nsmikeJuly 15, 2005, 08:37 PM
The gun used by Clint Eastwood in the movie was put together out of spare parts. The only thing about it that is not Mod 29 specification is the serial number. The serial number will come back as a model 57 because thats what they had at the time. They took an, in the white frame, from the model 57 line and made it into a Model 29 with all markings appropriate for a 29. I hope this clears things up.
Mike
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BluesBearJuly 16, 2005, 05:54 AM
Clears things up? Hell's Bells™, it's looking more and more like Brown-25™ to me.
The serial number will come back as a model 57 because thats what they had at the time. WFT? :scrutiny:
S&W doesn't assign serial numbers to a specific model number. Only to a particular frame size. Pay the money for a letter form Mr Jinks and you'll find the serial number will "come back" to whatever model it was made as.
Are you seriously saying that the Dirty Harry movie guns have frames stamped Model 57 instead of 29-2?
A mismarked factory production S&W revolver is a collector's dream. But these guns (if they existed) would, by now, be infamous amongst S&W collectors.
S&W revolvers are NOT produced in sequential order with regard to serial numbers. It's quite common to find a S&W with a certain serial number that was made months or even years before another S&W with a LOWER serial number. For example the first Model 57 produced had a serial number of S236941. But there are other Model 57s with lower serial numbers.
They took an, in the white frame, from the model 57 line and made it into a Model 29 with all markings appropriate for a 29.So which is it? A 57 or a 29?
If all markings were "appropriate for a 29" then the frame will be stamped 29-2 and it will "come back" as a Model 29.
There's no such thing as an "in the white" Model 57 frame. Such a creature would have been an "in the white" N-frame. In regard to the Target N-frame only the model 27 frame would have been different while "in the white" because prior to blueing the top strap was checkered.
Don't you think these "facts" that you have stated would show up somewhere else instead of only as Internet misconceptions?
Don't you think some mention might have been made of these anomalies in The History of Smith & Wesson by Roy Jinks or The Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson by Jim Supica & Richard Nahas?
If I could confirm the serial numbers of the real Harry Callahan revolvers I'd pay the fees for the bloody factory letters myself.
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nsmikeJuly 16, 2005, 03:14 PM
The gun is a Model 29 its serial number is whithin the range of serial numbers assigned to Model 57s. If you add or subtract 1 it will come back as a Model 57 because Smith & Wesson was making 57s at the time. The only relationship that Harry's gun has to a Model 57 is that the in the in the white frame came out of a batch that was used to make model 57s. All rumors that it was a Model 57 can be traced back to the frame coming from the model 57 assembly line.
Mike
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thatguyJuly 16, 2005, 04:05 PM
It is my understanding that S&W did not assign serial numbers to specific models. I have seen two S&Ws of different models with consecutive numbers. I have also seen maybe 25 S&Ws with the wrong model number stamped on the frame. This happens when frames are not assigned to a specific model and the worker accidentally uses the wrong model stamp.
Note in The Stadard Catalog of S&W the author lists the serial number range for the "Registered Magnum" as 45768-62489 with 5,500 made. That's almost 17,000 numbers and only a third were assigned to the RMs. The book clearly states that these guns were numbered "within the .44 Hand Ejector Series." So all the N frame made at that time used serial numbers from that range. No numbers were assigned to any one model except in very rare cases.
The gun in Dirty Harry was a regular production M29-2. Everyone involved with the movie says so and I don't understand why it's still being debated. Any mention, ANY, of a Model 57 in Dirty Harry is a myth.
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BluesBearJuly 16, 2005, 04:24 PM
All rumors that it was a Model 57 can be traced back to the frame coming from the model 57 assembly line. See, even you admit it's a rumor. Disregarding that, it's painfully obvious you are ignorant as to how Smith & Wesson production was done in that era.
Forget that "add one - subtract one" horsehocky. S&W drew from the same frame lot for Models 25/27/28/29/57. S&W made NO attempt to sort them by model or to use them in numerical order.
Imagine if you will, we all know you have a vivid imagination, a huge box of frames, with several people just reaching in a grabbing one whenever they needed one.
It's extremely rare to find two S&W revolvers of the same model with consecutive serial numbers. Ask Roy Jinks, the S&W historian, if you don't believe me (or anyone else on this forum).
*Brown-25™ ©1974 The Groove Tube
http://ia.imdb.com/media/imdb/01/I/17/6 ... oilRobJuly 16, 2005, 06:35 PM
I remember seeing Dirty Harry for the first time in the base theater at Camp LeJeune back in '76. It was totally cool to me until he stakes out the bad-guy on the roof with a .458 Winchester! What a DORK! Obviously, the people writing the movie went to the Biggest and Baddest when they spec'd out things, not what would actually work the best.
And, that was the moment I placed Dirty Harry in the 'Entertainment' catagory and out of the 'To be taken seriously' one.
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lbmiiJuly 16, 2005, 06:43 PM
The 458 fit the personality of Dirty Harry though. Today Dirty Harry would use a Barret 50.
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Wil TerryJuly 16, 2005, 06:51 PM
I own a M29-2 6" S&W sixgun in 41MAGNUM. It came right outta the box that way. S&W Wanted it back to make a " real M29 out of it " but I turned 'em down as it shoot too well as is to go messing with it.
