Grail gun for me - 1949 Combat Masterpiece

[jmace57]

Just wanted to brag a bit. I just received today this 1949 Combat Masterpiece (Target Masterpiece?). I bought a pair of diamond grips for it, but sorta like the (fake) mother of pearl...although my wife walked in and said "oh, you got a pimp gun". I have been wanting one of these and can't wait to go shoot it. It came with the basketweave holster.

 

[Guillermo]

target masterpiece

(the combat has the 4 inch barrel)

Great gun

Congratulations

 

[Radagast]

What G said.

 

[Fotno]

I have a much younger Combat Masterpiece (1971 Mod.15), and it's my favorite handgun. I imagine you're gonna really enjoy your trips to the range with this old gal. Congrats.

 

[aarondhgraham]

Actually,,,

In every book I have read on S&W,,,
They say the correct nomenclature for the 6" model was simply "Masterpiece".

The word target was never part of it's official name.

If you look at the original boxes,,,
They said "Masterpiece"

This goes for the .38 and .22 versions.

It's no big deal,,,
Just saying what I've read.

BTW,,,
Sweet revolver,,,
Are your "pearl" grips Israeli?

I purchased a used S&W Model 36 a few months back,,,
It too had those old "Mother of Toilet Seat" grips,,,
They were marked as being "Made in Israel".

Aarond

.

 

[Iggy]

That is a dandy. You are gonna love the K-22. The only problem is, you aren't gonna have any excuses for misses on your targets.

I have one for each of the 3 grand kids when they are old enough to have them and a matching K-38 when they are ready to move up to a center fire.

 

[jmace57]

Aarond - they were identified as "Jay Scott pearl" grips. They are obviously a synthetic, but not bad looking. It is a trick of the light or something in the pictures that make it look like the grips don't fit well, but they are a pretty close match.

Thanks all for your comments and observations. Beautiful guns Iggy!

Jim

 

[jhvaughan2]

the correct nomenclature for the 6" model was simply "Masterpiece".
The word target was never part of it's official name.

This.

 

[Drail]

As long as those pearl grips are on there your wife is right, it IS a pimp gun. I could maybe live with ivory but not that "mother of toilet seat" plastic. That is a beautiful piece of the gunmaker's art though.

 

[Guillermo]

While I am not arguing, I am looking at page 180 of the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson, 3rd Edition.

It says under the title Model 14: K38 Target Masterpiece

"double action revolver built on the square butt K frame with five screws. This model is continued from the postwar K-38 Target Masterpiece:"

 

[Radagast]

IIRC at least some gold boxes from the 1946-1965 era had a Target Masterpiece label.

 

[jmace57]

For you drail - de-pimped. Better? ; )

 

[Zeabed]

Congrats, I have a Combat Masterpiece dated 1955, in nickel plating. Just got it some Pachmayr wraparounds as the diamond grips that came with it are not ideal (for me) for shooting.

 

[jhvaughan2]

While I am not arguing, I am looking at page 180 of the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson, 3rd Edition.

It says under the title Model 14: K38 Target Masterpiece

"double action revolver built on the square butt K frame with five screws. This model is continued from the postwar K-38 Target Masterpiece:"

SCSW is a key contributor to these misnomers. It also calls revolvers "pre-xxx". Nothing was named "pre-" anything. "pre" and "Target Masterpiece" are terms that came into play after something else was named.

Roy Jinks' book on the history of S&W is more precise. There was the .38 M&P, & .38 M&P Target. The improvement was the ".38 Masterpiece" (and .22 Masterpiece, and .32 Masterpiece") It wasn't till later when the ".38 Combat Masterpiece" was released that "we" felt we had to add "Target" to the original masterpiece.

Kind of like the .45 Colt. Its name was the ".45 Colt Government". After the .45 ACP became the government cartridge, and we got the .32 long colt .38 long colt; the original became the .45 Long Colt.

 

[Guillermo]

Roy Jinks' book on the history of S&W is more precise.

certainly he is a renowned historian.

if the gun in question was never called a "target masterpiece" certainly the misinformation is widespread.

I noticed the NRA museum refers to it with the same nomenclature.

http://www.nramuseum.org/the-museum/the-galleries/the-new-prosperity/case-47-camp-perry/smith-wesson-model-14-target-masterpiece.aspx

 

[Radagast]

Jim Supica is a curator at the NRA Museum and the one of the authors of SCSW.
That being said, I stand by my statement of having see a pic of a gold box labeled Target Masterpiece.

 

[SaxonPig]

I am told by serious collectors that S&W never used the term Target Masterpiece. Others have, but not S&W. It was simply the K38 Masterpiece and when the short barrel version came out in 1949 at the request of cops who wanted the same target quality revolver in a size better suited for holster wear it was dubbed the Combat Masterpiece.

That's what the serious collectors say. I say call it whatever you want.

But lose the cheesy Jay Scoot plastic stocks with the wood backing. Worst looking things ever inflicted on the gun owning public.

 

[Guillermo]

"Masterpiece Target" could easily be read as "Target Masterpiece"

Or perhaps it was just "vernacular".



Personally I don't care. Smith never called their short barreled guns "snubbies" but it is a perfectly good term for them that everyone understands.

I do, however, appreciate the quest for accuracy.

 

[HOOfan_1]

but sorta like the (fake) mother of pearl...although my wife walked in and said "oh, you got a pimp gun".

George S. Patton would be proud of her. Or at least George C. Scott as Patton would be.

 

[Guillermo]

They're ivory. Only a pimp from a cheap New Orleans whorehouse would carry a pearl-handled pistol.

George C. Scott as George S. Patton

 

[mec]

A model 19-3 from the 1970s is like a k38 masterpiece with an underlug. This is an unusually good group for me

A K-22 from 1947. It has a pre-war ejector rod head and 1/10th" sights.

 

[mec]

and this is a Military and Police (k-frame) target model that was sent to an ammunition concern in Buenos Aires on May 27, 1929. The hammer and action job were done after the gun left the factory.