Smith & Wessons That Never Were

or If I Ran Smith & Wesson

Smith & Wesson is one of the best known brand names in the world.  Certainly anywhere in the USA most people recognize the name.  So too will many people know it in England, Germany, France, Israel, Iraq, India, Japan and even Hong Kong, China.  That means it's one of America's greatest companies.

So that leads me to wonder how one of our best known companies, a premier gun manufacturer, can so boldly "miss" their target audience so often and still be a success.  To be sure, S&W has had it's problems in the last decade or so, starting with Americans losing control of S&W to Britain's Tomkins PLC.  In 2000, Tomkins signed on with the Clinton administration and agreed to make design and distribution channel changes that infuriated gun owners.  That led to an effective boycott of it's products that resulted in a 40% sales drop. In the end, the boycott allowed Saf-T-Hammer to buy S&W and begin rebuilding the company.

The current S&W retrenched, fell back on its core business, eliminated slow moving products and streamlined production.  Part of that included an investment in new machines, computerized design systems and reduction of production costs.  There was just one problem.

That damned lock.

Saf-T-Hammer held the patent on the lock before S&W was purchased but they had no interested buyers. Their ability to leverage Tomkins' monumental screw-up gave them a ready-made "customer", one they controlled.  The locks stayed, but the new company, Smith & Wesson Holding Co., quickly negated the agreement with the Clinton administration regarding distribution channels and designing a "smart gun".  In a sense, gun owners who were so outraged about the Clinton deal -- and later the addition of the lock -- are the most responsible for the lock being there in the first place.  Had we, as gun owners, not pushed S&W to the brink of failure it might have been sold to another company instead of the lock's maker.

The lock is still with us today and may or may not disappear on some more models. For many people, that lock is a reminder of the company "selling out", even though it is managed by completely new, American owners.

First Order of Business
So, the first step as the boss, I'd eliminate the lock on the majority of revolvers.  Why not all of them? Simple. Because there are people who want a firearm but are also concerned with the safety of their children.  In the past, these same people would buy a .38 revolver, take it outdoors and shoot it once or twice before relegating it to their nightstand or dresser drawer.  They might have raised six kids, none of whom knew the gun was in the house.  These folks are similar to people who buy a tennis racquet and use it twice during the summer.  For these people, a basic .38/.357 could be ordered with or without the lock as well as the large bore magnums, since hunting guns are often stored for long periods.

A Diet for the L-Frame
The L-Frame guns, the 581, 586, 681, 686 and 696 are all excellent guns. But they are just too damn heavy for what they are.  The four-inch N-Frame (.41/.44/.45) weighs in at 44 ounces and the 4-inch L-Frame at 42 ounces.  Worse, with a six-inch barrel the weight difference shrinks to only 1 ounce between the L-Frame and N-Frame. If you want the 8⅜" barrel, the L-frame is fully 5 ounces heavier than the N-Frame!

Of course, that full barrel underlug is part of the problem. And engineers could find at least another ounce to trim off the frame.  Mostly, I'd hollow out the underlug, thread the end and use a weight-kit so owners could set the balance of their gun to their tastes.  The goal would be a 4-inch L-Frame that weighed no more than 40.5 ounces without weights in the lug.  That'd be just an ounce and a half more than the six-inch Model 19.


.327 Federal Magnum
Ruger and Federal teamed up to create the .327 Federal Magnum cartridge.  They succeeded in creating a true .32 caliber magnum cartridge.  This cartridge pushes a 100 grain soft-point downrange at 1400 f.p.s. and that is out of a three-inch barrel!  From longer barrels, such as a Ruger Blackhawk, velocities of over 1600 fps have been recorded.

The purpose was to create a small-bore, light-recoiling cartridge that would give recoil-shy folks another choice besides .38 Special or 9mm.  The old .32 S&W Long cartridge pushed a 98 grain bullet around 750 fps.  The later .32 H&R Magnum moved that up to about 1000-1100 fps to allow use in H&R's break-top revolvers.  The .327 Magnum sizzles and with any luck, it should be a good self-defense round.

Today, S&W chambers only 2 six-shot J-Frame (small frame) revolvers for the cartridge.  One is a 2" barrel and the other is a ported 3" barrel.  What's missing here is the obvious.  A K-frame .327 Magnum.  And we can make several good options here.  Even if the K-Frame can't manage to squeeze a 7th round into the cylinder, the L-Frame could if it's a big selling point.

