What have I got here?

[jframe]

I just acquired this little j frame this weekend at a local show. It is stamped "MOD 042" in the yoke cut. I've read about this model in the SCSW, and learned it was not a cataloged model, and was made only in 1992. The serial number is laser engraved under the top strap as well as on the butt. It is BMB00xx. I love the polished blue finish; it looks almost as good as the old S&W and Colt bluing of days gone by. I didn't get the box or anything just the gun. Reckon it's of some value, and if so, is it worth a factory letter? I know it's unusual; I think I've only seen one other one before, and that was several years ago. It was shipped with the Uncle Mike's combat grips, and it's an Airweight, even though it has NO markings whatsoever to say so on the gun. My pics are really bad, and don't do it justice. This gun is an easy 99%. What do y'all think, and does anyone have any insight on this model other than what the book says? And, lastly, what's the chance ANYONE out there has the box it came in?

 

[jframe]

Apparently, what I got was an Airweight with the dreaded cracked frame. I discovered it the other night, right under where the barrel threads in. S&W is supposed to be sending me shipping stuff to send it back. I figure they may give me a new gun, but what I WANT is my Model 042. I think it's an honest mistake; it's really hard to see, and I doubt if the man who sold it to me would have noticed it. I'm kinda hoping against hope that it's just a scratch, but my gunsmith looked at it, and he kinda thinks like me. Nothing like replacing an unusual Smith with a brand new lock version, complete with MIM parts!

 

[DC7]

Sorry to hear about the cracked frame. It's always disheartening to find that fatal flaw on any revolver, and it's even worse when it's an unusual model like the 042.

I'm not sure the gun would have been worth a factory letter even if it wasn't cracked, though. They're not really rare--a total of 4,415 were produced, some with a polished finish like yours and some with a matte finish. I've got one of each type, and you're right about the polished version--the finish is beautiful, as nice as that found on many older blue steel revolvers. More info about the 042 can be found in this thread: http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-revolvers-1980-present/94443-model-042-a.html

By the way, an Airweight revolver with no Airweight marking is common on guns built around 1993. Sometime around the beginning of that year the factory stopped putting the Airweight mark on the barrel, but it wasn't until many months later that they began to etch it on the sideplate. That left a huge number of aluminum-frame revolvers with no Airweight marking at all. That might include your 042, since that model was sold in both 1992 and 1993 according to a factory letter I once read.

Good luck with the replacement. Back in 2007 I had the same cracked-frame problem with a 442 no-dash which, like the 042, was no longer being built. So the factory rep was kind enough to let me choose any of their current models as a replacement. All I had to do was pay the difference in dealer cost between a new 442-2 (which they would have given me for free) and any of their other new revolvers. So for about two hundred dollars I chose one of the very first M&P 340 revolvers--a gun so new that most dealers didn't even have them in stock yet. If they'll do the same for you, you might find a gun so nice that it will make you forget about the 042. I just saw two new models in another thread that I would definitely be interested in as replacement guns--check them out here: http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-re...658-s-w-178046-632-178044-640-pro-series.html

 

[murphydog]

Sorry to hear about the frame damage. It seems from other postings to be related to the steel barrel being overtorqued into the alloy frame during assembly, rather than firing damage. Please let us know the factory's response.

 

[jframe]

Sorry to hear about the cracked frame. It's always disheartening to find that fatal flaw on any revolver, and it's even worse when it's an unusual model like the 042.

I'm not sure the gun would have been worth a factory letter even if it wasn't cracked, though. They're not really rare--a total of 4,415 were produced, some with a polished finish like yours and some with a matte finish. I've got one of each type, and you're right about the polished version--the finish is beautiful, as nice as that found on many older blue steel revolvers. More info about the 042 can be found in this thread: http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-revolvers-1980-present/94443-model-042-a.html

By the way, an Airweight revolver with no Airweight marking is common on guns built around 1993. Sometime around the beginning of that year the factory stopped putting the Airweight mark on the barrel, but it wasn't until many months later that they began to etch it on the sideplate. That left a huge number of aluminum-frame revolvers with no Airweight marking at all. That might include your 042, since that model was sold in both 1992 and 1993 according to a factory letter I once read.

Good luck with the replacement. Back in 2007 I had the same cracked-frame problem with a 442 no-dash which, like the 042, was no longer being built. So the factory rep was kind enough to let me choose any of their current models as a replacement. All I had to do was pay the difference in dealer cost between a new 442-2 (which they would have given me for free) and any of their other new revolvers. So for about two hundred dollars I chose one of the very first M&P 340 revolvers--a gun so new that most dealers didn't even have them in stock yet. If they'll do the same for you, you might find a gun so nice that it will make you forget about the 042. I just saw two new models in another thread that I would definitely be interested in as replacement guns--check them out here: http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-re...658-s-w-178046-632-178044-640-pro-series.html

I LIKE that 640 Pro Series! I looked in my current catalog, and it appears it's also been cut for full moon clips. Nice gun; wonder what the price difference would be if they let me choose a replacement for mine? I would also be interested in one of the Classic Series Model 40's, if they have any left; think it's been discontinued.

 

[sgms]

Sorry to read that you also have to join the cracked frame club. Smith replaced a 442 in satin nickel with a 642-2 for me last feb. for the same reason. As nice as the 642 is I still like the looks with out the lock better.