What did I find?

[Jeff olson]

Picked this one up this week with its identical brother (or so I thought). 14-4 made in 77. This one however is single action only. Was this a special order option in a 14-4?View attachment 945989 View attachment 945990

 

[Riomouse911]

Someone can alter the action by filing down the DA sear or by replacing internal parts to achieve the same result. I usually see a DA only modification on smaller revolvers (2-4” duty or back up types) and a SA only on larger target guns. (You’ll see an occasional DA only 6” though, LAPD was famous for neutering all sorts of revolvers for DA only-no SA shooting.)

I think there were some factory SA only Model 14’s sold back when .38 Spl. Bullseye shooting was all the rage, Driftwood Johnson will probably know much more about that than I.

Nice looking 14, I believe you can buy replacement parts and have them installed to restore DA and SA shooting if you want.

Stay safe.

 

[Rexster]

I have seen the Single-Action components available in kit form, as official S&W parts. One such kit hung in a local gun shop, for a number of years, from the mid-Eighties. I have seen pre-owned Model 14 revolvers that were Single-Action-Only. Hopefully, someone can provide an answer to the question of whether this option was available in an original, as-delivered revolver.

 

[Riomouse911]

If it is a factory SA only gun don’t alter it, they were really uncommon.

Stay safe.

 

[adcoch1]

Justa broken revolver you should probably get rid of. I'll take it off your hands for a few bucks... Just kidding, you may actually have something special there... It looks nice no matter what mods it has.

 

[UncleEd]

Special S&W issue for bullseye shooting when
.38 still comprised one of the disciplines. By
making it SA only, the cocking of the hammer
was much easier on those guns so a shooter
didn't disturb his sight picture for a followup shot.

You'll notice that in "DA" you can cycle the cylinder
but the hammer does not move.

One advantage the Colts had with their "V" spring
mechanism is that it was always easier to thumb cock
the gun than a Smith. Hence, the SA only Smith
Model 14 was that company's answer to promote
its target model over Colt's, such as the Officer's
model.

Note also the OP's model shown has the target trigger
and hammer to facilitate SA shooting.

 

[Pat Riot]

I was thinking “Bummer! Gotta fix that.” until I read responses to your OP.

Interesting. I learn something today. Thanks Gentlemen.

I found this when doing a search - look under “Variants”.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_&_Wesson_Model_14

 

[Riomouse911]

I did notice the smoothness and ease of cocking the Colt Officers Model heavy barrel revolver I bought earlier this year. That is a really light SA cocking stroke for sure, but it was modified for Bullseye when I got it so I don’t know what a non modified Colt is like.

It makes perfect sense that Colts #1 competition for .38 bullseye shooters would create a revolver with that SA only feature to give shooters a choice between them.

Stay safe.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Picked this one up this week with its identical brother (or so I thought). 14-4 made in 77. This one however is single action only. Was this a special order option in a 14-4?View attachment 945989 View attachment 945990

Check the sticker on the end of the box- it may have a note to the effect that it is a single action model.

Regardless, it is a beautiful 14!

 

[Rod47]

Nice gun. Too bad about the front sight.

 

[Riomouse911]

Nice gun. Too bad about the front sight.

Looks sorta like a Patridge style front sight that’s hidden under the waxed paper. OP is the sight ok?

Stay safe.

 

[Jeff olson]

View attachment 946051 View attachment 946052 View attachment 946053 Sight looks fine to me. I also have the original purchase receipt. I have no doubt it was delivered new as SA. Not sure about the box though

 

[walnut1704]

Sight looks fine to me.....

I've seen these now and then over the...decades... While rare that doesn't seem to translate into higher prices for some reason. I see them linger unsold at times. They made an awful lot of Model 14's. Still an attractive option to us shooters. But most would prefer a standard model to shoot and shooters are unlikely to pay a premium for the SAO. A collector might, if he collects K-frame .38's but most collectors concentrate on the less common stuff. But hey, shoot the heck out of it.

 

[Redcoat3340]

I'd take this thread over to the S&W Forum...you'll get a bunch of responses and I know the folks there would love to see the gun just for curiosity sake. Don't be shy, it's one of the friendliest, most knowledgeable bunch around.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/forum.php

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

I think there were some factory SA only Model 14’s sold back when .38 Spl. Bullseye shooting was all the rage, Driftwood Johnson will probably know much more about that than I.

You are giving me a bit more credit than I deserve. I only know what the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson says about it.

"Model 14: The K-38 Masterpiece Single Action

Caliber: .38 S&W Special*. As described above but deletion of internal parts allows single action only. Pulling the trigger only rotates the cylinder but does not lift the hammer. Available with wide or standard width hammer and trigger. Manufactured c. 1961-1982."

