Smith & Wesson Triple Lock

Boldly going into a new century, it's fitting to begin a new series of articles called "Classic Test Reports" in which we will subject historically significant old guns to the same sort of test we'd give a brand new one. For the first article in the series, what better gun to use than Smith & Wesson's New Century?

Very few gun names are more descriptive or have such charisma as Smith & Wesson's New Century. Properly known as the .44 Hand Ejector First Model, the Triple Lock is the predecessor of a whole line of big bore revolvers made by Smith & Wesson--almost from the earliest days of swing-out cylinders.

It is the first in a whole line of revolvers that culminates with the mighty .44 Magnum. Writing in the March 1979 issue of The American Rifleman, Pete Dickey said, "The Triple Lock is thought by many to be the finest double-action ever made."

The gun's subtitle name was the New Century and it brought us a cartridge that became the launching pad to the .44 Magnum. The .44 S&W Special was formed by simply lengthening the .44 S&W Russian to accommodate an increase in the charge of blackpowder from 23 to 26 grs.

The Winchester ammunition catalog of 1906 lists a velocity of 680 fps for the Russian and 755 fps for the Special, both loaded with a 246 gr. lead bullet. Interestingly enough, 755 fps is still the velocity that Winchester lists in its catalog today.

The Name Game

It's funny how the nomenclature changes. S&W's historian, Roy Jinks, wrote the definitive History of Smith & Wesson and he refers to it as .44 Hand Ejector First Model with the Triple Lock name mentioned mostly in passing. The New Century subtitle isn't mentioned at all.

It was one of the swing-out cylinder revolvers known throughout the factory as "Hand Ejectors," but that nomenclature didn't seem to have much appeal to the public. Back then most S&W revolvers had a name -- this one was the New Century -- but the Triple Lock is the moniker that stuck. Nobody seems to know who coined the phrase, but it accurately describes the revolver's locking system.

In his classic Sixguns written in 1955, Elmer Keith wrote, "In 1907 Smith & Wesson brought out their Triple Lock, perhaps the finest revolver ever manufactured anywhere, at any time. Today no example of finer revolver making is to be had. The rear end of the barrel and the cylinder steel of the old Triple Lock are not as strong as in the present 1950 Model Target S&W .44 calibers or the .357 S&W Magnum, but the old New Century was, and still is, one fine gun in any company."

So even if the nomenclature isn't official, and some might not know what you're talking about if you say .44 Hand Ejector First Model, everyone has heard of the Triple Lock.

Over a great many years I have acquired a few older S&W revolvers and have always been quite taken with their fit and finish, especially those made in the period between the two World Wars and up until the 1960s. One gun that has lived peacefully in the safe for many years is a .44 Special Triple Lock bearing serial number 11444. It has a 6.5" barrel and nickel finish.

It came to me as a result of having another gun that somebody wanted worse than I did. It was a good trade -- one of those win-win deals where I got a gun that was worth more than what I traded for it, but the other guy was happy too because he didn't have much in the Triple Lock. The only thing wrong with it was the original grips had been replaced by some old pearl grips.

Now if they had been Smith & Wesson pearl grips, I would have been tickled-- of course the price would have been doubled too-- so I set out to find a pair of the original walnut stocks. (Thanks to John Taffin for locating a pair in his junk box.)

I should point out that, back when the Triple Lock was made, every major part of the gun bore the serial number-- including the grips-- so it's easy to see that these are replacements. Anyone thinking of buying an old S&W should check to see that serial numbers match.

I should also mention a discrepancy in nomenclature here. S&W calls them stocks, I call them grips. They're the same part with either name though.

Shooting A Legend

When the editor and I first discussed the idea for the "Classic Test Report" series, the old Triple Lock was the first gun that came to mind. After all, with a new century upon us the tie-in is obvious. But it also dawned on me that I'd never even shot it. When I want to shoot .44 Special-- and it's one of my favorite calibers-- there are a couple of other guns that usually get to go.

The Triple Lock is often referred to as a "long" action and while it works exactly the same as modern S&W revolvers, the hammer movement is longer. It is also very smooth. When you cock the hammer you can really feel the cylinder rotation, and just as it reaches full cock, everything seems to lock up just right.

S&W's standard long barrel in those days was 6.5" and, even though the barrel isn't particularly heavy, the extra length adds a little stability. Shooting it doesn't really feel different, although the small grips don't provide as much support as we're used to. The good news here is that if you want to shoot it, you can put on a set of modern N-frame target grips and go to it. They fit.