First Hand Ejector: Model1896

[Teddydog]

A couple weeks ago I bought my first 1st Model Hand Ejector .32, or Model 1896. And here I present it to you. Very happy to have this representative of the first generation swing-out cylinder Smith & Wesson.

The revolver is in .32 S&W (aka .32 S&W Long) and has a 3 1/4" barrel and blued finish. Heavy finish wear, but still nice enough in places to make it difficult to photograph without getting reflections of myself or the camera in the pictures! SN is 12465, so I'd guess around 1900 (a bit over 19,000 made between 1896 and 1903). This SN is on the butt, cylinder face and bottom of the barrel.

Different from most S&W revolvers, the 1896 does not have a thumb latch to open the cylinder. Instead, the head of the ejector rod is pulled forward to open the latch so the cylinder can swing open to the left.

The cylinder stop also comes in from the TOP of the frame rather than the bottom, and because of this the rear sight is located near the front end of the frame. The cylinder stop is spring loaded and is pushed up by a lever on the firing pin tip as the hammer is drawn back, releasing the cylinder to turn. When the hammer moves forward to fire, rather than push the stop up again, small fingers move outward to allow the hammer and firing pin to seat fully and fire the gun. Very interesting design to observe!

It is wearing what I am sure are genuine Mother of Pearl grips. They don't fit all that well and have a crack or two and a small chip, but probably have been on this gun for a very long time. First genuine MOP grips I have owned...they are very interesting! Dense and heavy for their size and quite hard.

Here it is with a late 1930's Regulation Police.

Any and all comments are welcome.

Rob

 

[Teddydog]

Here's pic of the lever pushing up the cylinder stop lever as the hammer is cocked...

Rob

 

[Rpg]

Thank you for the great photos and narration.

 

[J. R. WEEMS]

32

Should be a nice little gun. I like it. Honest wear is ok with me. The grips are the real thing for sure. I believe factory would have a medallion. I have a pair like that. CONGRATS!!!

 

[merl67]

They are neat guns, and no Smith & Wesson collection is complete without one, or two ��
I sure enjoy mine. Nice example ! One of the neat curiosities of this model is the upper sideplate screw it's on some, but not on others, and with no perceivable pattern serial number wise...

 

[Frieda's Boss]

Thanks for sharing, very nice gun! I was not familiar with that way of opening, as well as locking, the cylinder.

 

[mojave30cal]

Nice looking shooter. I picked up one last month in blue with
the short barrel and black rubber grips. The serial number on
mine is not far from yours, 12440. Looking forward to shooting
it as soon as I get some ammo.

 

[Spcwolf]

I have one of these.

It’s missing some parts. Action doesn’t function well.
I am glad to own it. I hope to eventually get one that functions 100%.

How much did you pay for it?

 

[cmansguns]

MOP grips factory? Interesting question

I'm wondering about the OP's Mother of Pearl grips. They are one screw, but maybe that was the factory style in 1896. Also they don't have medallions but maybe that could have been factory too in the Black Powder era, up to 1900 or so.

I can tell you that by 1915, evidently S&W had seen or heard enough about fakes, or knock-offs to actually print up a warning about non factory MOP grips, and it was right inside the box that my 22-32 HFT shipped with on September 20, 1915.

Maybe there is (are) an (some) S&W grip "expert(s) that can chime in on this.....could the OP's MOP grips be factory originals of that style and era? Would a Letter tell for positive?

 

[Absalom]

SN is 12465, so I'd guess around 1900 (a bit over 19,000 made between 1896 and 1903).

....

Keep in mind that on this model the guns were not assembled in serial order and therefore extrapolating is generally not accurate.

All frames (and probably more than the actually assembled 19,712 revolvers) were produced and serialed in 1896/97, and then assembled in random sequence as they were grabbed off the shelf when orders came in until 1903.

That’s why all Models 1896 are classified as antiques by BATFE, no matter when shipped.

It has even been alleged that S&W shipped higher serials earlier to make the model look more popular, for marketing purposes, but I don’t believe there is any actual evidence to support that.

