S&W Mod 52: my biggest regret in handgunning

[M19-5]

Have owned three M52's, sold two to a good home and kept the M52-1 for bullseye/precision shooting that I have been doing for about ten years now.
I shoot a Marvel conversion on an SA frame for the .22, the 1968 M52-1 for CF and a 1968 Clark Sr. long slide for the .45





Here is a pic of the M52-2 that went to a good home a few years back.



The M52's can shoot if you do your part.
They are a joy to shoot and everyone wants to know what your shooting and why; if they only knew

 

[gmborkovic]

Any 52 is a simple piece of explicit craftsmanship. The old pistol smiths would not work on them. How do you improve on perfection?

 

[ontargetagain]

Interesting passion for the Model 52's. Maybe the gun itself instills some inner will power to shoot it accurately since it is 'demanding' as mentioned. Obviously it's just not 'another gun' but a piece of history in factory craftsmanship that can no longer exist at the extent that it did back then.

I bought new a 1976 High Standard Citation with bull barrel, heck back then it was a mere $270 dollars I believe. The gun could not have been more accurate only I could hope to achieve its potential. Sounds like the Model 52 falls into the same category, somewhat of legend and a one of kind uniqueness! After all, who else made a 38 special wadcutter semi-auto?

Great trivia here in this thread, at age 60 the model 52 is on my radar as I sure enjoy the 38 WC's out of my 686-3 and it shoots them as accurately as I can be.

The model 52's.............truely a legend in it's own right.
Karl

 

[Law Dog]

I just got my first 52 last week. Shoots a one hole group. Very smooth!

 

[DocB]

I did finally shoot this one that I got a year ago. The difference to me was that you could actually "feel" the gun working. Not like other semi-autos at all, where the slide just slams back and forth. It cycles kind of slowly which is really neat. Of course, super accurate too.

 

[Fuddster]

I bought a 52-2 in late 2013. Kept it in the safe and got it out to admire now and then. Never shot it. About 6 weeks ago I decided to try shooting it. I loved it. Now it goes with me whenever I shoot 38s. A couple of weeks ago I bought a Colt in 38 special to keep it company. I have an old Star Universal loader set up for wadcutters.

 

[kidcom]

I love 52s. As a collector I now have 6 of them, 2 X 52, 2 X 52-1 and 2 X 52-2. As far as I'm concerned the original 52 is by far the best with it's adjustable trigger. You have be careful when adjusting the trigger though as you can inadvertently put it into DA mode which can be tricky to back out of properly.

 

[824tsv]

.38 Special Wadcutter pistols

After all, who else made a 38 special wadcutter semi-auto?

The most well known .38 Special wadcutter pistol other than the S&W Model 52 was the Colt Gold Cup National Match. Colt also made a .38 Special "KIT" pistol that was sold without sights intended to be sold to and assembled by gunsmiths (first pic). Some of the legendary gunsmiths also produced .38 wadcutter pistols using Colt .38 Super pistols. This is back in the day by Jim Clark, John Giles, Gil Hebard, Bob Chow. Sig Hammerli also made a .38 Special wadcutter P-240 but not so well known in North America.
In my collection I have a Colt .38 Special Kit built by Jim Clark in 1966 and a Colt Gold Cup National Match .38 Mid Range from 1969 and a S&W Model 52-2 that I bought new in 1990.

 

[44wheelman]

I hate the darn things. I bought mine in my mid 30's; then I was ruined.
Before it, I was very happy with the accuracy of my 39, Beretta's, Sigs, 1911's and other various combat accurate semi's. Then came the 52-2.
Since then, my standards have been raised up a bit. A couple 41's, 945's, and other various Performance Center pistols. Carefull with that 1st true target gun, it can really spoil you.

 

[deanodog]

I have owned lot's of guns in my shooting days but never a 52. I have only seen one in real life and it was not for sale. I have now given up on owning one at 79 yrs old.

 

[gmborkovic]

Mr. dog, dont give up. Treat yourself to a 52. Best

 

[Rowlf]

I bought a 52-2 in late 2013. Kept it in the safe and got it out to admire now and then. Never shot it. About 6 weeks ago I decided to try shooting it. I loved it. Now it goes with me whenever I shoot 38s. A couple of weeks ago I bought a Colt in 38 special to keep it company. I have an old Star Universal loader set up for wadcutters.

If you ever get a chance to measure the ID of the sizing die and the length, profile and OD of the expander I would like to know what they are for the Star. Crimper style and size too. Modern 38 Special dies do not seem to be made for loading wadcutters. I had to get creative to keep my swaged HBWC bullets from getting, well, swaged by modern dies.

