Gun: K-22 Masterpiece (Third Model)
Manufacturer: Smith & Wesson
Chambering: .22 LR
Manufactured: July 12, 1948
Condition: Excellent (NRA Modern Gun Standards)
Value: $900 to $1,200 (Add an additional $150 to $200 for original numbered gold box, Smith & Wesson screwdriver and cleaning rod)
If ever a gun were created to satisfy popular demand, it was the Smith & Wesson K-22 Masterpiece. In fact, at the peak of its early post-World War II popularity, it evolved into Smith & Wesson’s most classically designed, precisely engineered and accurate double-action rimfire revolver.
That’s quite a list of accolades for a handgun that had its beginnings in 1899, when Smith & Wesson brought out its first K-frame revolver, the medium-size .38 Military & Police Target model. Initially chambered in .38 Long Colt and Smith & Wesson’s newly introduced .38 Spl., it quickly endeared itself to serious handgunners, as competition target shooting had become a popular sport in America.
However, the cost of .38-caliber ammunition, coupled with the time-honored activity of informal plinking, resulted in a growing market for small-bore “kit guns,” especially among hunters and campers wanting a bit more small-game-getting ability in the field. By 1927, Smith & Wesson heard the pleas and started designing a rimfire counterpart to its M&P revolver, retaining that popular gun’s look, feel and balance. The onset of the Great Depression made the economical benefits of a rimfire version of the M&P even more practical.
Consequently, the newly named K-22 Target revolver was introduced in January 1931. Oddly enough, although built for target shooting, it was promoted as the K-22 Outdoorsman, an obvious appeal to the nation’s sporting community. Both the fit and finish were superb, boasting polished blued steel, checkered Circassian walnut grips, a 6-inch barrel, adjustable sights and a 3- to 4-pound trigger pull. And, it was all built on the .38 M&P Target’s frame. Thus, the K-22 could print 50-yard groups clustered within a 1.5-inch circle. All this hand-fitted excellence, however, came at a cost. Still, the $35 price tag, which would seem to have been at odds with the economic conditions at the time, did not deter K-22 sales among those who wanted an accurate, premium-quality rimfire revolver.
As a result, by 1939, the factory had produced 17,117 of what collectors now call the K-22 First Model. At that point, capitalizing on the gun’s popularity, Smith & Wesson added a few improvements, which included a newly patented micrometer rear sight, a shorter action and a faster lock time. Feeling that this was now the ultimate .22-caliber target revolver, the gun was re-christened the K-22 Masterpiece, but collectors refer to it as the K-22 Second Model.
Unfortunately, the K-22 Masterpiece’s fame was fleeting. The onset of World War II halted production on Dec. 12, 1940, with just 1,067 guns made. In 1946, the K-22 Masterpiece was finally resurrected, with Smith & Wesson positioning it in magazine ads as part of a redesigned K-frame trilogy, alongside the company’s bigger-bore, target-style K-32 and K-38 centerfire revolvers.
Although it’s said you can’t improve upon perfection, the K-22 Third Model, as the post-war model is known to collectors, did just that. Produced until 1957 (when it became the Model 17) and priced at $40, the K-22’s improvements were highlighted on its gold box: Micrometer Click Sight, Short Cocking Action, Ribbed Barrel, Heavy Frame, Anti-Backlash Trigger and S&W High Speed Hammer. Not mentioned was the automatic hammer block, first used on Smith & Wesson’s World War II Victory model.
Aside from the ultra-scarce Second Model, it is the five-screw K-22 Third Model (only produced until 1955, when the fifth screw in the upper rear of the frame and hidden by the grips was eliminated) that is most sought-after by collectors. According to the Smith & Wesson Historical Foundation, this particular five-screw K-22, Serial No. K32131, was shipped on July 12, 1948, to American Wholesale Hardware Co. in Long Beach, Calif. The original Magna walnut stocks were replaced decades ago with staghorn, but even with replaced stocks, this 95-percent gun is worth $900 to $1,200.
