Driftwood Johnson
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In the 19th Century Smith and Wesson produced five distinct models of revolvers on their large '#3' Top Break frame; The American Model, the Russian Model, The Schofield, the New Model #3, and the Double Action 44. The Double Action 44, also known as the New Model Navy No. 3, was the only large frame double action Top Break model they ever produced.
Introduced in 1881 the DA 44 was first chambered for the 44 Russian cartridge. Later variations were chambered for other calibers such as 44-40 and 38-40. These versions required a longer cylinder than the cylinder in the original 44 Russian model. The Wesson Favorite was a special lightened variation of the 44 DA, there were only about 1000 of these produced. Although cataloged from 1881 until 1913, all frames were produced prior to 1899, so all versions are considered antiques.
Never a big seller, the production run for the 44 Russian version was 53,590. The 44-40 version was called the 44 Double Action Frontier and there were 15,340 of these produced. The 38-40 variation was called the 38 Winchester Double Action and there were only 276 of these produced.
A very distinctive looking gun, the 44 Double Action is easily identified by its large squared off trigger guard and intricately shaped trigger. Another distinctive feature of this model is the unusual lockup system for the cylinder. There are pairs of locking notches on the cylinder, the one in front is engaged by a nub at the front of the trigger, the one to the rear is engaged by the bolt. There are large vertical clearance slots cut into the cylinder in line with the front set of locking notches.
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Last Saturday I was at a gunshow and this beauty was in the first row of dealers I came to. Needless to say, it came home with me.
A Nickel plated 44 Double Action Target Model, 44 Russian caliber, 6 1/2" barrel. SN 283XX. The dealer had lettered it and he gave me the letter when I bought the gun. The letter says it left the factory on August 16, 1895. It shipped to M. W. Robinson of NYC, S&W's oldest distributor.
I must admit, I was so excited about finding a nice 44DA like this that at first I did not even notice it is a scarce target model until the dealer pointed that out to me. He was very friendly; he was a fellow S&W collector, and he recognized a kindred spirit. He told me he had bought it from a retired S&W employee. When I asked if he could do better on the price, which was quite reasonable to begin with, he took a bunch of money off it and the deal was sealed.
The grips are pristine. And yes, they bear the same SN as the gun.
There were some minor rust colored stains on it when I got it, but that all came off with a little bit of elbow grease, without damaging the finish. What you can't see in these photos is the bore and chambers are spectacular, they look brand new. The latch locks up tight as a drum, as good as the day it left the factory.
Here are a couple of photos of the target sights. When I bought it, the rear sight was adjusted pretty far to the right. I loosened the two screws and pushed the sight back to the center.
The next day, Sunday, there was a local cowboy match. These guys are pretty lenient and they have let me shoot my other DA 44 at their matches. So of course I wanted to bring this new one along. I did not have a holster for it, so I found an old Hunter holster at the show that the gun fit into. I was low on 44 Russian ammo, so I loaded some up that night, Black Powder of course, I do not shoot Smokeless in old guns. I also took the side plate off the gun and pulled out the hammer so I could flush out all the old oil and lube it up inside with Ballistol. A pretty busy night.
Next day I brought the 'new' nickleled target gun and my other 44DA, the blued one with the dime front sight. It was a six stage match, so I put 30 rounds through each gun. What a ball! I had not even shot the new gun at paper yet, but I hit almost all the targets anyway. I will probably put it on paper at some time to see where it actually is shooting.
Just for the fun of it, here is a photo of my almost matched pair of 44 Double Actions.
In the 19th Century Smith and Wesson produced five distinct models of revolvers on their large '#3' Top Break frame; The American Model, the Russian Model, The Schofield, the New Model #3, and the Double Action 44. The Double Action 44, also known as the New Model Navy No. 3, was the only large frame double action Top Break model they ever produced.
Introduced in 1881 the DA 44 was first chambered for the 44 Russian cartridge. Later variations were chambered for other calibers such as 44-40 and 38-40. These versions required a longer cylinder than the cylinder in the original 44 Russian model. The Wesson Favorite was a special lightened variation of the 44 DA, there were only about 1000 of these produced. Although cataloged from 1881 until 1913, all frames were produced prior to 1899, so all versions are considered antiques.
Never a big seller, the production run for the 44 Russian version was 53,590. The 44-40 version was called the 44 Double Action Frontier and there were 15,340 of these produced. The 38-40 variation was called the 38 Winchester Double Action and there were only 276 of these produced.
A very distinctive looking gun, the 44 Double Action is easily identified by its large squared off trigger guard and intricately shaped trigger. Another distinctive feature of this model is the unusual lockup system for the cylinder. There are pairs of locking notches on the cylinder, the one in front is engaged by a nub at the front of the trigger, the one to the rear is engaged by the bolt. There are large vertical clearance slots cut into the cylinder in line with the front set of locking notches.
*********************
Last Saturday I was at a gunshow and this beauty was in the first row of dealers I came to. Needless to say, it came home with me.
A Nickel plated 44 Double Action Target Model, 44 Russian caliber, 6 1/2" barrel. SN 283XX. The dealer had lettered it and he gave me the letter when I bought the gun. The letter says it left the factory on August 16, 1895. It shipped to M. W. Robinson of NYC, S&W's oldest distributor.
I must admit, I was so excited about finding a nice 44DA like this that at first I did not even notice it is a scarce target model until the dealer pointed that out to me. He was very friendly; he was a fellow S&W collector, and he recognized a kindred spirit. He told me he had bought it from a retired S&W employee. When I asked if he could do better on the price, which was quite reasonable to begin with, he took a bunch of money off it and the deal was sealed.
The grips are pristine. And yes, they bear the same SN as the gun.
There were some minor rust colored stains on it when I got it, but that all came off with a little bit of elbow grease, without damaging the finish. What you can't see in these photos is the bore and chambers are spectacular, they look brand new. The latch locks up tight as a drum, as good as the day it left the factory.
Here are a couple of photos of the target sights. When I bought it, the rear sight was adjusted pretty far to the right. I loosened the two screws and pushed the sight back to the center.
The next day, Sunday, there was a local cowboy match. These guys are pretty lenient and they have let me shoot my other DA 44 at their matches. So of course I wanted to bring this new one along. I did not have a holster for it, so I found an old Hunter holster at the show that the gun fit into. I was low on 44 Russian ammo, so I loaded some up that night, Black Powder of course, I do not shoot Smokeless in old guns. I also took the side plate off the gun and pulled out the hammer so I could flush out all the old oil and lube it up inside with Ballistol. A pretty busy night.
Next day I brought the 'new' nickleled target gun and my other 44DA, the blued one with the dime front sight. It was a six stage match, so I put 30 rounds through each gun. What a ball! I had not even shot the new gun at paper yet, but I hit almost all the targets anyway. I will probably put it on paper at some time to see where it actually is shooting.
Just for the fun of it, here is a photo of my almost matched pair of 44 Double Actions.
