K-22 Masterpiece Letter

[DARE]

K-22 Masterpiece K51403 shipped September 12, 1949 to Emmons Hawkins Hardware Company, Huntington, West Virginia. Blue, 6-inch barrel with Patridge front sight. 5 units at $39.69 each. Invoice does not list a gold bead.
Supposedly a November 1948 ship date per Roy Jinks. Maybe the seller got it confused with another gun.
If Marble and Sheard were the gold bead sights that S&W offered, maybe my sight was made by someone else.
Does not look to me like someone modified the Patridge. Guess it would be fairly easy to replace the front sight and the rear blade.

Thanks to Don Mundell for going the extra mile researching the gold bead and including the invoice.

 

[Jebus35745]

Nice early K-22 with an interesting letter. Love the bead front sight and U notch rear. Wish I could get this combo sight today for my modern revolvers. Enjoy your guns, Larry

 

[pasound]

Very nice, and shipped local to me 75 years ago. Invoice is a year and two days from my birthday. I have a 1947 6" Masterpiece. Great shooters.

 

[doubletapp357]

THIS IS SO FRICKIN COOL! my is serial number K-939037

 

[rct269]

A small point of no great importance, unless you're one of those picky folks like me. There is no "Marble and Sheard". There's Marble, and there's Sheard. The confusion likely arises from the fact Marble bought some/all(?) of Sheards' parents early on in the 20th century---1905 comes to mind, but don't quote me. You'll find sights marked with Marble on one side and Sheard on the other from after that acquisition---also sights marked Sheard's Pat., and just Sheard. These sights (the "Gold Sheard") were made for damn near every brand of firearm there was----both handguns and long guns. Those for S&W's included all the single shots and the M&P targets. It stands to reason they were also made for the complete line of N frame targets as well, but I've never seen one or seen one noted except for the so-called Registered Magnums, later on. The closest I ever came to owning one was a Marble Ivory Bead on an M&P Target from 1936----same church, different pew, and it was marked just Marble.

Ralph Tremaine

 

[Valmet]

That's really awesome OP- I love anything connected to WV history.