I suspect the Star company (and the company that made dies for Star) had some ideas that got forgotten or lost. A friend has a Star in 45 ACP with all the accessories and it is a fantastic piece of equipment.

 

[Troystat]

My father has a 52. We were shooting it one day, and out walks my younger son. He was maybe 8 at the time. He asks if he could shoot it. Dad loaded a magazine and handed it to him. He shot what looked like a small clover leaf with it, while my father and I stood there with our mouths wide open. The little fella smiled real big, handed the now unloaded pistol back, and went back inside to play with whatever he was playing with before.

I have a model 39. It looks a lot like a 52, but there's where the similarities end. One has to shoot a model 52 to really understand the allure. It's hard to explain.

Sounds like your son heard the words of a bullseye coach who said "pick up the gun, shoot the gun, put the gun down".

 

[Sevens]

Wastin' away again in Coronaville... I keep reading lounge area threads about what folks are doing to pass the time. Watching old movies, posting funny pictures and jokes, things of that nature. So I thought I would dig up a conversation or two that I opened in hopes that we could get some of the newer folks to add their experience and tales in them.

So here we have a shameless bump on my 52 thread. Please add your comments and experiences!

 

[CLASSIC12]

Well I’ll be 52 in June and I yet have to buy a 52, and I will.

I guess until now every other gun I found and bought had priority, including 5 Sig P210, also extremely accurate.

 

[g-dad]

I purchased my 52-2 in 2015, same as OP. I didn't know alot about it but thought it would be something I could make a couple of bucks on. That is until I shot it. What a sweet gun. I've since picked up a case of wadcutters and enough reloading components to last a very long time.

 

[Kp321]

My story is similar to the others in this thread. I have shot bullseye on and off for 30+ years but didn’t buy a 52 till 5 years ago. Found an unfired 52-1 in a local shop for what I could afford. Bare gun, no box, tool or extra mag. I didn’t realize what I had been missing all those years. The need for follow through has helped my scores with my other pistols too.
I am totally hooked now, bought another 52-1 for a spare and a 952 just for kicks. The availability of affordable red dot sights and good mounts have made bullseye fun again. 70+ year old eyes need some help!

 

[Green Frog]

Now you've done it Sevens. I inherited my Dad's Model 52 a couple of years ago and it's set quietly in my safe, not stirring up any problems. Now you come along and wake it up and I've got to unlimber the Star Progressive and load up a couple of hundred MRWCs and take it out to the range as soon as it becomes possible again. I hope you're happy with yourself, Sevens!

Froggie

 

[the big guy]

52's are just part of my fascination with Smith & Wesson. Still looking for a no dash, but I have a 52A, -1, 2x-2. Plan and hope to fill out the suite. Truly amazing guns.

 

[colt_saa]

Now you've done it Sevens. I inherited my Dad's Model 52 a couple of years ago and it's set quietly in my safe, not stirring up any problems. Now you come along and wake it up and I've got to unlimber the Star Progressive and load up a couple of hundred MRWCs and take it out to the range as soon as it becomes possible again. I hope you're happy with yourself, Sevens!

Froggie

Hey Froggie,
Do yourself a great favor and use HBWCs, not hard cast. It is not a huge difference, but it is a visible difference

It is hard to put into words how the Model 52 makes you feel as a shooter. When asked, I usually respond that it is like driving a Ferrari, you just have no point of reference to compare it with.

Decades ago, when I was a young pup, I used to do computer upgrades on the side. Our Road Patrol SGT had a pair of kids entering High School. Almost all the work for him was a firearm and some cash

I do not recall any longer what his acquisition was at the time, but I received a Model 52 with the extended Bomar Rib and almost 1000 of Factory Match ammunition. Back then I did not think too much of the five magazines that were included. I really love that longer sighting radius

I puchased a 52-1 later, but only because it looked pretty and the price was right

I wanted to shoot the Model 52 in some local matches that were geared for revolvers. So it was always six rounds per string.

So I converted several magazines to 6 round. I even used the Model 52 to shoot a State qualification that required 38 Special. When I showed up I was told I could not use an auto loader. I told the powers that be, the only requirement I could find in the statute was that the firearm be 6" or less and chambered for 38 Special and asked them to show me otherwise.

I made beautiful ragged centers out of those targets with my Model 52 and converted 3 or 4 folks to Model 52 owners (Yep, I brought extra ammo with me)