 

[SFIDEC]

Nice write-up on these sweet 1896 1st Model HE's.
Mine has nickel finish, medallion MOP's, with 3 1/4" barrel.
Serial number is 7504 and shipped in November 1899
Love the mechanics and how they shoot too.
Congrats on your new S&W addition!
Ray

 

[Truckman]

A most interesting gun...I was not aware of the features that differentiate it from later S&W designs...A characteristic of MOP is its increased weight as compared to wood or bone...One thing I've heard from more than one source is that MOP is shaped, filed and formed under running water because the dust is toxic and should not be allowed to to be carried airborne...I've never talked to anyone who has been in that industry, so maybe an expert here can either verify it or pass it off as an urban legend......Ben

 

[conradin]

I have a 1896 32S&WL I have another 1896 that I ended up selling it.
My question is this though: both 1896 that I have, the front sight blade is WAAAAY too high. If I aim the pistol normally, say on the chest area of the dummy, it ends up shooting its crotch. Not that bad an idea for face to face home defense. But it is in reality not a good thing. Since both hand ejectors that I have have the same problem, and looking at your photo also shows the same thing...

The question is why?

1. Are users supposed to shave the front sight blade to their own prefer blade height? 2.This is like a shotgun, the rear sight V really does not matter. You just use the front sight blade as if it were a bead. 3. Close combat means if you miss alignment, you will still hit your enemy. If blade were to be too short, then you may end up missing the enemy. This is really for a point and shoot technique when there is no time to aim. 4. there is a different technique for using the sight that we no longer use anymore.

Your thoughts?

 

[Truckman]

I recently posted about the unusual springs I found under the grips of my Model of 1903 which turned out to be leftover pieces from the 1896 production that were consequently used up in the very early 1903's...As the legend goes, S&W never throws away old parts which can be used in new guns......Ben

 

[Hondo44]

THE MODEL OF 1896 .32 HAND EJECTOR – 1st MODEL

This is the very first Hand Ejector produced by S&W and very unique. You'll notice they have no cartridge marking.

These were produced and shipped way out of serial # order over a period of 8 years. Shipping dates could be any time in that period, only an Historical letter will indicate the actual date. A lot of lower numbered guns shipped very late.

Three features that vary during production are the length of the hammer (there are long and short hammer spurs), # of side plate screws ( 3 or 4 screws), and extractor rod knob (with and w/o lock screw).

Standard barrel lengths were 3 1/4", 4 1/4", and 6"(rare).

There are also target models which are very rare.

Hand Ejector 1896, First Model - Fresh Gun Porn 4 U
DIFFERENCES IN THE .32 Hand Ejector Model 1896 - Ist Model vs. later .32 I FRAMES:

NOTE: The Model 1896 has its own serial # range 1 thru 19712 and duplicate #s thru # 19425 used for the Model of 1903 – 2nd Model, which also start with 1 thru 19425.

There are six unusual features that are present in the First Model.

The first is that the cylinder stop is located on the top strap and engages the cylinder from the top. The stop is hammer-actuated -- when the hammer moves back the stop lifts up. S&W never used a top-mounted cylinder stop again. The last previous time they used it was in the old Model No. 2 (.32 caliber).

Photo credit: davidj

Photo credit: davidj


The second unusual feature is the use of hardened steel shims to reinforce the cylinder stop notches. According to Jinks' A History of Smith & Wesson, S&W installed hardened steel shims from 1896 until 1908. The practice stopped in 1908 because S&W began using an improved steel for cylinders. ***

Measuring the thickness on my Mod 1896 with calipers and 10X glasses I read .025" for the full length of the notch:

Photos by daivedj


The third unusual feature is the 1st style ‘action lockout’ on the rear of the yoke shaft which locks out the trigger/action when cyl is opened. This model did not have a cyl release thumb piece or rear cyl lock bolt which became the action lockout on all subsequent models.

Later hand ejector models (with the exception of some 22 Hand Ejector Ladysmith models), replaced it with the thumb piece and bolt (with a spring and plunger) that pushes the rear bolt forward to lockout the hammer/action from functioning with the cyl open, by interfering with the hook on the back of the hammer.

The fourth unusual feature is the cyl detent to hold open the cyl which was deleted after the Model of 1903, 2nd Model but contimued on K and N frames intermittently until WWII.

