EIGHTYDUECE
New member
I wonder if it is out yet and how many they will produce. Too bad it will have the lock 
I want one of these new S&W 44 spl.
- Thread starter EIGHTYDUECE
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EIGHTYDUECE
New member
I found it under the N frames on the S&W website.
OK, first, there are two different models, the M21 and the M22. The M21 is in .44 Special and has a Thunder Ranch gold logo on the side and comes in a wooden presentation box. There was a whole lot of people who weren't thrilled by a gun that seemed more like a fancy collectible instead of a using gun.
The new M22 is in .45 ACP with moon clips and doesn't have the logo or fancy box. People are very excited about it. It _does_ still have the darn lock but otherwise is a nice gun.
Here's a thread with a BUNCH of pictures of the M22:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/530103904/m/355100048
Another thread about it:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/530103904/m/451109128
And this is the Mother of All threads about it. 25 pages, 361 replies, 23,765 views! Can you believe it? Everything you want to know about the M22 is here. With lots of cross discussion about the M21.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/530103904/m/411105428
Gregg
The new M22 is in .45 ACP with moon clips and doesn't have the logo or fancy box. People are very excited about it. It _does_ still have the darn lock but otherwise is a nice gun.
Here's a thread with a BUNCH of pictures of the M22:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/530103904/m/355100048
Another thread about it:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/530103904/m/451109128
And this is the Mother of All threads about it. 25 pages, 361 replies, 23,765 views! Can you believe it? Everything you want to know about the M22 is here. With lots of cross discussion about the M21.
http://smith-wessonforum.com/groupee/forums/a/tpc/f/530103904/m/411105428
Gregg
No price, huh? I'm thinking the $600 neighborhood.Person of Interest
New member
It's the Model 21 remake of the M&P .44 Special. First offered as the Thunder Ranch commemorative with the gold logo on the side that everyone hated, this is the new, plainer version. Owners report being very happy with them. I just don't care for the round butt configuration. I see them from $500-$650 on various sites.
The new Model 22 looks very similar but has the traditional square butt frame and Magna style stocks. The 22 is .45 ACP. Rumors abound as to how many will be made. S&W is only saying this will be a "limited production" gun. I bought one of these and it's a cool retro revolver.
Yes, all S&W pistols have the lock and we can stop asking since it's here to stay.
The new Model 22 looks very similar but has the traditional square butt frame and Magna style stocks. The 22 is .45 ACP. Rumors abound as to how many will be made. S&W is only saying this will be a "limited production" gun. I bought one of these and it's a cool retro revolver.
Yes, all S&W pistols have the lock and we can stop asking since it's here to stay.
Pappy John
New member
I liked the M21, but never came across one of the plain version ones locally.
I did find one of the M22s this weekend though and now it's mine.
No more searching for my .45 acp brass in the leaves and snow. Whoot!
I did find one of the M22s this weekend though and now it's mine.
No more searching for my .45 acp brass in the leaves and snow. Whoot!
Did Jesus/Allah/whomever descend from the heavens and say that it is so? Otherwise you can't really say "it is here to stay" with 100% certainty. Let's say that tomorrow S&W revolver sales fell to zero. They were zero for the next month and the month after that. Investigations were done. The result were that 100% of gunowners said they wouldn't buy them if they had a visible hole in the sideplate. _Perhaps_ we would buy one with a lock if it was hidden totally away like the new Ruger design.
According to you, S&W would then go out of business because "the lock is here to stay." I would theorize that they would realize that "the customer is always right" especially when you are talking about revolver sales which mainly go to more "tradition" minded shooters. So they would either do away with the lock totally or go totally hidden away.
I buy Smiths. I buy them all the time. I've got one inbound right now for my Christmas present. But not ONE of my Smiths has the ugly as sin hole in the side in it. And I don't plan to EVER have one that does. I'm not the only one. Smith & Wesson can either wake up and smell the coffee or they can continue to lose sales. Doesn't matter to me, there are lots and lots of old Smiths that are "pre-lock." And that's all I'm going to buy. If an increasingly vocal number of revolver buyers acted the same way, the lock would "go away" at least the way it is now. Any other attitude is just defeatist. Why buy something you think is wrong/ugly/non-traditional/or even potentially dangerous? Why be resigned to it being inevitable? Refuse to buy the darn things and tell people every chance you get WHY you will NEVER buy one!
