S&W Model 1 Civil War Revolver 

“Smith and Wesson didn’t send this as a demo gun”

The joy in your voice with every "hey, I hit it!" was great 😁👍

Wow the fact that this old girl is still going strong says a lot about S&W's Craftsmanship at the time.

a wise person once said in regard to ammunition choice: holes are holes.

Man, how would you like to be one of the ten guys with modern semiautos that placed behind that thing? Nice shooting Karl!

On its introduction, the 22Short was advertised as a "self defense cartridge for table card distances". Well. from what I could see in the video, the revolver was more accurate than that.

I spent six minutes of my shift watching this and I don't regret it. Back to work.

Hi from the UK. Love the videos of firearms from this era. Great to see how this example performed. Mark Twain packed one on his travels described in 'Roughing It'. I quote; 'I was armed to the teeth with a pitiful Smith & Wesson seven-shooter, which carried a ball like a homeopathic pill, and it took the whole seven to make a dose for an adult'. Bit unfair in retrospect based on what we see here.

You always bring out the neatest old guns to the BUG match.

There was also the Smith & Wesson Model 2, which is essentially the same gun but larger and chambered in .32 caliber. Still not extremely powerful but somewhat more viable, I'd say.

With how different the intended handling of this gun is versus modern firearm doctrine, it would be interesting to see a video on how "best/common practices" for safety and usability changed over time. Great video, keep it up

Hundred and fifty year old pistol, still able to complete matches and perform its intended role (i.e. propel projectiles at a target). Point me to a 150 year old just about anything else that can still do what it was built to do. These old blackpowder-era blasters may not be whizzbang tacticool top-of-the-line, but man it's just _cool_ watching them work even after all this time.

A girlfriend I had back in the late 1980's had a grandma who owned one of those. She said it was her grandfather's pistol from the Civil War. He was in a unit out of Monroe, Michigan. According to her he never had to shoot anyone with it, but after the war he carried it in the chest pocket of his bib overalls everywhere he went. He'd take it with him on deer hunts in case he saw a squirrel or possum while he was out. I guess he took more than a few of those. Her dad ended up with it, then she got it. When I knew her she still had 2 1/2 boxes of the original black powder ammo. Whether it still worked or not I don't know. She never shot it. Nice lady.

The fact 22short has been around for so long is SUPER cool. It's my preferred squirrel round, doesn't bother the neighbors or anything. The fact in the civil war it was used for self defense, though, wow that's just cruel. Even if you emptied all the chambers, your attacker would die a very slow, painful death assuming they died at all...

Patented in 1857 and still better than the thunderstruck S333...

My Dad inherited a no. 1 and a no. 1 1/2. We do shoot the the no. 1 on occasion. What's hard to get across in a video is how nicely they fit in the hand and how well they shoot. It has tiny sights but it is a natural pointer. It'll happily kick a beer can around at ten yards. I've always been really fond of it, I can see why they were popular.

My Dad had a few of these in both 22 short and 32RF in the late 50's. They were around pretty cheap then. He is who got me interested in old firearms and the old west.

A .22 short, even black-powder type will still send it's 29-grain heeled bullet through a 2x4 pine board with frightening regularity... There are reloading kits for the .22 Rimfire, use FFFFg powder. I load black-powder cartridges for my 1895 Belgium folding trigger, 5-shot Velocipede (Bicycle) pistol in .32 S&W. it's quite a lot of fun too. It is about half the size of yours.

Nice too see things like this being used today. It’s the fact that the gun as invented still performs so well. We sometimes put to much “collection” value on things that really are made to be used. Great to see this old S&W get a chance to put in some range time and hold its own against more modern competitors. Thanks for taking the time to share this. Enjoyed it.

Great video Karl, love your black powder/historical content!

Really interesting trigger design. I noticed that while running with it, you basically have to keep your finger on the trigger. And I can't honestly see any other way to hold it, so that maybe says something about how trigger dicipline has changed as well in terms of gun design. Though as a single action gun, the trigger is dead when the hammer is down. So should be safe. Very interesting video! Love the content!

I had one that was willed to my my grandfather who got it from a man who was an officer in the Civil War and had lost an arm. That man's name was Lt. Richter and was in a New York Volunteer Regiment. I fired it a few times with CIL Canuck .32 short and .32 long. It shot well but accuracy was not great. The barrel was 6 inches. It was a 6 shot revolver. The CIL ammunition was smokeless and I had no pressure issues. The bore on this revolver was heavily pitted.

