K22 question on a closed auction.

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In one picture you can see the 'diamond' following the serial number on the barrel flat. Barrel replacement at some point by the factory. The frame is stamped '10 56' which indicates service by the factory on that date.

bdGreen
 
I think it is a neat gun and I bid on it each time it was listed prior to the sale. Its a neat shooter grade gun and worth $600 to me but apparently that wasnt enough for the seller.
 
AS a collector gun its ruined but as a shooter it would cost an owner probably $300 to have a 6" early K-22 cut back 2"....

This example predates the 4" CM so the point is mute
Also IMO an original early 1950 4" K22 can be had for near the same sales figure so kinda defeats the purpose.
 
bdGreen said:
In one picture you can see the 'diamond' following the serial number on the barrel flat. Barrel replacement at some point by the factory. The frame is stamped '10 56' which indicates service by the factory on that date.

bdGreen
Click to expand...
Thanks, I missed those.
 
I agree it must have gone back to the factory in October 1956, but I don't know if that was when the barrel was cut. Maybe it's just the lighting and lack of shadow, but that muzzle looks uncrowned and pretty flat to me. I also don't think the factory would have left the rib grooves in place when they moved the sight back. If the front sight was lower by a hair, you wouldn't have to crank the rear sight up as far as it is in the seller's pictures. (Also, that rear sight foot looks a little swaybacked. Maybe the front mounting screw needs to be tightened.)

A one-liner and a LERK variety too. Even chopped it gets a value kick for that. I wouldn't have paid $950, but if it could have been had for half to two-thirds of that (and if I had seen it), I might have put money in it just to finish the muzzle treatment and have a cool 3.5" shooter with a desirable Patridge sight.
 
The only thing you're missing is the fact there ain't no accounting for some folks' taste----and count your blessings!! The good news is if you've got something to sell, somebody----somewhere will buy it----guarandamnteed!

Ralph Tremaine
 
Personally not for me but it is a 4 digit serial number and if cut by the factory is an interesting piece of S&W history. Some folks like the odd and unusual and a gun going back this soon in K 22/pre 17 production for a barrel cut is kinda different.

Again what makes life interesting is that some folks like vanilla and some folks like black raspberry. :cool:
 
DCWilson said:
. . . Maybe it's just the lighting and lack of shadow, but that muzzle looks uncrowned and pretty flat to me.
Click to expand...

I agree David - I would not think any factory returned gun would have ever left the factory without them completely finishing the barrel crown. The other question that begs to be asked is why the seller did not place any disclaimer about the barrel in the description? To the novice, there is no indication from the seller that the barrel "might" have been cut?? Any seller wirth 650 sales should know better.:mad:
 
I also took a gander at it, but for only a minute, as I'm wanting a 5 screw 22 CM. After I saw the cut barrel I continued on to something else. IMO if you could have gotten it in the $400 - $500 range, it would possibly be worth it as being "unique".
 
Neat gun.
My guess is the Factory cut the original barrel in 56 and reblued it.
So, it comes in about as cool as a King modified gun to me. They are no longer original, but we Oooohhhh and Aaahhhh about them all the time. A $500 M&P with a King rib and cockeyed hammer jumps up to $1500. Why is this one so different? :rolleyes:

Also, I mean, like really, uhhh, you do know...... a gun wearing Roper grips is MISSING the original grips? :D

The buyer may have known full well what he was getting, and simply thought it was worth it as a rather unique Factory customized job. People buying $1000 guns with odd barrel lengths and Factory rework marks SHOULD know what they are bidding on. ;)

Eye of the beholder.......
 
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handejector said:
Neat gun.
My guess is the Factory cut the original barrel in 56 and reblued it.
So, it comes in about as cool as a King modified gun to me. They are no longer original, but we Oooohhhh and Aaahhhh about them all the time. A $500 M&P with a King rib and cockeyed hammer jumps up to $1500. Why is this one so different? :rolleyes:

Also, I mean, like really, uhhh, you know...... a gun wearing Roper grips is MISSING the original grips? :D

The buyer may have know full well what he was getting, and simply thought it was worth it as a rather unique Factory customized job. People buying $1000 guns with odd barrel lengths and Factory rework marks SHOULD know what they are bidding on. ;)

Eye of the beholder.......
Click to expand...

Lee - I'll defer to your assessment but that sure didn't look like what I'd expect for a factory barrel cut-down.
 
Something seems wrong? Yep.

Look at the bid history. Appears that the buyer bid himself up from $600 to $950. Am I reading this incorrectly?

10/4/2014 8:28:21 PM EST $950.00 M***. A+(17) *
10/4/2014 8:27:52 PM EST $855.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:24:21 PM EST $850.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:23:10 PM EST $800.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:47:05 AM EST $750.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:45:55 AM EST $700.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:45:31 AM EST $650.00 M***. A+(17)
10/2/2014 12:03:51 AM EST $600.00 M***. A+(17)
9/29/2014 8:14:30 PM EST $500.00 B***k A+(97)
9/29/2014 6:23:27 PM EST $200.00 A***o A+(22)
 
MrTrolleyguy said:
Something seems wrong? Yep.

