TFB Behind the Gun #180: The S&W Story w/ Firearm Historian Mike Helms

On a recent trip out to the Smith & Wesson factory in Tennessee, I had the opportunity to meet and speak to Mr. Michael Helms, who is a bona fide firearms historian and all-around gun nerd like the rest of us here at TFB. While Mike had been invited out to the media event to give us a quick 30-minute history lesson on the history of Smith & Wesson, we also got to look at some of his collection, including his personally owned serial number five S&W Model 1 .22 caliber revolver. This one piece instantly piqued rimfire-addicted interest, and today we’ll be speaking to Mike about that same history, as well as a more in-depth look at his special Model 1, and the story behind how he acquired it. Please give a warm welcome to Mike Helms!

More TFB Behind the Gun Podcast Episodes:

• TFB Behind the Gun #171: No More NFA Tax? w/ The Carry Handle Podcast
• TFB Behind the Gun #170: Paul Fletcher's "Taquito 22" Suppressor
• TFB Behind the Gun #169: Conor with ACE Virtual Shooting

TFB Behind the Gun #180: The S&W Story w/ Firearms Historian Mike Helms

On today's episode of the TFB Behind the Gun Podcast, we have the pleasure of speaking with Firearms Historian Mr. Mike Helms. Mike specializes not just in firearms history, but has also been an expert witness in several court cases, and he's also appeared in a couple of episodes of the TV Show Swamp People, of course, for his firearms expertise. Today, Mike is going to share a slightly longer and more detailed version of a presentation he's given before on the history of Smith & Wesson. Today, we'll dive into the history of one of America's oldest and longest-running firearms companies, in addition to a very neat history on one of the rarest firearms I've had the pleasure of handling - Mike's personally owned Smith & Wesson Model 1 - serial number 5. For all you history and S&W nerds out there, this is one great episode in what I hope will be many with firearms historian Mike Helms.

https://mikehelms.org/

https://www.instagram.com/firearmshistorian/

https://twitter.com/FirearmsHistory

https://www.linkedin.com/company/michael-helms-firearms-historian

https://youtube.com/@Firearms_Historian

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