WWS&WD when?

Great glimpse into the past and great shooting Karl. Always appreciate these kinds of videos, its a refreshing change of pace from the modern stuff.

Internet: “.22 is such a weak round even for the days of the civil war” Me: If Jack Daniels died in 1911 from kicking a safe and causing an infection, what would the odds be for an average person shot with a “weak .22” from 1861-1865?

That's really cool

Interesting firearm. Thank you. Many small caliber firearms from this era seem out of place in today's world, but context is everything. Wounds inflicted, even by a .22 short, carried significant morbidity and mortality risk due to infection. We all know about the rates of amputation for extremity wounds during the era. Thorax, abdominal, and of course, head wounds were usually fatal, if not within the first few hours, then within the next few days/weeks. Medical and surgical care was just as likely to harm as to help in the absence of germ theory acceptance by the medical community of the time. The prognosis for GSWs was common knowledge and no doubt contributed to the "psychological effectiveness" of the round on the victim and willingness to keep up the fight. Still a factor today, but considerably less so given the widely understood availability of prompt and effective surgical and medial care in the majority of settings--even the battlefield.

Very similar to my 1877/8 Colt New 22 pistol. Doesn't open like this, wish it did, but 7 rounds of .22 LR (the 1877 was .22 short, it's got an 1878 .22 lr cylinder in it. Serials checked at the Colt site.) It's been fired a few times in modern days but not often. I do keep it loaded. a .22 is better than a sharp stick ;)

I loved that it was such a cheerful video with that charming little revolver. I love the practical history pieces you do Karl.

18/28 with that 160 year old pocket pistol is pretty impressive. It means you came in ahead of a bunch of modern semiautomatic pistols. Congratulations and thanks for the historically relevant content.

This is what i love inrange for!

When I saw you holding it, I started chuckling and thinking of Mako's line in an episode of M"A*S*H when Frank "Ferret-Face" Burns pulled out the pocket pistol Margaret gave him. *Laughing* "What the hell is that!?"

I love open top revolvers, they are just amazing

Great to see an original being run and one that holds so many firsts. Very interesting vid.

love watching you shoot these older firearms on the clock.

You definitely got some history in your hand! I have handled a S&W #2, which had some history to it. My customer's grandfather used it to repel hijackers on the St. Louis to Chicago route as a teamster in the 1800s. Keep bringin the good old stuff Karl, we'll keep watchin! Good shootin to boot!

Thank you for a look at this piece of history.

Thanks again for an awesome video Karl!

The knockdown power of the .22 Short even took down a steel popper! Hehehe...

Whoah!! That thing is freakin sweet!! Nice gun Karl!!

Interesting revolver, I like the sound of the steel, and it seems accurate Nice review

Nice to see stuff from the old days back in action.

Have one, and love it. Cool little pistol.

Kudos good sir, on your ability to crank out rounds Quickly with a single action TINY revolver. Excellent showing. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

You could pull the bullet out of those CB's and dump the powder and refill with 4F blackpowder and reseat the bullet. I know it would be a fair amount of work, but then you could have the full experience of it.

Beautiful little pistol

Thanks Karl, great history! It would be interesting to hear how / where you acquire some of these older guns that you present, e.g., Gunbroker, gunshow, local firearm store, etc. Thanks for excellent content.

Really happy for this video, theres not nearly enough on youtube about the tip up Smiths

More excellent content, as always.

Actually I think that Karl shot great with that firearm. I was impressed.

Good to see rimfire getting some love in the channel.

Such a cool little gun

Great video

Smith and Wesson, well done since day one it seems. And it sounds like you even had some fun.

Great video.

I've got a model 1 1/2, 32rf. Mine was made around 1868. 100 years before I was born! The ammo is worth as much as the gun! I will shoot it someday. A model 1 is on my want list. I just have not found one in decent condition and value. Thank you for sharing it with us!

