They Placed 1st. and 2nd.

[CptCurl]

Bottom a 1st. Model .44 Hand Ejector

Top a 2nd. Model .455 Hand Ejector

On the bench this evening, clean. Candid hand-held shot. I just couldn't resist sharing.

 

[fat tom]

Very nice. Thanks for the pics!
f.t.

 

[DCWilson]

The guns are great and the wood is spectacular. Nice!

 

[bob1956]

Those are the smiths dreams are made of!

 

[tops]

Super nice. Thanks for posting. It gives me something to work towards. Larry

 

[handejector]

Gorgeous.
With dished grips, the 44 should be early.
Please tell us what number range.
Is it lettered?
Ironic that the 455 lacks proofs, and the 44 appears to be Brit proofed.

 

[CptCurl]

Gorgeous.
With dished grips, the 44 should be early.
Please tell us what number range.
Is it lettered?
Ironic that the 455 lacks proofs, and the 44 appears to be Brit proofed.

The .455 has no proofs or martial marks at all. Nor does it have any import marks. It clearly was made for commercial release and bears a fairly late S/N. I displayed it in a prior post:

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...455-mk-ii-hand-ejector-2nd-model-69234-a.html

The .44 bears S/N 15. It has no martial marks. As you note, it bears British commercial proofs. It was proofed at the Birmingham Proof House in 1952.

I suspect the .44 has a story to tell if I can make it talk. The British civilian proofs add a lot of spice and speak for a part of its life. A factory letter is certainly to be called for. As I learn more I expect to share the information. This just came into my hands in the past day. There will be photography to display.

Thanks for the comments, folks.

 

[handejector]

15
COOL. I'm guessing there aren't many lower.


On the 455-
It is hard to sell 70,000 guns and not have stuff left over. When the Brits were done, S&W assembled everything they could in an easy manner and dumped them. Oddly, Shapleigh in St. Louis took a lot, maybe most, of the leftover 455's. Maybe they were well known enough to sell them into the Commonwealth, or maybe they were just "gun-starved" through WW I. Maybe they figured if they could do nothing else, they could punch them out to 45 Colt and move them.

 

[DCWilson]

I wonder if the .44 was an inspection copy offered to the British Military by S&W in hopes of generating interest in a bulk sale.

Or possibly the British, having heard that a new heavy frame revolver was in development at S&W, placed an early order for one (or more?) to check out.

Seems to me this gun absolutely demands a letter. Please keep us posted on what you may learn about it.

 

[handejector]

Nope.
The Brits requested samples in 455 in the summer of 1914, and S&W quickly sent them.

 

[CptCurl]

15
COOL. I'm guessing there aren't many lower.

14 maybe?

Seriously, is there any information on how the prototypes were numbered, what was the lowest numbered example that would be considered "regular production", and whether any very early numbers were reserved for high-hats?

This 1st. Model differs from the norm in that it has no provision for a lanyard loop. In fact, the serial number is stamped right in the center of the butt where the hole for the lanyard loop normally is located.

If this one would be classified as "regular production" I would surmise it was among the very first batch to go through production. I wonder, how many went through production at a time?

This weekend I'll take some time to carefully photograph this revolver, and ultimately I will display it in detail on the S&W forum.

 

[handejector]

This 1st. Model differs from the norm in that it has no provision for a lanyard loop. In fact, the serial number is stamped right in the center of the butt where the hole for the lanyard loop normally is located.

Swivels were not "normal" on TL's.
The Brit 455's had them, but most other calibers are usually seen without them.
S&W would put a swivel on anything if you ordered it, but they did not stick it on normal productions.
The misleading factor here is the high number of 44-2nd's seen with swivels. That is merely because they're built on leftover 1917 frames. They also had plenty of leftover swivels, so it was cheaper to stick a swivel on than plug and polish the hole.

Maybe Ed will come along and show you pics of #2.
I think DB gave it to him personally.

 

[CptCurl]

Maybe Ed will come along and show you pics of #2.
I think DB gave it to him personally.

That's interesting! Does somebody on the forum have #2? I would love to see it and any other examples "lower than 15."

What about #1? Is it known to exist?

Thanks to all. I'm gathering an education.

 

[Sebago Son]

Shapliegh New Century Guns...

15
COOL. I'm guessing there aren't many lower.


On the 455-
It is hard to sell 70,000 guns and not have stuff left over. When the Brits were done, S&W assembled everything they could in an easy manner and dumped them. Oddly, Shapleigh in St. Louis took a lot, maybe most, of the leftover 455's. Maybe they were well known enough to sell them into the Commonwealth, or maybe they were just "gun-starved" through WW I. Maybe they figured if they could do nothing else, they could punch them out to 45 Colt and move them.

I've put these snapshots up before, but this is one such .455 HE1st that shipped to Shapleigh between Christmas 1917 and New Years 1918.

This one remains in .455

Drew

 

[Sebago Son]

And while we're on the subject.....

This .455 HE2nd was factory converted from .455 to .45 Colt in May of 1936.

Again, apologies for the recycled photos...

Drew

 

[JSR III]

Drew, 'really cool. You have both the revolver and the ammunition with the factory rework stars on them.

CaptCrl, remember that S&W did not necessarily ship in numerical sequence. 15 could very possibly have shipped before number 1 and the only way to tell is to letter the gun. Dr. Cornett may be along shortly to discuss purchasing this from you...

 

[CptCurl]

To cross-link the threads, here's a link to the thread in which I posted detailed photographs of my First Model pictured in the opening post:

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-ha...and-ejector-1st-model-15-a.html#post136317216

 

[opoefc]

Lee posted a comment above about Serial No. 2 I once had. It is caliber .45 S&W Special , aka .45 Frankfort. I believe it was one of the test guns built for the 1906 Army trials. That would mean there are ( or were) three T-Locks with serial number 2. - standard production in .44S&W, plus one in .455 Eley for the British contract and then the gun in .45 Special caliber. Ed.

 

[Dillyp]

45 S&W special? Elaborate please. Ill wait.

 

[Cyrano]

Every time I open this sub-forum, I'm getting an education.