The frames of the Perfected were the same as the frames of the 3rd Model Single Shots, sometimes known as the Perfected Target Pistol. The 3rd Model Single shot was made from 1909 until 1923. Just a few years longer than the Perfected Models. As with the Perfected, the third model single shot could be fired either single action or double action, but I don't know why a serious target shooter would want to fire a single shot double action.
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The lockwork of the Perfected model was identical to the 3rd Model Single Shot.
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Except there was no hand on the single shot. But it was the same trigger, you can even see where the hand would have fit into the trigger.
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The 32 Hand Ejector 1st Model had quite a different lockwork.
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The 32 HE was the first S&W made with a side swinging cylinder in 1896. But S&W had not quite perfected the Hand Ejector mechanism yet. The 32 HE 1st Model hearkened back to the Tip Ups with the bolt in the top strap, actuated by a rounded wedge on the top of the hammer.
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The 32 HE 1st Model worked just like the old Tip Ups. The rounded rear of the wedge raised the bolt as the hammer was cocked. When the hammer fell, the sharp front edge of the wedge split the split spring under the bolt, keeping the bolt engaged as the hammer fell.
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As to why the Perfected Model was developed, the standard story is that a bad guy could reach forward and lift the latch of a Top Break, causing the gun to open and rendering it temporarily useless. The story is that enough shooters complained about this that the Perfected was developed, so no bad guy could open the gun. Of course it would take somebody pretty gutsy to try that lift the latch trick. I have read that somewhere in the S&W archives there is actually a letter to Daniel Wesson complaining about this 'feature' of the Top Breaks. This explanation may make sense since Daniel Wesson did not die until 1906.
Personally, I always thought the Perfected Model was really dumb. Then I found one. Then I found another......................
They're kind of like candy. Once you start you can't stop.