Smith & Wesson Model 10

Smith & Wesson 1905 4th change 1915 Target model. "NRA" Slow Fire at 25 yards.The hammer was added later and is in the general form of the King Gun Shop modification usually intended for the timed and rapid fire portions of the NRA course.

The .38 S&W Military & Police Model of 1905 4th Change, introduced 1915, incorporated a passive hammer block and enlarged service sights that quickly became a standard across the service revolver segment of the industry. The M&P revolver was issued in large numbers during World War I, where it proved itself to be a highly reliable and accurate weapon. Although WWI saw the rise of semi-automatic pistols, revolvers such as the M&P were used in vast numbers as semi-automatic handgun production at the time wasn't sufficient to meet the demand.

After the War, the M&P would become the standard issue police sidearm for the next 70 years. It would also become very popular with civilian shooters, with several new models being made, including the first snubnosed 2-, 2.5- and 3-inch barrel models being made in 1936.[3][6]

The S&W M&P military revolvers produced from 1942 to 1944 had serial numbers with a "V" prefix, and were known as the "Smith & Wesson Victory Model". Early Victory Models did not always have the V prefix. During World War II 590,305[7] of these revolvers were supplied to the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa under the Lend-Lease program, chambered in the British .38/200 caliber already in use in the Enfield No 2 Mk I Revolver and the Webley Mk IV Revolver. Most Victory Models sent to Britain were fitted with 4-inch or 5-inch barrels, although a few early versions had 6-inch barrels.[8][9] The 5-inch barrel was standard production after 4 April 1942. The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) supplied thousands of these revolvers to resistance forces. Thousands of Victory Model revolvers remained in United States Army inventories following World War II for arming foreign military and security personnel.[7]

An additional 352,315[7] Victory Model revolvers chambered in the .38 Special cartridge were used by United States forces during World War II. The Victory Model was a standard-issue sidearm for United States Navy and Marine Corps aircrews and was also used by security guards at factories and defense installations throughout the United States during the war.[10] Although the latter personnel could use conventional lead bullets, Remington Arms manufactured REM UMC 38 SPL headstamped cartridges loaded with a 158 gr (10.2 g) full metal jacket bullet for military use in overseas combat zones. Tracer ammunition was manufactured for signaling purposes.[7]

Initial production of 65,000 4-inch-barreled revolvers for Navy aircrew bypassed standard procurement procedures, and quality suffered without traditional inspection procedures. Quality improved when Army ordnance inspectors became involved in early 1942, and the design was modified in 1945 to include an improved hammer block after a sailor was killed by a loaded revolver discharging when accidentally dropped onto a steel deck. Many aircrew preferred to carry the revolver rather than the heavier M1911 pistol. Pilots often preferred a shoulder holster in the confined space of a cockpit, but a hip holster was also available for security personnel.[7]

Some of these revolvers remained in service well into the 1990s with units of the United States Armed Forces, including the United States Air Force and the Coast Guard. Until the introduction of the Beretta M9 9mm pistol in 1990, U.S. Army helicopter crew members and female military police were equipped with .38 caliber Victory Model revolvers. Five-hundred revolvers with two-inch barrels were delivered on 22 August 1944[7] for Criminal Investigation Division agents. The Victory Model remained in use with Air National Guard tanker and transport crews as late as Operation Desert Storm in 1991, and with United States Navy security personnel until 1995.[11]

Some Lend-Lease Victory Model revolvers originally chambered for the British .38/200 were returned to the United States and rechambered to fire the more popular and more powerful .38 Special ammunition, and such revolvers are usually so marked on their barrels. Rechambering of .38-200 cylinders to .38 Special results in oversized chambers, which may cause problems.

Lee Harvey Oswald used a Victory Model to murder J.D. Tippit shortly after assassinating President John F. Kennedy. It was found in his possession when he was apprehended on November 22, 1963.[12]

The finish on Victory Models was typically a sandblasted and parkerized finish, which is noticeably different from the higher-quality blue or nickel/chrome finishes usually found on commercial M&P/Model 10 revolvers. Other distinguishing features of the Victory Model revolver are the lanyard loop at the bottom of the grip frame, and the use of smooth (rather than checkered) walnut grip panels. However, some early models did use a checkered grip, most notably the pre-1942 manufacture.[13]

After World War II, Smith & Wesson returned to manufacturing the M&P series. Along with cosmetic changes and replacement of the frame fitting grip with the Magna stocks, the spring-loaded hammer block safety gave way to a cam-actuated hammer block that rode in a channel in the side plate (Smith 1968). In the late 1950s, Smith & Wesson adopted the convention of using numeric designations to distinguish their various models of handguns, and the M&P was renamed the Model 10.[11]

The M&P/Model 10 has been available in both blued steel finish and nickel finish for most of its production run. The model has also been offered throughout the years with both the round butt and square butt grip patterns. Beginning with the Model 10–5 series in the late 1960s, the tapered barrel and its trademark 'half moon' front sight (as shown in the illustrations on this page) were replaced by a straight bull barrel and a sloped milled ramp front sight. Late model Model 10s are capable of handling any .38 Special cartridge produced today up to and including +P+ rounds.[11]

As of 2012 the Model 10 was available only in a 4-inch barrel model, as was its stainless steel (Inox) counterpart, the Smith & Wesson Model 64.[14] Some 6,000,000 M&P revolvers have been produced over the years, making it the most popular handgun of the 20th century.[15]

After a small prototype run of Model 10-6 revolvers in .357 Magnum caliber, Smith & Wesson introduced the Model 13 heavy barrel in carbon steel and then the Model 65 in stainless steel. Both revolvers featured varying barrel weights and lengths—generally three and four inches with and without underlugs (shrouds). Production dates begin in 1974 for the Model 13 and end upon discontinuation in 1999. The Model 65 was in production from 1972 to 1999.[3] Both the blued and stainless models were popular with police and FBI, and a variation of the Model 65 was marketed in the Lady Smith line from 1992 to 1999.

From the late 1940s to early 1960s Smith & Wesson made a Variation of the Model 10 chambered for .38 S&W called the Model 11[16] that was sent to British Commonwealth countries to supply their armies[16] and police forces. They were sent to Canada as well.