REG 1299, Now with new pics, stocks and letter

[Retired W4]

Here is my long awaited Registered Magnum, REG 1299 from July 1936. The re-blue is not factory but a fair to good job in my opinion. According to one who is in the know tells me it shipped with standard (service) stocks with The Wesson Grip filler so these post war magnas are totally wrong. It's going to be fun finding those period correct stocks and filler. The action is fantastic with very little rotational play, no end shake and great timing and lock up. The refinisher stayed away from the logo on the left side and the Made In USA, but there was a little buffing on the barrel and they went a little heavy on the side plate. The front sight it Marbles/Sheard and the rear sight looks to me to be the standard two screw type of the time. Reg. Pat. Off. on the rear of the hammer and trigger. The bluing on the trigger is troublesome as discussed in the Smithing section here but I gained a lot of good information there as to how to restore it. Restoration is key for me so stocks and case colors for the trigger, and possibly the hammer are at the top of my list.

I don't know much about it outside the ship date and stock configuration, and that it allegedly was shipped to someone in PA. I will definitely be getting a S&WHF letter for this one.

It's my one and only Registered Magnum and I still like it with all it's flaws. It will be an ongoing project and I will be burning up plenty of .357 magnum ammo. Shoot...clean...repeat and more photo as time allows.

 

[jscheck]

Awesome! I love seeing another one of these come to light. I can never hope to afford one myself and being able to see other's finds are always neat.

 

[DARE]

Congrats, nice gun. Is it a 6 1/2" barrel?
The left side logo confirms it as an early gun. The change order was issued July 21, 1936.
Be sure and post the letter when you get it.

 

[Retired W4]

Congrats, nice gun. Is it a 6 1/2" barrel?
The left side logo confirms it as an early gun. The change order was issued July 21, 1936.
Be sure and post the letter when you get it.

It is 6 1/2". Filling out the letter request now.

 

[rct269]

Beyond the letter, the S&W Historical Foundation has reams and volumes of information on RM's----I dare say each and every one of them!

My last one had TEN pages of stuff!

Ralph Tremaine

 

[quinn]

Way to go! I inow some folks say it is just another pre 27... but to me they will always be something very special. Andy your is very nice to be sure. The refi looks very professional.

 

[rct269]

Way to go! I inow some folks say it is just another pre 27... but to me they will always be something very special. Andy your is very nice to be sure. The refi looks very professional.

Well it most assuredly is not a "Pre" anything, perhaps aside from a non-registered Magnum. That said, it is something special in so far as S&W assigned their 2-3 best fitters, and 2-3 best polishers to RM production. The hype put out on the gun, and perhaps more so on the cartridge, is what sold the gun----and the gun SOLD! (The very best of the hype trickled down to the point where I was once told the checkering on the rib and the top strap was done by hand. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry at that one!)

I've come to the conclusion the entirety of the RM program was a skillfully planned and executed marketing plan to save S&W's butt----and it worked!! It came out smack dab in the middle of the "Great Depression"---when nobody was doing much of anything besides surviving. The initial marketing effort was directed to individuals, rather than to distributors and dealers----so S&W could keep every last penny of the $60 price-----for a gun that cost them $17 to make!

My last RM, a first year gun, was ordered through a dealer, who passed the order onto their distributor. The distributor price was $47---leaving a whopping $13 to be shared by the distributor AND the dealer---a losing proposition for both right from the get-go. It appears some of the distributors banded together to force a "come let us reason together" meeting with S&W so as to be able to play a part in the RM program. It's clear that meeting took place, and the distributor price went from $47 down to $38 or $39(?) before the year was out.

As to how special is special, I had at least one each of all the pre-war N frame targets in my collection. Each and every one of them had been completely disassembled for their Welcome Bath, and there wasn't a dime's worth of difference among all of them---the checkered rib and top strap aside. Truth be known, the first year Triple Lock Targets were the best of the best to my eyes-----and all of that was on the inside where nobody would see it without taking it apart.

What is reputed to be S&W's 1925 catalog speaks to the difference between fixed sight guns and target guns. It starts off with (S.A.) trigger pull---3 to 4 lbs. for targets, 5 to 7 lbs for fixed sight. It goes on to speak of "a special type of notch and trigger point, and a different adjustment of the working parts of the action" for target grade guns. That said, I don't know when all this started---nor when it ended----IF it ended.

