Smith & Wesson - Notable Revolvers

Notable Revolvers

Smith & Wesson has produced revolvers over the years in several standard frame sizes. "M refers to the small early Ladysmith frame, I to the small .32 frame, J to the small .38 frame, K to the medium .38 frame, L to medium large, and N to the largest .44 Magnum type frame. In 2003, the even larger X frame was introduced for the .500 S&W Magnum.

• Smith & Wesson Model 1
• Smith & Wesson Model 3—first automatic ejection of spent cartridge cases

J-Frame (small) Models

• Smith & Wesson Model 30—A small six-shot .32-caliber revolver.
• Smith & Wesson Model 34—A Small six-shot snub-nosed revolver chambered in .22 LR. Produced from 1953 to 1991.
• Smith & Wesson Model 36—known as the "Chiefs Special"; first J-frame (1950), 5-shot revolver
• Smith & Wesson Model 37—known as the "Chiefs Special Airweight";
• Smith & Wesson Bodyguard—standard and "Airweight" (Models 38, 380, 49, 438, 638, 649)
• Smith & Wesson Model 60—first regular production all stainless steel revolver (1965); the stainless Chief's Special
• Smith & Wesson Model 340PD—first revolver made of scandium alloy, very light, possibly the final evolution of the classic J-frame Chief's Special introduced over 60 years earlier, weighs 12 ounces (340 g).
• Smith & Wesson Lemon Squeezer—The "lemon squeezer," also known as Model 40, Model 42 and 38 Safety
• Smith & Wesson Centennial—standard and "Airweight" (Models 40, 42, 442, 640, 642) (at one time available in 9×19mm caliber as the Model 940)
• Smith & Wesson Ladysmith

K-Frame (medium) Models

• Smith & Wesson Model 10—.38 Special. Previously the ".38 Military & Police" and ".38 Victory Model"
• Smith & Wesson Model 11—.38 S&W. Previously the ".38 Regular Military & Police"
• Smith & Wesson Model 12—.38 Special. "Airweight" (alloy frame) version of the Model 10.
• Smith & Wesson Model 13—.357 Magnum version of the Model 10.
• Smith & Wesson Model 14—.38 Special. Previously the "K-38 Masterpiece"
• Smith & Wesson Model 15—.38 Special. Previously the "38 Combat Masterpiece"
• Smith & Wesson Model 16—.32 Caliber. Previously the "K-32 Masterpiece"
• Smith & Wesson Model 17—.22 Caliber. Previously the "K-22 Masterpiece"
• Smith & Wesson Model 18—.22 Caliber. Previously the "22 Combat Masterpiece"
• Smith & Wesson Model 19—.357 Magnum. Previously the "Combat Magnum"; first lightweight .357 Magnum, built at the request of Bill Jordan
• Smith & Wesson Model 53—blued steel .22 Magnum, built for .22 Remington Jet Center fire Magnum ammunition
• Smith & Wesson Model 64—.38 Special. Stainless steel version of the Model 10.
• Smith & Wesson Model 65—.357 Magnum. Stainless steel version of the Model 13
• Smith & Wesson Model 66—.357 Magnum. Stainless steel version of the Model 19
• Smith & Wesson Model 67—.38 Special. Stainless steel version of the Model 15
• Smith & Wesson Model 68—.38 Special version of the Model 66 (half-lug) 6" barrel
• Smith & Wesson Model 617—.22 Caliber. Full-lug, Stainless steel, 10-shot version of the Model 17

L-Frame (medium-large) Models

• Smith & Wesson Model 386—alloy
• Smith & Wesson Model 586—blued steel
• Smith & Wesson Model 686—stainless steel
• Smith & Wesson Model 619—7-shot .357 Magnum, no full underlug, fixed sights.
• Smith & Wesson Model 620—7-shot .357 Magnum, no full underlug, adjustable sights.
• Smith & Wesson Model 646—stainless steel .40 S&W, adjustable sights

M-Frame (extra small old) Models

• Smith & Wesson 38 Double Action—nickeled steel .38 S&W

N-Frame (large) Models

• .44 Hand Ejector First Model "New Century"—first N-frame, introduced in 1908. The first chambering of .44 S&W Special.
• Model 1917—first revolver chambered for .45 ACP
• Smith & Wesson Model 22—.45 ACP/.45 Auto Rim; also called the M1950 Military; Base for the 2nd issue Thunder Ranch Revolver; This was the evolution of the M1917 revolver
• Smith & Wesson Model 25—similar to the Model 29, but chambered for the .45 ACP/.45 Auto Rim and later, the .45 Colt cartridge. The best known, and most common, variants of this revolver are the Model 25-2 (.45 ACP) and Model 25-5 (.45 Colt).
• Smith & Wesson Model 27—first .357 Magnum; usually a custom or limited-run revolver, with a deep blue lustre
• Smith & Wesson Model 28—"Highway Patrolman" .357 Magnum; fewer frills than the Model 27, same performance; marketed to police for its reduced price and equal performance.
• Smith & Wesson Model 29—first .44 Magnum by S&W, made famous by its appearance in the film Dirty Harry
• Smith & Wesson Model 57—first .41 Magnum; initiated and sponsored by Elmer Keith and others, top end premier model identical in features, fit, and finish to .44 Magnum Model 29.
• Smith & Wesson Model 58—.41 Magnum; 4-inch barrel with fixed sights; marketed as basic, entry-level police duty revolver offering greater power than .38/.357 revolvers when using a reduced power .41 Magnum police load.
• Smith & Wesson Model 610
• Smith & Wesson Model 625—used by Jerry Miculek in .45 ACP to set the world record for 12 rounds (with one reload) on target in 2.99 seconds

X-Frame

• Smith & Wesson Model 500
• Smith & Wesson Model 460XVR

Z-Frame

• Smith & Wesson Governor