The Civil War Period produced a great demand for Smith & Wesson products.
pistol, .31 caliber, was offered for sale at GunsAmerica.com for $9,500. According to GunsAmerica, only 850 of these small frame, lever action pistols, were manufactured between 1857 and 1960, making this a Winchester Volcanic pistol since Smith & Wesson left the company in 1856. On the other hand, owning a genuine S&W Schofield only requires money. Lots of money. Recently Cabelas Fort Worth offered an 1876-77 S&W .45-caliber Schofied with a 7-inch barrel and walnut grips for $7,000.
GunsInternationl.com, an excellent online site for gun collectors, offered an S&W Model 3 (the First model) Schofield for $6,050. This single action revolver was stamped “Wells Fargo & Co. Express,” had a five-inch barrel, and was .45 caliber. According to the website, “After the Spanish American War in 1898, the US Army sold off all their surplus Schofield revolvers. The surplus Schofield revolvers were reconditioned by wholesalers and gunsmiths (at professional factory-quality level) with a considerable number offered for sale on the commercial market with a 5-inch barrel as well as the standard size barrel of 7-inches. Of the most notable purchasers of these reconditioned model 3 Schofield revolvers was Wells Fargo and Company, who purchased the revolvers for use by Wells Fargo Road Agents and had the barrels shortened to a more concealable 5 inch length. These revolvers were then inspected by a Wells Fargo armorer and uniquely stamped “W.F. & CO. EX.” or “Wells Fargo & Co”, along with the original Smith & Wesson serial number re-stamped alongside the Wells Fargo stamping on the flat part of the barrel just forward of the barrel pivot.” The Civil War Period produced a great demand for Smith & Wesson products. The Smith & Wesson No. 2 Army revolver had a 6-inch octagon barrel and six cylinders. When found in above average or excellent condition, these S&W Army No. 2s are valued at about $900 – 1,000. Two other S&W revolvers that greatly interest collectors are the 1857 Model 1, second issue .22-caliber rimfire and the 1899 S&W .38-caliber military and police revolver. The 1857 Model 1 is a beautiful pistol that truly represent the earliest days of .22-caliber production. Collectors who favor .22s always search for Model 1 S&Ws. The 1899 Special Model .38 was equipped with a special hand ejector and was the first .38 revolver to use S&W .38 Special cartridges. Many antique S&W revolvers used a spear trigger without a trigger guard. By modern standards, these are considered “unsafe” pistols, but collectors love any pistol with a spear trigger since it not only is old, it is visually appealing. It has been said that Samuel Colt made all men equal and Winchester was the gun that settled the West, but the truth of these statements has been called into question by the shear number of Smith & Wesson revolvers manufactured from 1856 until 1900 and beyond. S&W revolvers were smaller than the big-handled Colts, and S&W was the first American company to produce a metallic cartridge and bored through cylinder revolver. In short, collectors love Smith & Wesson revolvers because anything that Samuel Colt produced, he did so on the coat tails of Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson.
“Small frame” S&W Volcanic pistol; .31-caliber; $9,500.
1876-77 S&W .45-caliber Schofield revolver. This pistol was offered by Cabelas Fort Worth for $7,000.
S&W Model 3 Schofield that is stamped “Wells Fargo & Co. Express.” This .45-caliber revolver has a five-inch barrel and was recently offered online for $6,050.
S&W Model 1 was the first revolver manufactured by Smith & Wesson. It held seven .22 rimfire cartridges. The Model 1 was discontinued in 1882.
S&W 1889 Military & Police .38 revolver. This was the first .38 to use .38 Special cartridges.
Smith &Wesson Model 1, 2nd Issue; $600.
Rare, S&W Model 3 bored to a .44 Henry cartridge. This unique revolver is valued at $2,150.
Smith & Wesson Lemon Squeezer or “Safety Hammerless.” This double action revolver was manufactured in the late 1880s in both .32 and .38 calibers. Fall 2012 Arkansas Wild | 35