The bottom line is hype sells, and more hype sells more---as in "Some's good, more's better, and too much is just right!"

It is the way of the world!!

Ralph Tremaine

As an aside of perhaps some interest as to when this special tuning of target guns came to be, I had 14 M&P Targets, ranging in ship dates from 1902 to 1936. Each and every one of them had a S.A. trigger pull of 3.5 lbs.----smack dab on the money!

 

[loc n load]

RM

Congratulations on your RM. I have RM#1254. They are wonderful revolvers that truly represent how S&W used to build revolvers.

 

[Doug627]

Good for you. I have RM No. 1312.

 

[quinn]

Ralph, your comments about "hype" selling brought to mind an interesting question. Has anyone taken a measure of how many pre war magnums were ordered sighted in with 38 Special vs 357 Magnum? Would this give us any clue as to the percentage of buyers buying the hype or status vs buyers buying the cartridge?

 

[rct269]

Ralph, your comments about "hype" selling brought to mind an interesting question. Has anyone taken a measure of how many pre war magnums were ordered sighted in with 38 Special vs 357 Magnum? Would this give us any clue as to the percentage of buyers buying the hype or status vs buyers buying the cartridge?

I know of no such study.

Speaking of things that don't make much sense, one of mine-----a 5" nickel---1 of 15 shipped to the Indianapolis Police Department was sighted in (as were all 15) at 25 yards with .38 Special Wad-cutters!!

The fact that the order was shipped to a Lt. So&So, Director of Training, may have had something to do with that!

As to the hype ---which lingered on, way back when I got my first 357, a Highway Patrolman, it was said the 357 would shoot through an engine block---and stop a car. Being one of the skeptical sorts, I went out to test that. We're at a junkyard, and here's 4 cylinder Jeep short block (the bottom half of an engine). KABLAM!!

The bullet went through the outer layer of the water jacket (cast iron), through the cylinder wall (more cast iron), into a piston crown (solid Aluminum maybe 4" across), and split it all the way across!! (It didn't go all the way through the block, but it'd damn well stopped the car!!) I reckon if the bullet's path had not been interrupted by the piston, it'd gone right on through-----through two more layers of cast iron.

Ralph Tremaine

I just thought of another one of mine---one of those 8 3/4" rifle types. This one had been shipped to the President of a public utility of some sort in Duluth, Minnesota I don't remember. He was one of the believers(!!), and had it sighted in at 100 yards with Magnum ammo!! I wonder if he beat my record---a 6 round group of 4" at a 100 yards (seated, two hand hold, with a rest). That was a .44 Magnum (light loads--18.5 grains of 2400 behind a 205 grain gas checked SWC)----one of my "civilized" loads. (I've fired exactly one round of factory loaded .44 Magnum ammo, and vowed right then and there to come up with a "civilized" load. That one was the best (most accurate, never mind I was told it was a hot load for a .44 Special, and nowhere near a Magnum. That was fine by me---it was civilized!!)

 

[loc n load]

RM 1254

Randy, interesting question about 38 spl vs 357 specified sight in requests.
I am the third owner of this revolver ( RM 1254) & bought it from a friend ( 90 years old)of mine in 1980. He had been a competitive bullseye shooter & told me he had bought the revolver from a police chief from a certain department on the East coast.
The letter & doc's I obtained 30 some years later verified the original owner & in the factory letter & doc's from SWCA noted that the revolver was sighted for 38 wadcutters using a 6 o'clock hold per the first owner's specifications.
Bill.

 

[lestert357]

Please post the letter for REG 1299 once it is received and I will insure that the database is correct.

The database entries for REG 1254 and REG 1312 appear to be complete.

 

[Retired W4]

The letter is here and goastsnguns had these beautiful period stocks for it. Now if I can just find the Wesson Grip Filler for it. BTW, the spade with the dice is the 47th Fighter Squadron (A-10's)

 

[Retired W4]

Please post the letter for REG 1299 once it is received and I will insure that the database is correct.

The database entries for REG 1254 and REG 1312 appear to be complete.

Here you go.