S and W 39-2

[MachIVshooter]

The 39s are great pistols, well designed and have (obviously) stood the test of time. Aside from extractor upgrades and ambidextrous decocker/safety, the 3rd Gen guns made a half century later weren't very different.

I actually don't have a 39 at this time, but do have 4 of those decendants, a 3906, 5906, 5903 & 3904, and really enjoy them! The 3904 (with the suppressor in the photo) would be most similar to the 39 with an anodized aluminum frame, blued carbon steel slide and single stack magazine.

 

[bangswitch]

I recently acquired a 9mm model 39-2. It appears to be an older weapon but in very good shape without wear on the blue and the factory box is in excellent condition with little wear on the corners. Still has original wrapping wax paper and literature sent with the weapon. The "&" sign on the slide appears to look different than what I am used to seeing but it doesn't appear to be altered ??

The & you're talking about is called a "Lazy ampersand". I can't say I've ever seen one on a semi-auto pistol, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. Well, that shows why I'm not an expert. I just checked and it turns out the one I've got has the "Lazy" Ampersand. Who knew? I look for them on revolvers, but have never thought to look at the semi's. It's just one of those neat little oddities one finds from time to time with Smith and Wesson and adds nothing to the real value of the piece. It's just neat to have, and know what it is.

Mine was made in 1970. I was a junior in High School that year.

The "lazy ampersand started disappearing from handguns around 1972-73, and the "A" SN prefix started in 1970 for the M39 and ended around 1982 with the end of M39 production, so you both have guns in the early "A" range and late "lazy ampersand" range. I'm not nearly as knowledgeable on the semiautos as I am the revolvers (and by no means an expert on those), but the lazy "&" is one of the features I look for as a matter of interest when shopping for an older revolver.
Cajun, you and I must be close in age, I was also a junior in HS in 1970-71. I once had a M459, a descendent of the M39. It was a nice pistol, wish I'd kept it.

 

[CajunBass]

Cajun, you and I must be close in age, I was also a junior in HS in 1970-71. I once had a M459, a descendent of the M39. It was a nice pistol, wish I'd kept it.

Probably so. I should have been a senior that year actually, but I flunked the 3rd grade when a teacher talked my mother into holding me back for a year because she didn't like my handwriting. My mother said she regreted that for years. Didn't matter to me. I spent most of that second year of 3rd grade reading anything I could get my hands on including the encyclopedia. And my handwriting still is mistaken for a doctors a lot.

There was a 459 at my LGS this morning. I thought about it...

 

[John Stimson]

The Tripartite Conference in November 1952 recommended the United States, Great Britain and Canada standardize the 9mm Parabellum cartridge for use with a handgun. In addition, the Tripartite Conference further recommended the countries involved seek a new, lighter and cheaper handgun to fire the new round of ammunition. In May 1952 the U. S. Army tested various types of lightweight pistols and revolvers to determine their
suitability for use by the Army Field Forces. On 30 March 1953 the Army recommended the Colt Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911A1, be reclassified as limited standard, and the Colt Automatic Pistol, 9mm Commander Model, Lightweight be standardized for Army Field Force use. This recommendation was disapproved when the Secretary of the Army cancelled the development of a lightweight pistol because of the present number of caliber .45 pistols on hand.

The High Standard pistol was the T-3 and was actually developed in 1952 under contract (DA-19-059-ORD-25) to the Army to the following specifications:

a. The semi-automatic pistol shall not weight more than twenty-nine (29) ounces with the magazine, without the cartridges.
b. The over-all length shall not exceed seven and one half (7-1/2) inches, which length shall be measured parallel to the axis of the bore.
c. The Pistols, which the Contractor shall endeavor to fabricate hereunder, shall be capable of firing the 9mm Parabellum cartridge using barrels which shall be fabricated to Remington special chamber and rifling specifications.
d. The magazine capacity shall be 7 to 10 rounds in Single Row.
e. The trigger shall be double action and similar to the previous T3 Pistols.
f. The design shall be such that the Pistol may be fired with mittened hand.
g. The Pistol shall function in temperature from minus 65 F and 165 F, and the Pistol shall also function satisfactorily, using either the 9mm or Caliber .34 barrel and ammunition respectively.
h. The Pistol shall be capable of being field stripped without the use of any tools.

The T-3 was developed over three contracts beginning in 1948 and the first was a single column. The second from about 1950 was a double column version and the third was from 1952 and was a single column. There was a preminimary gun followed by four in the first design, 4 in the second design and 4 of the third design. This is the third T-3 design S/N 4. The other three are in the Springfield Armory Museum



There was also probably 4 frames that were made incorrectly for the double column at least two of which are partly assembled but not complete or usable.

Colt got a contract for a T-4 n 1948 but did not progress beyond first prototypes.