Show-N-Tell - The Modified S&Ws

[RKmesa]

Please post photos of your chopped, trimmed, scoped, and otherwise modified revolvers (even the "Bubba jobs" have a place in this thread) .

Like most of you, I love a vintage mint in the box S&W. But, over the past several years, I have loved discovering ones that were modified by some previous owner to more closely meet their needs. I also think the pre-war 38-44 Outdoorsmans are some of the most beautiful handguns to ever roll off the factory line. So, recently finding this well-used July 1934 shipped 4" OD with a very unique front sight modification was right up my cool alley.

She has obviously spent a lot of time in a holster and the trigger is as smooth as butter in the AZ sun, but she holds her heritage well and boldly sports her modification like she owns the world...

















...and a few "glamour" photos on/in an extra OD box that was lying around in the safe...









I would love your thoughts on the sight/rib and would also love to see your modified guns.

Thanks for letting me share,

 

[Nightowl]

Ingenious front sight. How is it attached?

 

[Muley Gil]

Ingenious front sight. How is it attached?

I had a 2nd model .44 with a similar front sight. It was silver soldered on.

 

[AKtinman]

Here is a Model 58 I found in a pawn shop in rural north Texas a few years ago:

Spokhandguns converted the Model 58 to .45 Long Colt (as marked on the barrel) and shortened the barrel to 3.25". The action was one of the smoothest I have ever felt.

I traded it off for something else I just had to have

 

[DWFAN]

Forth change converted into a military sight target It has a King style double cockeyed hammer. Stationary rear sight. No marking on the front sight. Stocks seem to be of the home made variety and are very comfortable. Shoots right on the money at 25 yards. It has to have been reblued but it looks good to me. From the looks of the ejector rod it looks to have been fired some.

DW

 

[rbrbrb6]

Model 58 converted to 5" 45 Colt by Hamilton Bowen with his combat sights and Keith Brown Roper grips.

 

[Hondo44]

Richard,

That's a beautiful 38-44.

That rifle sight was a very common 1930's thru the 1950's era front sight treatment when a fixed sight gun was converted to a target. I have a Model 1950 45 Military with the same treatment but with a Micro Click rear sight.

But yours is unique. I've never seen a target model with the front sight and base removed and replced with the ramped rifle sight in it's place.

Is the underneath of the rear sight #d to the gun?

 

[Hondo44]

1950 Target .45 ACP, Pre Mod 26 shortened to, 4 ¼" :

Micro Site target conversion of M1917 .45 ACP, using a pre war, post 1934 2 screw S&W Reg Mag rear site with serrated hump. Redfield front site blade milled in. Micro Site double cockeyed hammer. S&W pre war serrated factory target trigger and stocks are early 1950s smooth 'cokes'.

Homemade .32 'Kit Gun', 4" J frame Model 30-1, 1966 vintage. All Target features added including: adj rear sight, ramped front sight w/sight base, .375" wide spur hammer, .400" trigger, and modified post war factory I/J frame target stocks. I also reamed a spare cyl to 32 H&R Mag for it.

M 34 'New I frame' .22/32 Kit Gun from 1960 with optional .400" target trigger added.
4" barrel replaced with a M 43 Kit Gun Airweight 3 1/2" barrel, a more preferable length for me. Fortunately the M 43 barrels are not roll-stamped Airweight.
And a few retro parts replacements like the pre war relieved, 'double pinch' thumb-piece in place of the flat latch and pre war 'barrel' style extractor rod/knob (required the single step notch I milled under barrel) replacing the straight rod. Both ergonomic improvements.

My son's Model of 1955 J frame (pre Model 43) with a Model 63 stainless 3" shrouded barrel and bead blasted.

Model 29 3 screw converted to a single shot 1500 Magnum:

Well, ok it's a 37 MM flare gun, 1 1/2" cal. Model 209-277. I can hit the sky at any distance.

 

[lawandorder]

A modified Third Model HE .44 Special.................

.............shown before but it fits this thread. I also enjoy handguns that have been modified to suit their owner at the time.
This one has factory re-work marks but don't know what was done there.

The barrel is 3 & 1/2, has been re-blued, and fitted with an unusual grip adapter which allowed the owner to put a set of Single Action Army style grips on it.

Someone transitioning from a Colt SAA to a Smith DA , who knows?

If I remember right it was shipped to Oshman's for Houston PD.

Has a man's name engraved on the sideplate.

Paired up with a floral tooled, break front holster by Sterling Leather.

 

[410bore]

Forth change converted into a military sight target It has a King double cockeyed hammer. Stationary rear sight. No marking on the front sight. Stocks seem to be of the home made variety and are very comfortable. Shoots right on the money at 25 yards. It has to have been reblued but it looks good to me. From the looks of the ejector rod it looks to have been fired some.



DW

Is the hammer King marked? It doesn't look like King style checkering to me.


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[Modified]

First off. This thread... I have too much to put into it.

Richard, I love that gun. I'm surprised it wasn't used more heavily. That's a very functional modification, I've seen similar jobs but never quite like that one.

