Questions about Iver Johnson .32

[Doug.38PR]

A friend of mine has an old "Smith & Wesson Trailsman 66S .32 S&W Iver Johnson Pittsburg Massachussetts R25##"
What is the history behind this model and when (year) was this particular gun made?

Anyone have any pictures?

 

[Doug.38PR]

A friend of mine has an old "Smith & Wesson Trailsman 66S .32 S&W Iver Johnson Pittsburg Massachussetts R25##"
What is the history behind this model and when (year) was this particular gun made?

Anyone have any pictures?

 

[MSgt G]

Is it just me or does this hurt anyone else's head?

Is it a S&W or an Iver Johnson?

 

[Doug.38PR]

Heheheh Well we were kinda wondering the same thing. It says both on each side of the barrel. I'll have a look at it personally tomorrow and be able to tell more. What I've said here is what he has told me over the phone

 

[Doug.38PR]

Right now I have no pictures. I haven't even laid eyes on the weapon. I'm supposed to see it tomorrow.
If it helps...he said there was some kind of strange latch on the back of the trigger guard that released the hammer or something (wasn't quite clear on that). It was a top break revolver also. The back sights are also...adjustable so I was told (strange for an old gun like that)

 

[Jim Watson]

"Trailsman 66" is an Iver Johnson top break .22 revolver made 1958-1975. A 66S is the short model available in .32 or .38 S&W as well as .22. The only S&W connection is the caliber.

$39.95 in 1961

 

[Doug.38PR]

Okay. We have a slight problem.
I have seen the gun. I have taken several pictures (which I will show as soon as I get them developed later today or tomorrow)
It is definately an Iver Johnson. It is definately a .32 S&W. It is a Trailsman 66S. It was Fitzburg or Fittsburg not Pittsburg. The latch on the back of the trigger guard is what the trigger back must touch before the hammer snaps forward while cocked in single action

The problem? My friend got this gun well before 1958. It was an heirloom from his father who died in 1949. His father got the gun around the late 1930s and his father believed the gun to be even older than that.

 

[Doug.38PR]

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c108/Doug38PR/57190003-1.jpg[/img] ]http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c108/Doug38PR/57190003-1.jpg

 

[arfmel]

maybe "Fitchburg"?

Iver Johnson was famous for their "Hammer the hammer" ad campaign. They were one of the first manufacturers to use the transfer bar system on a revolver.

I don't think the revolver in your photos is much older than the 1950s, based on the adjustable sights it is equipped with.

 

[Jim Watson]

All sources I have show the Trailsman 66 as coming out in 1958, to include Blue Book, Gun Trader's Guide, and Stanard Catalog.

It does not appear in 1951 or 1957 Gun Digest but is shown as a new product in the 1959 edition (compiled in 1958.) It does not appear in 1939 or 1957 Stoegers.

I think the family legends may be a little mixed up.

 

[tbury]

I have a Iver Johnson .32 S&W break top and it does not have the style of grip shown here. Most of the older IJs had the Owl's Head grip with a shape similar the the S&W .32 Safety Hammerless guns. I agree with the 50s date of manufacture. It is probably shown in the standard catalogue of firearms. Mine is at home.

 

[walnutred]

If the markings actually say Trailsman 66S it hast to be a late 50's gun. The one thing I find curious is the apparent lack of a cylinder pin. Every illustration I can find of of an IJ Trailsman shows a cylinder pin.

If I recall correctly IJ did make a very similar revolver to this in 38 S&W with the automatic ejector prior to WW2. Which I believe is illustrated in US HANDGUS OF WW2 as a secondary purchase. However I think the grips on that revolver were a plastic target style. It's possible some early Trailsmans were made from left over frames.

I suspect the final answer will be that your friends memory is a little faulty.

 

[Doug.38PR]

^
Well that gun IS supposed to have a safety pin...but my friends brother broke it off accidentally years ago. It is not an automatic ejector but a manuel.

 

[Doug.38PR]

Does anybody know how my friend could get a history letter (like S&W and Colt do) for this gun? My friend and his family are all baffled by my research and the results of this thread. They'd like to be able to get an idea where this gun came from (and figure out what happened to the one their father gave them)
Iver Johnson is out of business according to wikipedia...but can anyone out there do letter history or at least figure out from the serial # what year the gun was made?

 

[walnutred]

I'd e-mail this man.

http://www.geocities.com/iverjohnsoncollector/NewItems.Htm