Gregg
I might buy one with the round butt and the lock. I'd certainly buy one without the lock and with a square butt. I am an old-fashioned geezer. On the other hand, the gun "safety" proponents, through legislation passed in states where they hold sway, win when we traditionalists stop buying from bullied firearms manufacturers.
But that isn't what is happening in S&W's case. They don't HAVE to legally have the lock at all if they include an external lock. (The new Federal law limiting liability makes this even more true.) I realize some states (CA) would be a problem then. That's why I think Ruger has led the way with the new lock on the new for 2005 single actions. The lock is totally out of my sight under the grips. If I don't take the grips off, I'll never see it. They don't even drill a hole in the grips. Thus it is up to the user if they want to use the lock without removing the grips. Just as important, the lock works by limiting the travel of the mainspring. That means there are no new small parts actually up in the action of the gun. It would seem to me that that means it is far less likely that there will be a "lock failure" that results in the gun not firing when I need it. It means it will use all standard action parts. And that gunsmiths already know how to do an action job.
It's just a better idea. SURELY S&W could come up with something that works in a similar way. I absolutely understand what you are saying about "not wanting to hurt a great American gun company." But I also think that company should make the kinds of guns we want to buy. If they don't, they should expect us to walk away. That's the way capitalism works!
Gregg
Person of Interest
New member
Gregg, I can tell that you are very excited about the subject of the lock.
Yes, God appeared to me and revealed all knowledge....
Sorry, couldn't resist. I say the lock is here to stay because 1) more and more states are requiring them 2) the lawyers advising the gun makers are pushing for them 3) the people who currently own S&W started out as a company making aftermarket gun locking devices so we assume they favor such things.
Yes, some guns made for foreign sales don't have locks, probably because these buyers specifically didn't want them, and these guns sometimes turn up on the domestic market. But for the most part, and for the forseeable future, the lock is here to stay. I'm sorry you don't like it. I don't like it, either. But getting mad at me won't change anything. Buy or not at your own discretion. I just bought one of the new M22s and this is the only S&W revolver I own that was made after 1980 so you know my thinking on the modern designs.
I agree that the lock looks awful and maybe a less intrusive design could be found. But I've been saying that about the "Ruger Billboard" for years, too.
BTW- Despite the lock, which sucks, the gun is pretty cool.
Yes, God appeared to me and revealed all knowledge....
Sorry, couldn't resist. I say the lock is here to stay because 1) more and more states are requiring them 2) the lawyers advising the gun makers are pushing for them 3) the people who currently own S&W started out as a company making aftermarket gun locking devices so we assume they favor such things.
Yes, some guns made for foreign sales don't have locks, probably because these buyers specifically didn't want them, and these guns sometimes turn up on the domestic market. But for the most part, and for the forseeable future, the lock is here to stay. I'm sorry you don't like it. I don't like it, either. But getting mad at me won't change anything. Buy or not at your own discretion. I just bought one of the new M22s and this is the only S&W revolver I own that was made after 1980 so you know my thinking on the modern designs.
I agree that the lock looks awful and maybe a less intrusive design could be found. But I've been saying that about the "Ruger Billboard" for years, too.
BTW- Despite the lock, which sucks, the gun is pretty cool.
I was talking to a friend at a gun shop
And he looked up the thunder ranch.
One distributer had over 150 of them instock so there not that hard to come by.
But I would like to see one before I am going to drop the cash.
I have a herd of 44 sp guns from smiths to charter to tarrus and like the round.
If your looking for something very small look up the Tarrus 445 in 44 sp. I have one and have been happy with the gun.
And he looked up the thunder ranch.
One distributer had over 150 of them instock so there not that hard to come by.
But I would like to see one before I am going to drop the cash.
I have a herd of 44 sp guns from smiths to charter to tarrus and like the round.
If your looking for something very small look up the Tarrus 445 in 44 sp. I have one and have been happy with the gun.
It is good to see the .44 still has a strong following.
Radom, is that a 624 or a 629? Nice.... here is my favorite old carry gun. I couldn't find grips to fit my hand and still use speed loaders. So I decided to try to make my own custom stocks. They're not pretty but they do feel good in my artrithic hand.
Radom, is that a 624 or a 629? Nice.... here is my favorite old carry gun. I couldn't find grips to fit my hand and still use speed loaders. So I decided to try to make my own custom stocks. They're not pretty but they do feel good in my artrithic hand.
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