Smith & Wesson No.3 revolver
Smith & Wesson Model 3 (English: Smith & Wesson Model 3), or Smith & Wesson No. 3 (English: Smith & Wesson No. 3) is a single-action trigger, center-folding loading revolver produced by the American firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson from 1870 to 1915.
There are many variants and sub-derivatives of this revolver, one of which is called the "Russian Model" and was produced to meet the needs of the Russian Empire (the Russian Imperial Army 41,000 .44 caliber No. 3 revolvers were ordered in 1871).
Another version known as the "Schofield" was personally modified by Major George W. Schofield to meet the needs of cavalry and named after him. Later, Smith & Wesson absorbed the designs of the above two derivatives and developed the 1875 model, which was renamed "Major" in order to plan to use this modification to win more military orders.
The standard calibers of the Smith & Wesson No. 3 are .44 Russian and .44 Samp; W American, and there is no information about the caliber of the pistol engraved on the gun. Later, Smith & Wesson introduced a variety of different caliber versions, including: .44 Henry? Rimfire, .44-40, .32-44, .38-44, and .45 Schofield.
The No. 3 revolver has also been imitated by many countries. Countries that have imitated this pistol include: Belgium, Germany, the Russian Empire and Spain.
In recent years, gun factories such as Smith & Wesson, Armi San Marco and Uberti have begun to reproduce this pistol through reproduction methods.
Type? Center-folding revolver
Origin United States
Service record
Service period 1869-1915
Participate in wars/conflicts
North American Indian Wars
Russian-Turkish War (1877-1878)
Northwestern Rebellion
Spanish-American War
Philippine-American War
Russian-Japanese War
World War I
Russian Civil War
Production history?
Developed by Smith & Wesson
Manufacturer by Smith & Wesson
Basic specifications
p>Weight 1.3 kg
Length 305 mm
Barrel length 165 mm
Bullet
.44 Russian ammunition
.44 Samp; W American
.38 Samp; W
.32 Samp; W
Block? Single-action Trigger
Firing mode: continuous fire
Muzzle velocity 244 m/s
Ammunition supply method: 6-round magazine
Sight V Type rear sight and front sight
Russian model
In order to meet special orders from the Russian Empire, Smith & Wesson produced a large number of No. 3 revolvers, and these pistols all had three different versions. The first version was a model produced according to the original order, the second version was a model improved by Russian ordnance inspectors, and the last version was a final revision using Russian designs.
Later, the Russian Imperial government invited a large number of engineers and gunsmiths to reverse-engineer a large number of imitation Smith & Wesson No. 3 pistols, and the local Tula Arsenal was responsible for production.
However, due to the underdeveloped industry in Russia at the time, the authorities commissioned manufacturers in Germany and many European countries to produce these revolvers.
This nearly bankrupted Smith & Wesson, the original supplier that developed the gun.
The imitation No. 3 revolvers produced in Russia and across Europe are usually of very high quality, but are much cheaper than the original ones. Due to these factors, the Russian Imperial Government canceled orders for Smith & Wesson revolvers (some of which had already been produced) and delayed or refused to pay for pistols already delivered to the troops.
Schofield Revolver
The U.S. Army adopted the .44 Samp; W American caliber Smith & Wesson No. 3 revolver in 1870, making it the first The first service pistol in American history to fire metal-cased fixed ammunition.
At that time, military revolvers loaded with black powder were still the mainstream equipment in some countries. These pistols had many shortcomings, such as slow loading speed, complex structure, and vulnerability to wet weather.
In 1875, the U.S. Ordnance Bureau awarded Smith & Wesson a contract to equip the army with Major George W. Schofield's improved No. 3 revolver (known as the Scofield). Field revolver), which was designed to allow the pistol to fire the .45 Colt cartridge that has become the standard ammunition of the U.S. Army.