Look at the bid history. Appears that the buyer bid himself up from $600 to $950. Am I reading this incorrectly?

10/4/2014 8:28:21 PM EST $950.00 M***. A+(17) *
10/4/2014 8:27:52 PM EST $855.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:24:21 PM EST $850.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:23:10 PM EST $800.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:47:05 AM EST $750.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:45:55 AM EST $700.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:45:31 AM EST $650.00 M***. A+(17)
10/2/2014 12:03:51 AM EST $600.00 M***. A+(17)
9/29/2014 8:14:30 PM EST $500.00 B***k A+(97)
9/29/2014 6:23:27 PM EST $200.00 A***o A+(22)
Click to expand...



uh, yeah you are. The auction had a RESERVE. He was bidding to break thru it.
 
MrTrolleyguy said:
Something seems wrong? Yep.

Look at the bid history. Appears that the buyer bid himself up from $600 to $950. Am I reading this incorrectly?

10/4/2014 8:28:21 PM EST $950.00 M***. A+(17) *
10/4/2014 8:27:52 PM EST $855.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:24:21 PM EST $850.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:23:10 PM EST $800.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:47:05 AM EST $750.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:45:55 AM EST $700.00 M***. A+(17)
10/4/2014 8:45:31 AM EST $650.00 M***. A+(17)
10/2/2014 12:03:51 AM EST $600.00 M***. A+(17)
9/29/2014 8:14:30 PM EST $500.00 B***k A+(97)
9/29/2014 6:23:27 PM EST $200.00 A***o A+(22)
Click to expand...

You have a habit of jumping to the worst possible conclusion.
Ever noticed that?
 
Diamond grips? I see this a lot on ebay. Some people think that because the checkering is done in a diamond pattern they are diamond grips. At least that is my take on it. This seller, it seems should have known better. The sloppy description would have kept me away.
 
I picked up a finish challenged post war 3 digit K22 a while back with the idea of one day using it to make a custom piece,
Several ideas have come to mind with the front runner of swapping a 4" Model 53 Jet barrel making a K22 Reg Mag lookalike,
The budget is $1000 and Im already $500 into it with 53 barrel and donor frame so perhaps this piece is not really that far out there price wise ?

While early LERK K-22's did have a Patridge ramp set back from the muzzle and pinned over the barrel rib grooves what nags at my OCD
are the rollstamps being off center,
Has me wondering if the OEM barrel was bulged at the end or if the owner just asked for it to be cut as short as possible without interfering with the rollstamps as S&W could have easily fit a stock 4" CM barrel and ejector rod being that the K22 CM was a regular cataloged item at that point ...

My guess is shortening the original barrel was cheaper than replacing the barrel and rod back then ?
 
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I'm all for original, unaltered, factory correct guns...But - I really like this one, and if I looked through my woodpile, I'm sure I could find some period correct grips to slap on that gun. Not sure that I'd have gone $950 on it, but I do like the well-executed modification to one of my favorite models.:)
 
Last edited:
Engine49guy said:
I picked up a finish challenged post war 3 digit K22 a while back with the idea of one day using it to make a custom piece,
Several ideas have come to mind with the front runner of swapping a 4" Model 53 Jet barrel making a K22 Reg Mag lookalike,
The budget is $1000 and Im already $500 into it with 53 barrel and donor frame so perhaps this piece is not really that far out there price wise ?
....
Click to expand...

I don't want to threadjack, but....

You may want to look more closely at what you've got before you try swapping barrels. I don't have an old K-22 like yours but I do have a few Model 17s of various dash number.

Below are the Model 53, Model 17 and Model 19. Observe that the flat at the front of the frame on the 53 (and 19) extends lower than on the 17. There is more material machined away from the frame on the 17 than on the 19/53. The front of the frame and crane are different between the 17 and the 19/53 because of the ejector rod housing on the 19/53. If you try to screw a Model 53 barrel on a K-22 frame there will be an unsightly gap/mismatch at the bottom. (I've seen the opposite done - an 8-3/8" Model 14 barrel screwed into a Model 19 frame. Didn't look good either.)

1z4kh8k.jpg



You may also have a rib/frame mismatch at the top. It's my understanding that the early K-22s had a narrow rib, which was later widened. The wide rib on a Model 53 barrel may not match up with a K-22 frame.

Observe the differences in the frames below. The one on the left is a Model 15 with a narrow rib and scallops in the frame to more closely match the rib. The one on the right is a Model 14 with a heavy rib and full-width frame. I know that these are .38s and you are looking at .22s but the situation may be similar. Just be sure of what you've got before you start. Good luck!

4vomqg.jpg


Oh also, with the click-adjustable postwar sight your K-22 is not going to look like a Registered Magnum. You'd need to use a prewar K-22 Outdoorsman with the opposing windage screws to approach that look.
 
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