of Big Foot.

But take heart, Transitional Targets w/6" barrel are very rare but have been reported as posted by Roy Jinks on the members side of this forum.

I have personally seen two finished 6" barrels w/o the extractor rod notch under the barrel for the pre war style 'barrel' shaped knob.

Happy hunting,

Hondo44 should I assume you are counting mine as one of those you have seen, even though it's a country away? I'd like to acknowledge and thank you once again for providing me with the proper extractor rod to modify so that I could keep the "no-notch" barrel original when I had it installed on my 1920's vintage HFT. As with so many of that era, my HFT came to me with a noticeably bulged barrel, in fact that's why I was able to afford it. No collection of I-frames would be complete without at least one example!

Although my 1948 K-22 has sort of pushed it aside these days, the rebarreled HFT has a proud place in my collection and is a fine representative of S&W's early effort at a 22 target gun... I wish it REALLY WERE a post-War transitional, though!

Froggie

 

[JSR III]

Really enjoying this thread. One of the last three guns I need to complete my Centennial Catalog collection is a transitional .22/32 HFT that would have shipped in 1952. The odds of finding one and of capturing Big Foot are about the same.

I would have to agree that finding a 6" HFT from the 50's might be tough. The latest one in my database is 534,498 and shipped in June of 1940. All the others that I have information on from the 40's and 50's are 4" kit guns.

 

[JSR III]

Still looking for information of these neat guns. Anybody have any more that they could add to the database??

I have information or serial numbers for about 1850 so far. The really weird thing is the lack of information on the 490 MW Robinson shipped guns that fall between 207,926 and 208,416 with stock sequence numbers between 2100 and 2500.

These guns just don't seem to show up on auction sites or even here for that matter and it begs the question as to whether many of these went to Europe as Robinson did ship there a lot. I have way more information on other groups of .22/32 serial numbers than this block of 490. Kinda makes one go HUMMMMM?????

 

[Club Gun Fan]

James
I don't know if you have these in your data base. These were from the Supica auction from October 27 & 26, 2006. It is the Gary & Martha Skeet collection. These are all standard .22/32's unless noted. From lot 127 sn 138934 stock stamped 518. As a side note I bought this at the Big E gunshow in 1995 for $175.00. Gary bought it from me shortly after. The next lot is a cardboard box for a Bekeart model. Martha bought it at the Tulsa show shortly after I sold them the above lot. Lot 129 sn 529482. Lot 130 sn 38639. I hope this helps.

 

[JSR III]

Don, thanks for the information. I actually do have them listed and I own 529,482 shipped on 3/6/1936 to Shapleigh Hardware. I bought it as I didn't have one with the recessed chambers that was originally shipped from the factory that way. I own another one in the 38X,XXX range with the recessed chambers but it went back to the factory for that modification later in its life.

Anyone that has any more information to add to the database I would appreciate your posting it here or PM me. I am really beginning to get a handle on the first 3,000 guns that were shipped with the stock sequence numbers imprinted into the bottom of the left stock panel but more information is always better.