Smith & Wesson Pre-Model 29 – The .44 Magnum – RARE 4IN BBL! 5-Screw 1956

This is a no-reserve penny auction for a Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum "Pre-Model 29" double-action revolver chambered in .44 Magnum. Serial number- S153352. Manufactured in 1956. This Smith was one of only several hundred 4" models produced in those first years, while the bulk of the first thousands produced sported the heavy, ribbed 6½" barrel.

Features include:
RARE 4" barrel,
All matching serial numbers
Pre-Lock
Early 5-Screw version.
Pinned barrel
Recessed cylinder.

The Smith and Wesson .44 Magnum has a distinctly American backstory. Introduced to much fanfare in 1955 as the "most powerful handgun in the world." The .44 Mag. was a dramatic leap ahead of the previous record holder, the .357 Mag. The revolver now known as the Model 29 was introduced simply as "the .44 Magnum," and it was a premium product in every respect. Collectors and shooters alike are deeply passionate about the early "Pre-Model 29" .44 Magnum N-frames. There is something undeniably special about them, and the prices reflect this, with the early revolvers selling for double or triple of what a later sample brings. Smith & Wesson made a relatively small number of the early revolvers before deleting the upper sideplate screw, making the .44 a "four screw" rather than the original five. A short time later, in 1957, the factory adopted model numbers, with the .44 Magnum becoming the Model 29.

Legendary gun writer Elmer Keith lobbied aggressively for what became the .44 Mag. cartridge for many years, and he had this to say in the 1966 printing of his definitive book Sixguns: "The [Magnum] was a masterpiece, both as to accuracy and careful fitting and sighting. In fact, I consider it the finest product of the Smith & Wesson factory."