Ladysmith ammo

[johnsonl]

Greetings! I scored a beautiful 1907-ish blued 3" 2nd Model Ladysmith with hard rubber grips this weekend at the local gun show. It's in 95% condition conservatively, sharp bore and charge holes and quite tight. Sorry, I'm posting on a tablet and can't get pics up. The grips are original with a lightly stamped number on the right grip. They look new enough to have never been carried. I believe that this one was procured and went straight into the "delicates" drawer. It has been shot lightly, if at all. I also have a 1st Model that I shoot on occasion with CB caps. I lucked into some CCI .22 Long (1200 FPS) as well. I am aware of the dangers of shooting .22 LR in the M frame and splitting the forcing cone. Question is, can I safely shoot the modern CCI .22 Long in them? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Absolutely not!

Guy

 

[Muley Gil]

I would stick with CB or better yet, BB caps.

 

[Rpg]

Older cb or bb caps are OK.

Not the modern stuff.

 

[chief38]

How about a few Pic's!

I'd also err on the side of caution and shoot CB's or CB Shorts - I'm sure you did not buy this for a hunting gun and see no need to even chance hurting the 100+ year old collectible.

 

[glowe]

Here are results of my chronographing 22 CCI ammo. I also threw in original 22 UMC Black Powder.

22 BB Caps . . .CCI . . . 400fps
22 CB Caps . . .CCI . . . 475fps
22 CB Sht . . . .CCI . . . 450fps
22 CB long . . . CCI . . . 700fps
22 Short. . . . . CCI . . . 990fps
22 Short. . . UMC BP . . 600fps

 

[johnsonl]

Thanks, guys! I'm glad I asked before I went ahead with the .22 Longs. No worries, I have an old Remington rolling block I can shoot them in. I'll get pics up when I find a suitable (cheap) enough laptop. This tablet is hard on my eyes and keyboarding skills.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Thanks, guys! I'm glad I asked before I went ahead with the .22 Longs. No worries, I have an old Remington rolling block I can shoot them in. I'll get pics up when I find a suitable (cheap) enough laptop. This tablet is hard on my eyes and keyboarding skills.

Do you have any post- Teddy Roosevelt guns?
Ok- he is my favorite New Yorker.

 

[merl67]

The only thing I shoot in mine is the Aguila Super Colibri 22 Long Rifle it has a published velocity of 590 fps or the plain Colibri at 420 fps

 

[DWalt]

I would personally not hesitate to fire standard velocity (target) .22 Short ammunition in one, but definitely not anything heavier, and never any .22 LR cartridges. Ladysmiths were made only during the smokeless era, so no reason that modern .22 Short SV ammo shouldn't be OK. I know CCI still loads .22 Short target ammo. But using CBs would probably be the least stressful. Certainly, nothing else should be used in any of the tip-up .22 revolvers.

 

[Club Gun Fan]

The .22 Hand Ejector was made to shoot .22 Long, not Long Rifle. Shooting .22 Long Rifle in it is a good way to ruin a good revolver. As far as I know Smith & Wesson has never made a Ladysmith in any .22 caliber.
Don Mundell
SWHF Assistant Historian.

 

[DWalt]

The factory did not call the M-frame revolvers (1902-21) Ladysmiths, but about everyone else did, and collectors still do (including Roy Jinks). And they are all in .22.

 

[Club Gun Fan]

The factory did not call the M-frame revolvers (1902-21) Ladysmiths, but about everyone else did, and collectors still do (including Roy Jinks). And they are all in .22.

Yes the .22 HE's are all .22 but not .22 Long Rifle. Roy calls them Ladysmiths so as not to confuse you.

 

[DWalt]

For those who may not have seen this about the Ladysmith previously: The Gun of Destiny

 

[cgt4570]

I only run BB or CB caps through my .22 tip-ups and ladysmiths. Lots of fun with no worries.

 

[DWalt]

Regarding shooting, I'd probably refrain from shooting it much with any ammunition. The Ladysmiths have a reputation for having a delicate mechanism which is difficult to work on, and if something breaks, the likelihood of ever getting it repaired (at least at a reasonable cost) is quite low. I might fire a cylinder full on special occasions or for showing it off, certainly not as a regular thing.

 

[JSR III]

And to continue the discussion, S&W did make the Lady Smith but as Don said not in .22 caliber. (Not to be confused with the collector term, ("Ladysmith")