Great shooting

Nice shooting and pistol 👍

Great vid 👌

Very well done video! Cool history, nice to see where smith and wesson started, cool to see you beat 10 modern pistol shooters despite having a gun 100+ years older then theirs 😅 goes to show its the shooter not the gun to some extent. Great stuff!

glad I clicked on this video, nice one

since I started carrying an LCP 2 occasionally i've learned that the first self defense handgun that smith and wesson made was a 22 short, so it's been a long time that people have been relying on 22 for self defense

I've always been fond of the tiny revolvers,

Small, low energy bullets can make very nasty and complex wounds because they don't go clean trough the body like a 9mm, surgeons hate small calibers because the lead enters the body at one point and ends anywhere, piercing random organs. Here in Argentina a lot of people get fatally shot with .22lr handguns. I was involved, years ago, in a self defense situation with a street gang and used my grandpa's minuscule Beretta 950b in 6,35mm against my attackers. It was like shooting at nothing, they don't even flinched, but the one who received one of my bullets right in the chest collapsed in seconds, that little proyectile perforated three important organs and ended inside his abdomen. He barely survived after a week under induced coma.

hi, Jeff !!! Mark Twain said a very funny comment on these revolver " ... they shot bullets like pills and you when shot it don't hit nothing neither a cow if she doesn't moves ..." so long, outlaw bad ass ...

That’s an awesome little gun. I never would have guessed that’s what the rod was for.

Super cool

So still more reliable than the Taurus Curve

The other week I got to hold S&W No. 1, s/n no. 5. The oldest one known.

I have one but I need a few parts, its on my list to refurb one day. Great shooting with that thing LOL!

I completely agree with you about using CB rounds only. Some modern .22 Short rounds are almost knocking on the door of .22lr velocities, and I would definitely NOT use those! I say if you have one of these and you want to shoot it stick with CB caps!!!

It'd be fascinating to see a .22 wrm version with better sights.

that's awesome.

Ok now I need a 22 short revolver. 👍🤠

One of the coolest videos I've seen in a long time. Without going into alot of detail, I figure if it worked for self defense and or a back up gun back then, it would do the same today. Can you give us and idea of how much a gun like that would cost on today's market?

I shot CB caps out of my T/C Contender 21" carbine. I was shooting a 10" plate at 100 yards offhand and they were surprisingly consistent and accurate.

My neighbor has quite the collection of antique black powder 22 short and long.

My number 1 model 2 is from as best as I can figure 1868. It always garners attention when I take it to the range.

i like your style with your glasses

I love the pure joy from: "HA, I HIT IT" :D 2:21

Awesome gun. Looked fun to be using!. Now onto a question. Where did you get the knife used in the thumbnail?! That's a beautiful blade!!

Interesting to note that a .22 short could have serious (even fatal) consequences in the 1860s with their medical practices. I imagine any open wound in those days (esp by a foreign object) would need immediate medical attention.

really looks like it'd just make someone angry if you shot them with it but .22 short was probably still quite lethal back in the 1800s

Snappy little thing

I wonder if there would be "audience" for a series on the development of the defense 9mm class round. From .36 Navy Colt of 1851, worth several ounces of raw gold dust in California, to the 357 SIG (note: no decimal in that name) Geoff Who would be interested...heck if a range offered a chance to shoot them old from Old to New, I'd cross several states to try them!

I've always wanted one of those! Sort of surprised you could shoot that with modern ammo.

I didn’t know this was S&W first weapon ever

Awesome

Nice shootin! Please can you do a mad minute with the Trapdoor Springfield?

History with Karl after a nice InRange shitpost I don't own one, but how would someone be able to tell if their gun would be at risk from the pressure of the ammo they're using?

Nice! One of my uncles had one that survived the Chicago Fire. .32 Rimfire Ammo is probably extinct now days.

Back when a cut could kill you if it got infected… getting shot with even a .22 must have been quite a psychological deterrent.

In a situation where something in this category is your only legally available ccw option would you consider it viable? For example its an antique in some countries and thus not a gun.

Be really cool if someone started making these again in 22 LR.id buy one.

If you want to persuade someone to go be annoying elsewhere, point it at his family jewellery, not his face. I've met plenty of men who will try to jump you if it's pointed at their face. Haven't met one yet who will try it when it's pointed at their nuts.

4:31 "...when I chronographed it, it appeared to be...MRRRRNYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!...75 feet per second less than..." My dude! How about a warning for headphone users you were about to make a Coyote call! Scared the snuff out of me!

Its one of those gun that you take to your grandparents and they just go to it like to little baby: "who is that little handsom man? who is is it? kucikuicikuci, you are so small do you want candy? you want candy? "

22 short CB's knocked over a steel target? That's impressive

I wonder what the sales figures were, the .22 short vs the .32 RF? Geoff Whose S&W reference book is around here someplace.

"Smith and Wesson didn't send it over as a demo gun" HAHAHAHAHAHA! Great stuff. And pretty cool. Never heard about this gun before today.