Howdy
From time to time on these pages I have ranted about how I thought the Smith and Wesson 38 Double Action Perfected model was the dumbest model ever to come down the pike. This is the Top Break that has the thumb piece on the side. In order to open it you have to lift up the latch on top at the same time as you push the thumb piece forward. How dumb is that? According to some experts, the idea behind the Perfected model was to prevent a bad guy from reaching over the top and lifting up the latch of a Top Break that was being pointed at him, breaking open the gun and rendering it harmless. Supposedly there is a letter to Daniel Wesson on file somewhere, asking for just such a revolver. Let me tell you, anybody who could reach over the top of a revolver and open the latch has a lot better coordination than I do. More chutzpah too. I have tried it with a Top Break pointing at myself and it is not easy to do.
Other logic points to the interchangeability of parts with the early 32 Hand Ejectors.
I'm not sure where the truth lies, but I always thought these were the dumbest revolvers and was adamant in my refusal to even consider buying one.
Well, it's time to 'fess up now. I have had this one since April of this year. I came across it at an auction, and it was in such nice shape I just couldn't pass it up. Nickel plated with a four inch barrel. It left the factory in 1917.
Since it was made well into the 20th Century, I am not reluctant to shoot modern Smokeless rounds in it. I had a box of TEN-X 148 grain Hollow Base Wad Cutter 38 S&W cowboy loads that are very light and have hardly any recoil. I used them in the Pocket Pistol event at a match last June and really enjoyed them. Wish I could find some more.
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So, as if that wasn't bad enough, I picked up this blued Perfected with a 3 1/4" barrel in August. I guess I have a 'thing' for these silly revolvers now. This one shipped in 1912.
While we are still on the topic of Top Breaks and Perfecteds, here is a S&W single shot target pistol. Look familiar? The Third Model Single Shots were built on the same basic frame as the Perfected Models. The lockwork is the same as the Perfected, but they lacked the silly thumb piece, so they opened up like any other Top Break. But unlike all the other S&W single shots, they worked in single action or double action mode. What's the point of a single shot target pistol that you could fire double action? This one left the factory in 1912.
Here's a fun picture.
Oh, the trials and tribulations of the Smith and Wesson collector.