Wheelgun Wednesday: Smith & Wesson Is Closing the Hillary Hole
This week marks the dawn of a new era in America. After years of darkness, oppression, and suffering, American gun owners can breathe a sigh of relief. That’s right: Smith & Wesson is officially killing the ‘Hillary Hole’.
Let’s rewind a bit. In the latter days of the Clinton Era, in the wake of the Columbine Massacre, Smith & Wesson made several concessions with the federal government to protect its contracts. Once such concession was an internal lock mechanism on its legendary revolvers. Insert a key, turn it, and the gun couldn’t fire. In theory, it was a big step toward making firearms safer and reducing accidental discharges, especially from children.
In reality, it made Smith and Wesson’s firearms uglier and less reliable. Was it really that much of a problem? Not really. But it was an unseemly reminder of Smith and Wesson having to bend the knee.
But good news: Those days are coming to an end. Smith and Wesson has announced a line of classic revolvers with no internal lock. Vincent Perreault, Smith & Wesson’s Director of Brand Marketing, confirmed to The Firearm Blog that Smith & Wesson is indeed phasing out the internal lock.
So why didn’t they do this years ago? Perreault explained to me that it wasn’t as simple as simply deleting the lock. These revolvers were (re)-designed years ago around the internal lock, and so they had to be re-engineered to remove it.
Without further ado, here’s the new old revolvers.
Model 36 Classic
The Model 36 Classic is a J-Frame chambered in 38 Special +P that has a 5-shot capacity, which includes a 1.88-inch barrel with a fixed blade front sight, an integral slot-in-frame rear sight, and a classic checkered wood grip. Its design also incorporates a blued carbon steel frame and cylinder.
Model 10 Classic
The new Model 10 Classic is a K-Frame chambered in .38 Special +P, and includes a 4-inch barrel with a fixed blade front sight, an integral slot-in-frame rear sight, blued carbon steel frame and cylinder, and high-grade Tyler Gun Works walnut grips.
Model 19 Classic
The Model 19 Classic is a K-Frame chambered in .357 Magnum with a 4.25-inch barrel, a red ramp insert front sight, adjustable black blade rear sight, blued carbon steel frame and cylinder, and is completed with a time-honored checkered wood grip.
The TFB crew got to try them hands-on at an exclusive Smith & Wesson event at Machine Gun Vegas. There were few surprises, and that’s a good thing. These are the quintessential American revolvers, only now without pointless child-proofing. Here’s a video of our editor Matt firing the Model 19—forgive the shaky hands, he’s British.
In any case, this is all outstanding news. It’s morning again in America. Smith & Wesson is back. America is back. Good riddance to the Hillary Hole.
Josh is the Editor in Chief of The Fire Arm Blog, as well as All Outdoor and Outdoor Hub.
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S&W didn't install the lock "to protect its contracts." In 2000 S&W was the defendant in 29 separate wrongful-death suits arising from criminal misuse of its products. Even if it won all 29 cases, the legal fees would have bankrupted them. The Clinton administration offered them a deal: If they agreed to certain things, of which the lock was one, the cases would all go away. When you're being blackmailed by the government, who do you complain to? In addition, S&W's then owner, the British toilet manufacturer Tompkins, said that if S&W didn't take the deal, Tompkins would shut S&W down. So they took the deal.
The whole mess was the reason the W administration passed the PLCAA a few years later.
I kinda like the retro Model 10; the half-moon sight has a lot of history. The K-frame M&P had the half-moon sight from 1899 till S&W changed the action and went to model numbers in 1956 or 57, and changed to a ramp sight. The first gun I was ever issued, back in the 70s, was an old long-action pre-Model 10 M&P with the half-moon sight; it was probably older than I was.
The Chief Special, on the other hand, came out in 1950, so it only had the half-moon sight for six or seven years, if that long. To me, the half-moon sight on the Chief looks cheesy, like a cartoon gun. I much prefer the ramp that runs almost the full length of the barrel. Maybe when I see one in the flesh I'll change my mind.