Forth change converted into a military sight target It has a King double cockeyed hammer. Stationary rear sight. No marking on the front sight. Stocks seem to be of the home made variety and are very comfortable. Shoots right on the money at 25 yards. It has to have been reblued but it looks good to me. From the looks of the ejector rod it looks to have been fired some.

DW

I'm 100% sure that King didn't do the work on your gun, although it could have been done by someone who had some affiliation with King at one point. The more I dig into the old modified guns the more I find that a lot of the best people worked for him at one point or another.

I have I think 3 guns that were modified by this mystery shop: http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...ery-gunsmith-fixed-target-sights-hammers.html

The sight work looks like it matches up to yours?

Thing is, looking at yours I think you should look at this:

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...3144-unexpected-boston-dorchester-pd-gun.html

There's a video in my thread too that you should have a look at it.

I think your gun has the same internal modifications. If I am seeing it right in your pictures the Hammer looks exactly like mine.

If you watch the video of mine to see how incredibly short the DA action is, by any chance does that match yours?

I'm suspecting after looking over your gun that whoever it was doing all this work might have been doing the short action job, or the target hammer, and certainly the fixed sight targets.

I'd love to figure out who it is, I've spent quite a lot of time poring over old magazines trying to find anything that matches. Nothing yet. I thought maybe Mershon, and got some of their old Catalogs, but couldn't find any mention there. All I know for sure is that it wasn't officially King, and I'm pretty certain it wasn't the factory.

The C.D.H. on my gun with the Short Action there might be a big clue, but I haven't had any luck tracking that down yet.

Oh, and this one: http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-hand-ejectors-1896-1961/367967-1917-target-c-r-celebration-day.html

I think this is a different shop, but it's also one of these modified fixed sight target military match style guns.

 

[silversnake]

My son's Model of 1955 J frame (pre Model 43) with a Model 63 stainless 3" shrouded barrel and bead blasted it.

Hi,
Great collection!
Could you please tell me where you had the Pre-43 modified?

I have one that is showing some finish wear, not enough to refinish yet, but when I have asked around I hear it is impossible to refinish the airweight frames or remove the barrel without cracking the aluminum frame.

Very nice to see it's possible to have these worked on too!

 

[S&W ucla]

You said ''Bubba" too, so......
This RM shipped to Vancouver then out to a bushpilot. He evidently spent long winters with McGivern's book and tried to make modifications in a blacksmith shop,LOL. I really like the 2 position rear sight. Down it is zeroed at 50yds, push the lever and you're on at 100. He also drilled and tapped the rib for lyman 438 scope, King reflector bead front, trigger stop, cockeyed hammer, firing pin, and I think fitted some kind of folding shoulder stock. Haven't figured that out yet. It was well used! Jim Stroh had to set the barrel back 2 threads to cut out the forcing cone erosion. Still shoots good, I've taken a doe and a turkey with it.

(I put HB hammer in to shoot it as I was unsure about homemade FP. I did re-install original and it works safely.)

 

[AKtinman]

I bought this second-hand 625-6 .45 ACP in 2003 while I was living in Alaska.

A couple of years later I learned about the Mountain Gun, but they were no longer available. S&W did have some MG barrels left, so I bought one.

A pistolsmith in Princeton, TX (well-known to some here on the forum) swapped barrels and checked the 625 out before it was returned to me. I wasn't trying to copy the MG, just achieve the functionality, and at a much lower price than an original .45 ACP Mountain Gun.

This has proven to be an accurate, easy to carry gun, just what I was looking for as an EDC on the rural property I owned in north Texas.

The ammo pictured is the Ohaus 270gr SWC designed for the .45 ACP loaded over Unique which is both accurate and packs a punch.

Rob Leahy's Simply Rugged Pancake is a comfortable way to carry, plus affords protection from the dust and thorns while allowing quick access.

While I no longer own the property in Texas, I still have the 625-6. It would be among the last I would ever part with.

 

[The Gila Bender]

Here's a .44HE 3rd Model transitional that was shortened. Pretty decent job too. The number matching stocks have notches for a grip adapter. The holster is a custom without a maker's mark.

 

[edwardyoung]

Five-screw Highway Patrolman 'upgraded' with barrel, cylinder, hammer, and trigger from a 4" 29. And a holster-worn set of Cokes. Nice shooter.

 

[DWFAN]

I amended my narrative to "King style" as you gentlemen are correct. I also have another hammer that I got off of ebay that is identical that I am going to be installed on another military style fourth change I shoot a lot. The blade rear sight on this one is adjustable.

DW

 

[DWFAN]

Early 5 screw HP that has illuminated sights which would be activated by the button in the right panel. On Off switch is in the butt.

DW

 

[weatherby]

I like odd ducks.

My first I had no idea what it was but I liked the grips on it.
Figured I wouldn't get burned to bad for 400 bucks and just plunked the money down.I lettered it and it turned out it went out on a company memo
as a 2" 32 S&W long M&P. I thought it unusual as the cylinder and barrel do number to the gun.





This one here.....I think Jim/Hondo 44 still has a headache from It is a 32 S&W long. I just love the sights on this little guy.

 

[RKmesa]

Ingenious front sight. How is it attached?

It does appear to be soldered - but it is hard to tell. It is firmly attached.