This is a Model 17, not a Model 14, but except for the Model 14 being a centerfire vs a rimfire Model 17, the lockwork is the same. The upper arrow is pointing to the Double Action Sear. It is a spring loaded, lever pinned to the hammer. The lower arrow is pointing to the Double Action Sear Strut on the trigger. Normally, when the trigger is pulled double action, the Double Action Sear Strut on the trigger shoves the Double Action Sear up, pushing the hammer back. At some point the strut will slip off the sear, and the hammer will fall. As the hammer falls the Double Action Sear is shoved back into the hammer, allowing the hammer to fall all the way. This happens if the trigger is pulled double action or if the hammer is cocked single action and the trigger releases the hammer to fall. In either case, the Double Action Sear is shoved out of the way, but pops back ready for the next double action shot. I suspect all S&W had to do to make the Model 14 a single action only revolver was to eliminate the Double Action Sear from the hammer assembly. Then pulling the trigger double action would cause the hand to rise and rotate the cylinder, but the hammer would not move.






I have a bunch of old dealer pricing guides going back many years. The guide from 1961 shows the K-38 Masterpiece Single Action (Model 14) selling for $90.00, the K-38 Masterpiece (Model 14) (the regular model) selling for $81.00. I seem to remember kits were available to turn a standard Model 14 into a single action only model 14. Probably just a hammer without the Double Action Sear, I don't know if a new trigger was supplied or not.




*When they say 38 S&W Special that is the same as 38 Special, S&W just wants every body to remember they developed the cartridge.






The same with 44 Special.

 

[Rod47]

The sight looks correct now that I look closer. Sorry, it is a very nice example of a classic target revolver from days gone by.

 

[Riomouse911]

The sight looks correct now that I look closer. Sorry, it is a very nice example of a classic target revolver from days gone by.

At first glance I thought the front sight had been ground a bit myself... like the old M&P half moon sights that got the grinder treatment back in the day.

Stay safe.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

Howdy Again

Model 14-3. The Patridge front sight was standard on target revolvers at this time. This one left the factory in 1974. The front sight blade and ramp on this revolver is a separate piece, pinned to the barrel rib. If you look very closely you can see the pin below the ramp. The rear of the blade was vertical, sometimes slightly undercut, to prevent reflections. Nothing fancy, no red plastic inserts, no high visibility stuff, just a simple blade you centered in the rear sight notch.






The Patridge front sight and ramp on this K-38 from 1950 is also separate piece pinned to the barrel rib.






K-38 Combat Masterpiece Baughman front sight. This revolver left the factory in 1953. This was the other style of front sight S&W was using at the time. Sometimes called the 'quick draw' sight. This revolver with it's 4" barrel is the predecessor of the Model 15. It was called 'combat' because the idea was with the shorter barrel it would be more commonly carried by a police officer than the revolver with the 6" barrel. The front sight was designed so it could be smoothly drawn from leather without getting snagged on the leather. This front sight is pinned to the barrel with two pins.

 

[Riomouse911]

You are giving me a bit more credit than I deserve. I only know what the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson says about it.

"Model 14: The K-38 Masterpiece Single Action

Caliber: .38 S&W Special*. As described above but deletion of internal parts allows single action only. Pulling the trigger only rotates the cylinder but does not lift the hammer. Available with wide or standard width hammer and trigger. Manufactured c. 1961-1982."

This is a Model 17, not a Model 14, but except for the Model 14 being a centerfire vs a rimfire Model 17, the lockwork is the same. The upper arrow is pointing to the Double Action Sear. It is a spring loaded, lever pinned to the hammer. The lower arrow is pointing to the Double Action Sear Strut on the trigger. Normally, when the trigger is pulled double action, the Double Action Sear Strut on the trigger shoves the Double Action Sear up, pushing the hammer back. At some point the strut will slip off the sear, and the hammer will fall. As the hammer falls the Double Action Sear is shoved back into the hammer, allowing the hammer to fall all the way. This happens if the trigger is pulled double action or if the hammer is cocked single action and the trigger releases the hammer to fall. In either case, the Double Action Sear is shoved out of the way, but pops back ready for the next double action shot. I suspect all S&W had to do to make the Model 14 a single action only revolver was to eliminate the Double Action Sear from the hammer assembly. Then pulling the trigger double action would cause the hand to rise and rotate the cylinder, but the hammer would not move.

View attachment 946103




I have a bunch of old dealer pricing guides going back many years. The guide from 1961 shows the K-38 Masterpiece Single Action (Model 14) selling for $90.00, the K-38 Masterpiece (Model 14) (the regular model) selling for $81.00. I seem to remember kits were available to turn a standard Model 14 into a single action only model 14. Probably just a hammer without the Double Action Sear, I don't know if a new trigger was supplied or not.