Wishing the Model 16-6 in .327 Federal Magnum looked like this.

The .327 Federal Magnum could resurrect the premium Model 16 type, but this time using the older partial barrel lug instead of the full lug common today.  That would give a us a target revolver with adjustable sights in .327 that looked much like the older Model 19 (see above).   With a 4 and 6 inch barrel these would be good defensive revolvers as well as varmint hunters.  The 6-inch would be perfect for shooting Coyotes because it would be like the .32-20 on steroids.

The .327 Airweight M&P 
The Smith & Wesson Model 12 was their lightweight version of the Model 10, Military & Police revolver.  Made from an aluminum alloy it was mildly successful in both the 2-inch and 4-inch versions.  Some police captains carried the 4-inch version when required to wear a 4-inch revolver just to avoid the weight.

A .327 Magnum M&P Airweight would look similar to this 5-inch M&P

With a .32 caliber magnum, we could take this cartridge and slip it into a Scandium alloy M&P revolver with a 3-inch barrel (for the ballistics) for defensive use and a 5 or 6 inch barrel for hikers and backpacking or camping.  The .327 is a bit light for bear, elk or moose, but it should work for almost anything else.  It might make the most sense produce these with a stainless finish. The lightweight M&P would also mean that it can be carried by rifle-toting hunters easily as well as anyone working a ranch or farm.  Foxes, coyotes and wolves beware!

Big Bore Snubs
After many years of shooting and learning what is needed in a handgun, one thing has become apparent to me.  Short barreled guns are used at short distances, seldom beyond about 15 yards (45 feet), mostly for protection and self-defense.  Even when used at 25 yards, there is not really a huge need for adjustable sights with a short barrel.  Not on a fighting gun.  Out to 15 yards you'll make good hits with fixed sights without much trouble.  At 25 yards, adjustable sights offer very little improvement over fixed sights.


To prove this we tried an experiment with a three-inch Model 13 compared to a 2.5 inch Model 19, both using the same .38 Special ammo.  The goal was three shots in three seconds or less at both 15 and 25 yards, using five different shooters against a standard B-27 Silhouette target.  The difference in accuracy was  marginal (averaged less than 1⅔ of an inch per shooter).  None of the three-shot groups would win bullseye competitions, however all would have been very acceptable center-of-mass hits.  And let's face it, with a short barreled revolver, taking any shot at or beyond 25 yards would be an act of desperation in a public place.  


The Model 696 - Almost Perfect
Smith & Wesson introduced a 5-shot .44 Special revolver in 1996 that built on the L-Frame.  The Model 696 was their first stab at making an excellent big bore concealed carry gun.  The L-Frame is less bulky than the larger N-Frame making it easier to conceal and carry.  With a 3-inch barrel it was nearly perfect, save that S&W chose to equip it with adjustable sights and a Baughman front ramp sight.  The gun did not sell very well for several reasons, including a lack of marketing hype from S&W.

S&W's Model 696 .44 Special.  It wasn't a popular seller.

Here's almost everything you could want.  A large bore revolver with a cartridge more powerful than the .38 Special, yet similar recoil, in a stainless steel 5-shot package.  Just perfect for the civilian needing extra protection.


Well, almost.  


Revert the gun to a fixed-sight model with a simple ramp front sight and it'll be just as effective at 15 yards as this one.  S&W should have used the stainless fixed sight 681 as the base frame and built it from there.


Let me say that concealing any of the N-Frame revolvers is not easy unless you are physically large and/or can get away with a loose fitting jacket or coat. But for people who are invested in .44 Special, .45 ACP, or .45 Colt, giving them an carry option means happy customers.

In recent years, S&W has created runs of big-bore revolvers with 3-inch barrels in .45 ACP, .44 Special and even .41 Magnum.  In each case, each model has been equipped with adjustable rear sights and a larger than necessary front sight.  On top of having adjustable sights, some of these guns come with either a square-butt grip or a round-butt frame covered with round-to-square-butt grips.  A good example is the Model 24 .44 Special shown below. 

3-inch barrel Model 24 .44 Special

Here is a snubby .44 Special on a large frame which will be hard enough to conceal.  Yet S&W retains the rear adjustable sights, the tall Baughman front sight and a square-butt grip profile.  All of these features make it easier to manufacture, but also make it much harder to conceal.  For those customers looking for a big bore carry gun, this is tempting, but it doesn't really meet the needs of the customer.  

