If I write small, my wish list of guns I’d like to own might fit on a commercial roll of bathroom tissue. Well, I’ve always wanted an S&W Model 39-2, which in its original form as the Model 39, became S&W’s first entry into the double action pistol field. The Model 39-2 contains a number of subtle reliability improvements over its predecessor.
The gun was designed to meet the U.S. military’s desire to replace the Model 1911 with a gun having the operating features of the Walther P-38, which earned great favor and respect by the allies. World War II had just ended, the cold war had begun and NATO was formed. Among other things, NATO hoped to standardize small arms ammunition among its members. Perhaps because pistols play a relatively minor role in conventional warfare, the U.S. military decided to first exhaust the existing stock of Model 1911s and warehouses full of spare parts before investing in a new handgun. That would take three more decades.
When a military contract didn’t materialize, S&W offered the nine-shot, Model 39 to the public. In 1967 the Illinois State Police adopted the Model 39 for duty use. They were ahead of their time and they opened the floodgates of transition to the 9mm pistol, which, would follow about fifteen years later.
In 1970, four California Highway Patrol officers died in a shootout when both their training and their six-shot revolvers proved inadequate (Newhall Incident). Domestic terrorism was also heating up with uniformed police, rather than politicians, perceived as the enemy. Soon, the high capacity pistol was rediscovered (the Browning Hi-Power was already in existence). Conventional pistols were largely forgotten as the era of the high-capacity “wonder-nine” began. As a very young federal agent, I too got swept up in the high capacity pistol craze. I purchased my first Browning HP although I was not allowed to carry it on duty. I didn’t wait for the rumored S&W Model 59 to make its debut.
Fast-forward most of a lifetime and it became apparent that while law enforcement could easily justify the high capacity handgun, the rest of us had to ponder whether we needed the extra width and weight that came with high-capacity handguns. The legions of Model 1911 users and the current popularity of abbreviated single-stack pistols are witness to the fact our needs can be met with an eight or nine-round handgun and several attempts to market high-capacity Model 1911s didn’t exactly move the standard Model 1911 to the scrapheap of history.
The Model 39 fires double action on the first round and single action thereafter. This transition has proven to be a perennial training issue for the passive or occasional gun user and there are probably instances in which officers, under the stress of a shots fired situation, caused an unintended discharge while in single-action mode or holstered in Condition Zero. So, we can understand how the Glock pistol, with its consistent safe action, rocked the law enforcement market.
In my average-sized hands, the Model 39-2, with its curved back strap, has superior ergonomics and feels like an extension of the hand. In my opinion, Smith’s early double stack pistols felt about as svelte in the hand as a paving brick. The Model 39, although a full-sized pistol, is flat and light enough to use for CCW.
I was at the recent gun show at the North Carolina Fairgrounds where I found a new-condition Model 39-2 for sale. I shortened my wish list by one handgun and bought it. In my opinion, while the Model 39 series might be considered old technology, this gun remains every bit as effective for its purpose as the newer polymer wonders. Just hold one in your hand and you can’t help but want one. I may use the Model 39-2 as a carry gun but not before I’ve wrung it out on the range and reacquainted myself with the double-to-single-action firing mode. I carried a SIG 228 for a number of years prior to my retirement and its double-to-single-action operating system was never an issue for me.
The gun was designed to meet the U.S. military’s desire to replace the Model 1911 with a gun having the operating features of the Walther P-38, which earned great favor and respect by the allies. World War II had just ended, the cold war had begun and NATO was formed. Among other things, NATO hoped to standardize small arms ammunition among its members. Perhaps because pistols play a relatively minor role in conventional warfare, the U.S. military decided to first exhaust the existing stock of Model 1911s and warehouses full of spare parts before investing in a new handgun. That would take three more decades.
When a military contract didn’t materialize, S&W offered the nine-shot, Model 39 to the public. In 1967 the Illinois State Police adopted the Model 39 for duty use. They were ahead of their time and they opened the floodgates of transition to the 9mm pistol, which, would follow about fifteen years later.
In 1970, four California Highway Patrol officers died in a shootout when both their training and their six-shot revolvers proved inadequate (Newhall Incident). Domestic terrorism was also heating up with uniformed police, rather than politicians, perceived as the enemy. Soon, the high capacity pistol was rediscovered (the Browning Hi-Power was already in existence). Conventional pistols were largely forgotten as the era of the high-capacity “wonder-nine” began. As a very young federal agent, I too got swept up in the high capacity pistol craze. I purchased my first Browning HP although I was not allowed to carry it on duty. I didn’t wait for the rumored S&W Model 59 to make its debut.
Fast-forward most of a lifetime and it became apparent that while law enforcement could easily justify the high capacity handgun, the rest of us had to ponder whether we needed the extra width and weight that came with high-capacity handguns. The legions of Model 1911 users and the current popularity of abbreviated single-stack pistols are witness to the fact our needs can be met with an eight or nine-round handgun and several attempts to market high-capacity Model 1911s didn’t exactly move the standard Model 1911 to the scrapheap of history.
The Model 39 fires double action on the first round and single action thereafter. This transition has proven to be a perennial training issue for the passive or occasional gun user and there are probably instances in which officers, under the stress of a shots fired situation, caused an unintended discharge while in single-action mode or holstered in Condition Zero. So, we can understand how the Glock pistol, with its consistent safe action, rocked the law enforcement market.
In my average-sized hands, the Model 39-2, with its curved back strap, has superior ergonomics and feels like an extension of the hand. In my opinion, Smith’s early double stack pistols felt about as svelte in the hand as a paving brick. The Model 39, although a full-sized pistol, is flat and light enough to use for CCW.
I was at the recent gun show at the North Carolina Fairgrounds where I found a new-condition Model 39-2 for sale. I shortened my wish list by one handgun and bought it. In my opinion, while the Model 39 series might be considered old technology, this gun remains every bit as effective for its purpose as the newer polymer wonders. Just hold one in your hand and you can’t help but want one. I may use the Model 39-2 as a carry gun but not before I’ve wrung it out on the range and reacquainted myself with the double-to-single-action firing mode. I carried a SIG 228 for a number of years prior to my retirement and its double-to-single-action operating system was never an issue for me.
. I’m happy you got what you wanted Paul. 