Plunger shown here in bottom of yoke and has a spring underneath it:

Plunger shown here in bottom of yoke and has a spring underneath it:

Photo credit: handejector


The fifth unusual feature is the cyl release:
The cylinder is kept in place and cases ejected the same way as a modern Hand Ejector via the cylinder pin. The difference is a “pull push” action instead of pushing the cylinder pin out of engagement with the thumb latch, you pull it out of engagement by pulling forward on the ejector rod. The barrel lug wasn't added to Hand Ejectors until the M1902 (the 1st .32 being the Model 1903). The "pull forward" latch was also used on the 2nd and 3rd Model 22 Hand Ejector Ladysmiths.

The sixth is a barrel set screw instead of a cross pin:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...and-ejector-knowledge-test.html#post140281065

Photo credit: glowe

Photo credit: glowe

Photo credit: glowe


Standard velocity current off-the-shelf ammo is perfectly safe, it's still produced but won't be found everywhere. You'll love it's accuracy.

 

[teletech]

I'm particularly fond of the cylinder engraving on these but I'm not at all fond of the tiny rear sight and the way it won't shoot point of aim.

 

[glowe]

A few added comments here since this is one of my favorite 32 Long S&Ws.

First, the stocks are definitely MOP, but likely post-factory due to the fact that the factory was actively promoting their own medallion stocks by the late 1890s. As shown on an above image, most boxes offered from the late 1890s into the 1900s had the MOP label even if the gun shipped with hard rubber or walnut. One of my notes are as follows:

Originally, Smith & Wesson pearl grips were made without any medallions, and no pearl grips at the 1893 Columbian Exposition. The company (S&W) discovered that rather than purchasing guns with pearl grips from Smith & Wesson, distributors bought guns with standard factory grips and installed cheaper third-party pearl grips. To protect its reputation (and profit), the company started placing gold-plated Smith & Wesson trademark medallions on all factory pearl grips in the late 1890s. At the same time, the factory also replaced the pearl grips on its Columbian Exhibition display guns with new medallion grips.

The factory was also all about dimensions and made their MOP stocks the same dimensions as the standard hard rubber stocks. Distributor installed stocks were normally thinner than hard rubber. And yes, the dust is often characterized as being toxic. There are some who offer a different opinion on mother-of-pearl dust.

Contrary to some beliefs, Mother of Pearl is NOT poisonous. Mother of Pearl is composed of 85% calcium carbonate, 12% conchiolin, and 3% water, none of which are harmful or poisonous. The possibility of an allergic reaction does exist, but normally isn't of serious consequence or life threatening.

The early boxes for this model gave instructions on how to open and close the cylinder and are found on very few 32 HE boxes today. Mine is from an 1901 shipped gun. The boxes for early Model 1903s were the same, except for the instructions noting to push the thumb piece forward.

As noted above, guns were shipped in almost total random order. I have four revolvers and they shipped in the following order:

6443 - June 1901
6575 - August 1899
6889 - June 1898
10669 - March 1900

Lastly, this model came in three standard barrel lengths of 3 1/4", 4 1/4", and 6". I believe that the 6" barrel is the least common, with the 4 1/4" being most common.

 

[delcrossv]

My little beater- shipped Sept. 1899. Still works!

 

[handejector]

The revolver is in .32 S&W (aka .32 S&W Long)

Just a comment FYI-
The "32 S&W" is NOT aka "32 S&W Long". They are two distinct cartridges. Most dimensions are the same except for the length. The 32 S&W dates to 1878. It can be fired in guns chambered for the 32 S&W Long. The 32 S&W Long was introduced with this Model 1896 and will not fully seat in a 32 S&W chamber because it is too long.

 

[Hondo44]

A few added comments here since this is one of my favorite 32 Long S&Ws.


Originally, Smith & Wesson pearl grips were made without any medallions, and no pearl grips at the 1893 Columbian Exposition.

At the same time, the factory also replaced the pearl grips on its Columbian Exhibition display guns with new medallion grips.

Gary, thank you for that. But the above two statements seem a bit contradictory:

If originally the Exposition display guns had "no pearl grips", how did; "the factory also replaced the pearl grips on its Columbian Exhibition display guns with new medallion grips"?

Do you mean they had NO MEDALLIONS on pearl grips on the original display guns in 1893?