Can somebody tell me about this S&W?

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watchcollector1968

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Well, for a while my wife has been carrying a Springfield XD and just really wanted something smaller and lighter.

We went out looking today and found one she really liked and snagged it. Now looking on the internet, it looks like it may not be "rare" but still kind of a not-too-often-seen model. Anyways, we shot it and it works great and is surprisingly accurate.

Ok, it is a Smith and Wesson model 042 (has the 0 before the 42). It was used and had no box, but it is mint and if the previous owner ever fired it, it must have been a very small amount and cleaned back up to perfection. The finish is a nice deep polished black.

Anyways, it will make a great carry gun for my wife...we just wanted to know a little more about its history...thanks!!!
 
ldp4570

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watchcollector1968 said:
Well, for a while my wife has been carrying a Springfield XD and just really wanted something smaller and lighter.

We went out looking today and found one she really liked and snagged it. Now looking on the internet, it looks like it may not be "rare" but still kind of a not-too-often-seen model. Anyways, we shot it and it works great and is surprisingly accurate.

Ok, it is a Smith and Wesson model 042 (has the 0 before the 42). It was used and had no box, but it is mint and if the previous owner ever fired it, it must have been a very small amount and cleaned back up to perfection. The finish is a nice deep polished black.

Anyways, it will make a great carry gun for my wife...we just wanted to know a little more about its history...thanks!!!
Click to expand...


Well pic's would help alot, if its a 42 its J-frame cenntenial 5 shot .38spl with an alloy frame, and steel barrel and cylinder. Is the 042 marking on the inside of the frame? If so, and this is just a word of caution due to the firearms age, limit your shooting to standard pressure .38spl. If your going to shoot +P loads, only shoot enough to figure POA/POI! A serial number or partial serial number would help pin down its age.
 
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watchcollector1968

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Ok, will get some pics up tomorrow morning. We shot standard pressure loads. Did put 10 rounds of Cor-Bon +p through it so she would be familiar with the load and aiming. It will be carried with that load and standard pressure for practice.
 
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Looks like you may have a real find there...

"Just when my ambivalent hopes were waning, I learned that more of these reclaimed Models 642 were shipped through the gates of Smith & Wesson on 25 February 1993, 700 in all, with a possibility of another 500 to follow. But instead of the rich high polish blue, these little Airweights Centennials, also re-marked "MOD. 042" were finished in the matte blue of the forthcoming darker Model 442, hence my reference to this variant as the "transitional Model 42," which designation I'm proud to note Pete Dickey, Technical Editor of the NRA's The American Rifleman, saw fit to adopt, with appropriate credit, in his two-part history of "Smith & Wesson Hammerless Revolvers" in late 1993."

Long article here:

http://www.thegunzone.com/sw042.html
 
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watchcollector1968

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Well, the finish is near perfect...its my photography of guns that stinks!!!

Anyways, here are a couple of photos of the gun.
ai36.photobucket.com_albums_e47_sak_collector_my_20photos_sw042_1.jpg

ai36.photobucket.com_albums_e47_sak_collector_my_20photos_sw042_2.jpg
 
ldp4570

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Sorry for the confusion in my earlier post, as I thought when you mentioned SW model 42, this is what came to mind. The original 40/42 series of J-frames.

[Broken External Image]
 
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Model 042: Centennial Airweight
Caliber .38 S&W Spl. Double action only revolver built on the concealed hammer alloy J frame. Reintroduced as the beginning model of a full line of Centennial revolvers in alloy frames. This is a transition model and is not airweight marked. This model does not have the original design grip safety and is marked MOD.042 in the yoke cut. This model uses a floating firing pin fixed in the frame and a flat faced hammer rather than a hammer with a hammer nose; all other Centennial models to follow have this feature. Specualtion is that the 642 had color and finish problems and were blued and overstamped to fix the problem. This model was never cataloged.

Produced in 1992 only.

This info is a partial excerpt from the "Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson, 3d ed."
 

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