Smith & Wesson Model No. 2 Army
Smith & Wesson · Revolver · Out Of Production · 1861
Also known as: Model No. 2 Old Army, No. 2 Old Army, Old Army, Model No. 2
Overview
The Smith & Wesson Model No. 2 Army, also known as the No. 2 Old Army, was a six-shot single-action revolver chambered in .32 rimfire, produced from 1861 to 1874. Unlike the cap-and-ball revolvers of its day, it fired a self-contained metallic cartridge through a bored-through cylinder protected by the Rollin White patent, which gave Smith & Wesson a near-monopoly on cartridge revolvers until the patent expired in 1872. It used the firm's tip-up design, in which the octagonal barrel pivots upward to allow the cylinder to be removed for loading. Demand among Civil War soldiers as a private-purchase backup sidearm outstripped the company's production capacity.
Specifications
| Overall Length | 254 mm (10.00") |
| Barrel Length | 127 mm (5.00") |
| Action Type | Single Action Revolver |
| Firing Mechanism | Single Action |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 6 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Revolver Cylinder |
| Muzzle Velocity | 330 m/s (1083 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 316 J (233 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 30 m (33 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .32 Long Rimfire · primary — also known as .32 rimfire, .32 Long RF
Features
- Firing modes: Repeating
- Feed systems: Tip Up Revolver Cylinder
- Safety mechanisms: Hammer Safety Notch
- Features: Tip Up Barrel, Removable Cylinder, Smooth Cylinder, Octagonal Barrel, Bored Through Cylinder, Rimfire Metallic Cartridge
Service history
Operators
- Union Army (private purchase)
Conflicts
- American Civil War (1861-1865)
Production
Estimated total produced: 77,000 · Production years: 1861-1874
About 77,000 produced; serial numbers under ~35,731 date to before May 1865 and likely saw Civil War use
Origin
Country of origin: United States
Designer: Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson
Discontinued: 1874
Notes
Weight is not published on accessible sources. Most common barrel lengths are 5 in and 6 in; 4 in is rare and 8/10 in are extremely rare. The cylinder is smooth/non-fluted, despite one secondary source erroneously listing it as fluted. Production total cited as roughly 77,000.
Background
Often credited as the first truly successful mass-produced American cartridge pistol, the No. 2 owed its success to Smith & Wesson's monopoly over bored-through metallic-cartridge cylinders. By tradition it was the gun on Wild Bill Hickok when he was murdered during an 1874 poker game in Deadwood, the hand that became known as the dead man's hand, and General George Armstrong Custer is said to have owned a pair.