I don't have the Photoshop expertise to covert the image above into a round-butt grip profile, but I can show you what a fixed sight version of the Model 24 would look like.  The result is a revolver slightly shorter in height and it doesn't have anything you don't need.  

Concept of the fixed sight Model 24 

Here the rear sight has been removed and a fixed rear notch is used instead.  The front sight is replaced with the lower standard ramp that blends with a rib to fill the top of the barrel.  Add a round-butt grip and you now have a gun that's slightly lighter, easier to carry and just as effective.  


Probably the best example of converting a N-frame to a snubby fighting gun comes in the form of 3-inch Model 58. This .41 Magnum was not rechambered for a milder cartridge so it had plenty of potential for zapping thugs.  The Model 58 is one of the few fixed-sight N-Frame revolvers in the post war era.  With the grip frame rounded it makes a decent, if somewhat large, CCW gun.  

Customized Model 58, .41 Magnum Short Barrel

But that's not all. Let's consider some other models that could become loved big bore carry guns.

In the post-war years folks could buy a surplus Model 1917 in .45 ACP for a low price, then spend a few bucks for a gunsmith to cut down the 5-inch barrel to something easier to handle indoors or on the person.  In fact, when I was young, the proprietor of the local liquor store kept a modified Colt 1917 under the counter with the paper bags.  It was in a holster mounted under the counter top for easy access. This 1917's barrel was cut back almost flush with the free hanging Colt ejector rod and the gunsmith had moved the half-moon front sight back and bobbed the hammer so it would not snag on anything. The result was one very slick defensive revolver.

Customized Model 1917 with shorter barrel

A similar version from S&W would give us a .45 ACP revolver that could be carried without all the added weight of barrel ribs or lugs or adjustable sights to get knocked askew.  Here is a concept illustration with the lanyard ring still attached which could be purchased as an add-on for hikers or riders.

The short length of the .45 ACP would allow us to shorten the ejector rod a bit more and still maintain complete ejection of the moon clipped cases.  With a 3-inch to 3½-inch barrel, it would not only work as a concealed carry gun but also as a companion gun for campers, hikers, ATV and horseback riders.  In the latter cases, allowing the addition of the lanyard ring keeps the gun from being lost.

The Model 21/22 Thunder Ranch 4-inch

The company's "retro-look" Model 21 .44 Special debuted in 2004 as the Model 21-4 Thunder Ranch Special and a year later the similar looking Model 22-4 .45 ACP Thunder Ranch Special was introduced.  The basic gun had a 4-inch tapered barreled with a partial underlug and fixed sights.  Its massive looks and the tapered barrel invoke thoughts of the 1930's.  This revolver makes a terrific home defense gun or an excellent woods gun when loaded with slightly warm .44 Special loads.

Slightly bobbed barrel on the Model 21/22's (.45 and .44 calibers)

With a shorter barrel it would make a dandy, albeit somewhat heavy, carry gun.  The extra weight of the partial barrel lug means that when it's empty it can be used as a large steel sap.  We might even offer this one in .45 Colt for those who are fans of the old Army cartridge.  All of these guns deserve a round-butt grip, however that was beyond the abilities of both myself and my graphics program.


S&W Brings Back The 586

S&W Model 586

This is certainly good news.  The stainless steel 686 has seen brisk sales and people tend to lavish praise upon it as the best .357 revolver.  The blued steel version is, to me, a better looking revolver than the stainless version. At right is the 4-inch barrel version and a 6-inch barrel is also available.

S&W does make a 2½-inch barrel for the 686, but not yet for the 586.  And I don't think they should either.  In keeping with my comments about a fixed sight snubby, S&W has a good chance to make it right by basing any future "snubby" on the fixed-sight Model 581 frame.

The 581, with its fixed sights makes it the correct platform to bring out a new snubby.  For those wanting adjustable sights, the 2½-inch 686 is the one to choose, while the 581 with a 3-inch barrel and fixed sights makes it a good choice for those who want simple and reliable protection. Simply add the round-butt grip frame and we've got it all.

Standard 4-inch Model 581 with fixed sights

Concept Image: 3-inch 581

What revolver should S&W be making that you don't see on the horizon?  Should they bring back the K-Frame .22 M&P (Model 45 "Post Office") revolver?  Another run of the 696?  The 696 in .45 ACP perhaps or as a six-shot 9mm revolver?  Use the Comments section to let me know what you think.