Collector Spotlight Auction Shines on Smith & Wesson

Rock Island Auction Company will be aglow with Smith & Wesson handguns  ̶  rarities and classics  ̶  dedicating its entire May 1 Collectors Spotlight auction slate to only firearms from the legendary American company.

More than half of the Smith & Wesson handguns in the 300-lot auction are from the collection of long-time collector Jon M. Maxwell. Maxwell was a 40-year member of the Smith & Wesson Collector Association and devoted himself to the pursuit of assembling a group of experimental, early production, one-off and rare collectable Smith & Wesson handguns, even influencing some of their prototypes. The Smith & Wesson Collectors Association started in 1964 by six collectors at a gun show in Tulsa, Okla., then elected its first slate of officers at the 1970 Las Vegas Gun Show.

Here is a sampling of some of the Smith & Wesson handguns in the Collectors Spotlight Auction.

Rock Island Auction Company will hold its first-ever Collectors Spotlight Auction dedicated specifically to one firearms company, Smith & Wesson, on May 1.

Third Model Ladysmith Revolver

The smallest hand-ejectors made on the Smith & Wesson M frame fire seven shots. A tall tale about the Ladysmith involves Daniel Wesson learning it was the gun of choice for prostitutes. Shocked by the salacious story and given his puritanical New England upbringing, he ordered production ceased. The trouble with the story is Wesson died in 1906 but production continued until 1921.

Smith & Wesson produced the Third Model from 1911 to 1921. This superb example, chambered for .22 caliber, is very fine overall with a high condition nickely finish.

Wiley Clapp Tested Smith & Wesson Performance Center 4566 Pistol

When Smith & Wesson started turning out semi-automatic pistols in the 1950s they were given two-digit designations until 1982. The second generation went by three digits during production from 1979 to 1988 while the third generation series adopted four-digit model numbers that used codes for calibers, frame size and finish.

This Performance Center Model 4566 is a mid-sized double action/single action chambered for .45 ACP. This gun was tested by Wiley Clapp whose article “New S&W PC 4566 .45ACP” in “Combat Handguns” magazine. Clapp was a U.S. Marine and police officer before becoming a writer and consultant, mostly on handguns.

Made in the 1990s, this Performance Center Model 4566 is excellent overall, including mechanically, and was tested by handgun writer Wiley Clapp.

Pre-War K-22 Masterpiece Second Model Revolver

Designed in the 1890s, the medium-sized K frame served as the platform for a .38 caliber service model. The gun eventually led to Elmer Keith and other handloaders advocating for the .357 Magnum round.

The K-22, re-christened the Model 17 when Smith & Wesson started using model numbers in the 1950s, is a good small game and plinking gun, and given that it fires .22 long rifle, the larger frame makes for a smooth shooting revolver.

Made about 1940-1941 this pre-war K-22 Masterpiece is mechanically excellent. The Second Model has taller rear sights as well as a short action hammer.

Venezuelan Police-Marked Model 469

This semi-automatic pistol has a 3 1/2-inch barrel, reportedly earning the nickname “the Mini Gun” and was an early model in Smith & Wesson’s development of a compact-sized semi-automatic pistol small enough for concealed carry but offering enough firepower to work as a service weapon.

This gun bears the Venezuelan crest on the right side of the slide and the frame is marked “C.T.P.J.” “The Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson” by Jim Supica and Richard Nahas states that a Venezuela marked model can be valuable. “Extremely rare, value in the four figures.”

.44 Hand Ejector Model of 1950 Military Revolver

Hand Ejectors are revolver royalty. The First Model .44 caliber Hand Ejector introduced in the early 20th century is better known by another name – the Triple-Lock. When production re-started after World War 2, the revolver received some design changes, most significantly a full rib on the top of the barrel. Company documents from the 1950s state that 90 percent of production of this double action was chambered for .44 Special.

Made from 1950 to 1966, this wheelgun was re-designated the Model 21 in 1957.

Manufactured about 1955-56, this .44 Hand Ejector Model of 1950 has a five-inch barrel, blued finish and is mechanically excellent.

.357 Magnum (Pre-Model 27) Revolver

In the 1930s, Smith & Wesson worked with Phil Sharpe and Elmer Keith, among other handloaders wanting a more powerful cartridge, to design the .357 Magnum cartridge. The company developed its Registered Magnum program that provided a number of options including 23 barrel lengths, six main sight choices, blue, nickel and engraved finishes, two types of grips along with other options before ending it in 1939.

When the Registered Magnum program ended, fewer options were available. The barrel lengths for unregistered .357 Magnum revolvers were whittled down to just five. After World War 2, the gun was modernized with a short-throw hammer with either blue or nickel finishes. It became the Model 27 in 1957.

This is as close to a Registered .357 Magnum as you can get and a foundational piece for revolver collectors. It has a 6 1/2-inch solid rib barrel and blue finish. It is rated fine overall and very fine mechanically.

Performance Center Schofield Model of 2000

The Schofield dates back to the revolver trials that brought the world the Colt Single Action Army and Smith & Wesson’s No. 3 revolver. It also drew the attention of George Schofield, a Civil War veteran who attained the rank of brevet brigadier general and remained in the U.S. Army after the war at the rank of major. Schofield’s version has a square butt frame with no knuckle on the backstrap, the latch mounted on the frame and chambered in .45 caliber. The U.S. Army bought 8,000 Schofields, but the gun found interest from the U.S. Marshal Service and Wells Fargo employees.