*When they say 38 S&W Special that is the same as 38 Special, S&W just wants every body to remember they developed the cartridge.

View attachment 946104




The same with 44 Special.

View attachment 946105

Naw, if anyone would know the innards of an uncommon Smith I figured you would. Your posts are as informative as any I’ve seen .


Stay safe.

 

[StrawHat]

The only way to determine if that revolver left the factory as a Single Action, is to get a letter from Roy Jinks. He used to be employed by S&W as the company historian.

Kevin

 

[Dudemeister]

This front sight is pinned to the barrel with two pins.

View attachment 946120

when I first saw this, I looked at mine 1950 K38 and I couldn't see any pinning. But then I looked with a loupe, and you can clearly see the pins, but they are not rounded head like yours, or the one holding the barrel, on mine they have been ground flush with the barrel rib.

 

[GooseGestapo]

My first S&W revolver, I bought in 1977, was a single action .38 spl Model 14 as the op has.
They can be converted to double action with correct parts. I have a M14 that was originally a SA, but was badly abused. I sent it to the old S&W Performance Center in 1998 and had a 4” Heavy barrel and double action trigger work installed. In return for the work and refinishing, they offered to let me have the work in return for the 6” pencil barrel.

The lock work, fit, and function of the rebuilt gun was exquisite. At the 1999 NPSC, I took second place in the Service Revolver match and earlier in year held the National record for the service revolver match till Phil Hemphill shot the current record. He beat me by 2x’s at the Nationals.

The older model’s of SA 14’s have a funky up turned hammer. I still have mine in a parts box.

OP, the front sight is also correct. You have a real GEM!.

 

[BigBlue 94]

Hmm now you have me wondering about my 14-4. It looks the exact same as the OPs. Not sure if DA or SA only... Maybe i should check. I know my grandpa used to dabble in some bullseye.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

The older model’s of SA 14’s have a funky up turned hammer. I still have mine in a parts box.

Howdy Again

A little background. All Smith and Wesson double action revolver hammers rotate back farther when they are cocked single action than when the trigger is pulled double action. That is the nature of the design. When the double action sear strut on the trigger slips off the double action sear on the hammer, the hammer has not rotated back as far as it does when the hammer is cocked single action.

This is the hammer of a Model 17-3 from 1975. The upper arrow is pointing to the spring loaded Double Action Sear. The tiny notch the lower arrow is pointing to is the single action cocking notch.






In this photo of the same Model 17-3, the hammer is cocked. The upper arrow is pointing to the Double Action Sear. Notice it is in its normal 'popped out' position because the Double Action Sear Strut on the trigger has slipped off and allowed the Double Action Sear to pop up. If the trigger had been being pulled, the hammer would have fallen a teeny bit before it reached the full cock position. The lower arrow is pointing to where the single action cocking notch is on the hammer, but it is obscured by the hand.






With the early Smith and Wesson Double Action revolvers, the full cock position of the hammer was considerably further back than the position the hammer would be in when the Double Action Sear popped of the trigger and allowed the hammer to fall. S&W realized that since the hammer spring was bent enough at the double action release point to fire a primer, there was no point forcing the hammer back farther for single action cocking. The 38 M&P Target Model at the bottom of this photo left the factory in 1917. Notice how much farther back the angle of the hammer is than the Model 14-3 that left the factory in 1974. By altering the internal geometry of the relationship of the hammers and triggers, S&W was able to make the hammer go just a teeny bit farther back at the single action cocking position than on the earlier models. This made double action shooting a little bit easier, the hammer spring did not have to be bent quite so much as with the older models. The hammer on the Model 17 at the top of the photo is sometimes called the Short Throw or Short Action hammer, because it does not need to rock back quite as far as the earlier design.






Getting back to the original point. This is a typical hammer on an early S&W revolver. This one happens to be on a 38 M&P from 1939.






Here is the short throw hammer on the Model 14-3 from 1974.






This is the 'funky upturned hammer' on the K-38 from 1950 pictured above. This was the first version of the short throw hammers. It is sometimes called a Speed Hammer. I don't have exact dates, but this K-38 is from 1950, I have another one from 1957 with the same style of hammer. At some point, the modern version, pictured above, replaced the Speed Hammer.

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

Hmm now you have me wondering about my 14-4. It looks the exact same as the OPs. Not sure if DA or SA only... Maybe i should check. I know my grandpa used to dabble in some bullseye.

Make sure it is unloaded, then pull the trigger double action. It will tell you. If the cylinder turns and the hammer falls, it is a standard version. If the cylinder turns but the hammer does not move, it is the Single Action version. I don't have production numbers, but I suspect there were nowhere near as many Single Action Model 14s made as there were the standard version.