However, Smith & Wesson used this pistol to fire its own .45 caliber bullet, which is .45 Schofield bullet (or: .45 Samp; W). This bullet Slightly shorter than the .45 Colt round. Later on the battlefield, soldiers discovered that this ammunition was not interchangeable with the .45 Colt (although both ammunition could be used in Colt pistols), forcing the U.S. government to include the .45 Schofield cartridge. For standard ammunition.
However, based on the fact that there are still a large number of .45 Colt ammunition in the warehouse and for the convenience of supply, the Army was forced to abandon most of the Schofield revolvers and continue to use the Colt M1873 revolver. It is worth mentioning that Major Schofield patented the locking system he designed and also received a certain profit from each gun sold by Smith & Wesson.
At the same time, George's eldest brother, John M. Schofield, was the head of the Army Ordnance Bureau. The political situation and other factors also led to the premature end of Army sales of the Schofield revolver.
Many Schofield revolvers served during the North American Indian Wars, and there are reports that they were still seen in the Spanish-American War and the Philippine-American War.
Like other versions of the Model 3, they were popular with law enforcement officers and outlaws throughout the West. It is said to have been used by celebrities such as Jesse James, John Wes Lehardin, Bird Great, Theodore Roosevelt, Virgil Earp and Billy the Kid.
In addition, many Scofield revolvers were sold as surplus products to some distributors. The distributors usually shortened the original 7-inch barrel to 5 inches and polished the guns. deal with.
After the Spanish-American War in 1898, the U.S. Army sold all of its remaining Schofield revolvers. These remaining Schofield revolvers are refurbished (to a professional factory quality level) by wholesalers and gunsmiths and then sold on the commercial market. These pistols are available in 5-inch or 7-inch long barrel versions.
The most notable buyer of these refurbished Schofield revolvers was Wells Fargo, which installed these pistols on bank guards and shortened the barrels to 5 inches to facilitate the guards. Can be carried concealed. Armorers at the Wells Fargo Group also engraved the words "Wells Fargo & Co" ("Wells Fargo & Co") on the pistols.
In the 1970s, the Schofield revolvers belonging to Wells Fargo became highly prized among collectors. Therefore, some unscrupulous sellers also sold some Schofield revolvers that had not been acquired by Wells Fargo. The pistols were counterfeited with the banking group's markings (in fact, there were more fakes than genuine).
The New Model 3 Revolver
In 1877, Smith & Wesson ended production of most models of the Model 3 revolver and introduced a new model known as the Model 3 revolver. It is an improved version of New Model No.3.
The standard caliber of this variant is .44 Russian ammunition, but it can also be customized by special order with .44-40 Frontier, .32-44, .38-44 targets, and very Rare .38-40 Winchester and other caliber versions.
In 1880, the South Australian Police expressed interest in equipping the new weapon after seeing the new No. 3 revolver on display at the Australia Exhibition in Melbourne.
They placed an order through Smith & Wesson’s agent in New York for 250 .44 Russian caliber 7-inch long nickel-plated revolvers.
An extended stock, ammunition and reloading kit were also ordered, and the goods arrived in Adelaide in March 1882. These revolvers and stocks were immediately engraved with the government's Broad Arrow mark and became known as revolver carbines. They were mainly installed in the Mounted Police who also maintained security in the Northern Territory during that period.
Subsequently, from 1886 to 1888, both the South Australian Police Department and the North Australian Police Department purchased more revolvers in small amounts. What is interesting is that these pistols were not used again. Marked with a broad arrow. For the next thirty years, the revolver carbine was the frontline weapon of the Mounted Police in the South, West and North. The serial numbers of these weapons are public and are included in the book "South Australian Police Service Weapons".
In 1953, South Australian police revolvers were sold as surplus to the Western Arms Corporation of Los Angeles.
Modern reproductions
Modern reproductions of the Smith & Wesson No. 3 revolver are produced by many gun factories, the more famous of which include Smith & Wesson itself. Italian gun factory Uberti and Armi San Marco.