The Performance Center update around 2000 added a modern hammer block safety and used a carbon and steel frame. Still chambered for its original .45 S&W caliber, this is a great way to obtain a classic revolver that is safe to shoot.

This Performance Center Schofield of 2000 has a seven-inch solid rib barrel and nickel finish. Chambered in .45 Smith & Wesson, it is mechanically excellent.

Smith & Wesson Model 559

Originally based on the large-capacity Model 59 that is considered one of the original “wonder-nine” double action pistols. The Model 559 uses a double column magazine similar to the Browning High Power. This second generation semi-automatic pistol went from the 59’s alloy frame to a steel frame and steel slide. Manufactured from 1980 to 1983 there are only two known to have a chrome finish, and this is one of only 15 with a rare matte gray finish.

This 9mm Model 559 pistol is a rarity for its dull gray finish. Of 10,609 manufactured, only 15 have the matte finish.

Model 29 Revolver

The gun that made Dirty Harry Callahan snarl the question, “I know what you’re thinking – `Did he fire six shots or only five?’ Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I’ve kinda lost track myself. But, being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and would blow your head clean off, you’ve got to ask yourself one question: `Do I feel lucky?’ Well, do you, punk?”

Elmer Keith and other hand loaders had already lobbied for the .357 Magnum cartridge in the 1930s and now wanted something more potent than the .44 Special. By the mid-1950s, the .44 Magnum cartridge was born and the Model 29 double action revolver was introduced in late 1955. This revolutionary revolver, made to handle the spicy round, came in one of three barrel lengths, including the 8 3/8-inch version that was introduced in 1958. It was a difficult gun for buyers to find after Clint Eastwood’s “Dirty Harry” was released in 1971. Discontinued in January 1999, this revolver is still made occasionally in small quantities.

Chambered in .44 Magnum, Dirty Harry’s round, this firearm with its 8 3/8-inch barrel was manufactured in 1959-60. Mechanically excellent, it comes with a wooden Smith & Wesson display case.

First Model .44 Double Action Revolver

Made from 1881-1913, these double action revolvers followed the New Model No. 3. All the frames for this wheelgun were made before 1899 making them antiques. About 54,000 were made.

One of only two antique Smith & Wesson handguns in the auction, the .44 double action revolver is joined by a .38 caliber single action Second Model revolver.

This First Model .44 double action revolver chambered in .44 Russian was shipped in January 1886 to M.W. Robinson Company, New York City. It is mechanically very good.

FBI-Purchased Model 1076

Following on the heels of the Bren Ten and the FBI’s realization that it needed more firepower after the notorious 1986 Miami shootout that killed two of its agents, Smith & Wesson created the Model 1006 and the law enforcement Model 1076 in 10mm. The FBI ordered 10,000 of these semi-automatic pistols and 2,400 were delivered.

This gun doesn’t get nearly the attention as its others 10mm breathren, the aforementioned Bren Ten nor the Colt Delta Elite, so collectors shouldn’t sleep on this opportunity to get an FBI-purchased 10mm pistol.

Chambered in 10mm, this Model 1076 meets the purchase product code that shows it was bought by the FBI. The FBI version was built without a magazine disconnect.

Performance Center Model 66-3 Carry Comp Revolver

This stainless steel double action revolver that began life as the Combat Magnum is made to conceal carry on the company’s K target frame. The 66 has adjustable sights and a ramped front blade. It received a new yoke retention system/radius stud package/hammer nose bushing/floating hand in 1986 to earn the Model 66-3 designation.

The Model 66-3 chambered in .357 Magnum with its three-inch barrel, rubber grip and stainless steel finish make it a terrific concealed carry option.

Model 19-P Double Action Revolver

Smith & Wesson President Carl Hellstrom asked retired Assistant Chief U.S. Border Patrol Inspector Bill Jordan, a noted shooting skills writer, about the ideal firearm. Jordan replied it would be built on S&W’s K frame and have a four-inch barrel and shrouded extractor rod. Also, it should be able to handle both .38 Special and .357 Magnum cartridges. The gun, unveiled in 1955, was named the Combat Magnum and the first one was given to Jordan. Later it became the Model 19. This revolver has a fixed sight that was built for export to Peru in limited quantities, making the Model 19-P scarce.

The scarce Model 19-P was offered in limited quantities with either a 2 1/2-inch barrel with a round butt or 4-inch barrel with a square butt for sale in Peru. This revolver has a four-inch barrel and is chambered in .357 Magnum.

Model 28-2 Highway Patrolman Revolver

Introduced in 1954 to meet the no frill needs of police, this revolver chambered in .357 Magnum is described as a utilitarian Model 27 offered in 4-inch or 6-inch barrels. The original test production was marked Patrolman but changed to Highway Patrolman on the suggestion of Florence Van Orden of The Evaluators Ltd. to Hellstrom. The Highway Patrolman was produced from 1954 to 1986. In the second model, the cylinder stop was changed and the trigger guard screw was eliminated in 1961.

This Highway Patrolman is offered with a 4-inch solid rib barrel. It is mechanically excellent.

Smith & Wesson Handguns for Sale

Jon Maxwell’s legacy as a collector of Smith & Wesson handguns is long and influential, bringing together classics like the Model 29 and .357 Magnum and rarities like the matte gray-finished Model 559 and Wiley Clapp-tested Model 4566. All of the firearms among the 300 lots of the Smith & Wesson Spotlight Auction offer fantastic opportunities for collectors of this legendary firearms company to pluck something from their wish list.