The Smith & Wesson Model 10

The Smith & Wesson Model 10

The Smith & Wesson Model 10 started life as the Military and Police Revolver of 1899, and was also known as the Hand Ejector First Model. With the introduction of this gun Smith & Wesson also gave the world the .38 Special1, which was destined to become the standard cartridge against which all other police rounds were measured. The First Model was lacking a barrel under lug that was to be a facet on later models that held the front locking lug in place. In addition to .38 Special, the First Model also came in .32-20, and .38 Long Colt and had a set of fixed sights.

Three years later Smith & Wesson brought out the Second Model Hand Ejector, more commonly known as the Model 1902 Military & Police Second Model which now had the barrel under lug and used two pins inserted in the hammer sides to prevent them from rubbing on the inside of the action.

In another three years Smith & Wesson came up with the Military & Police Model 1905 which was to become the predecessor of the M&P revolvers available today. The Third Model has the reciprocating cylinder stop and a coil spring and plunger which differed from the leaf spring of the earlier models.

There were some other minor changes over the years, but the 1905 M&P was the gun that made its way into the holsters of a great number of police officers. Barrel lengths were four, five and six-inches to start, and a two-inch barrel was added in 1933. The sights offered were still the fixed blade and groove rear.

The Military & Police (Smith & Wesson didn't begin calling the M&P the Model 10 until 1958 when they began numbering their model) weighs in at 30 ounces with a four-inch barrel. During World War II Smith & Wesson began making the Victory Model M&P with a parkerized finish and a lanyard swivel. The American Victory had a four-inch barrel and was chambered in .38 Special while the British version, known as the K-2002, was chambered in .38 S&W (.38-200) and came in four, five and six-inch barrel lengths.

The barrels on the Model 10 from inception were tapered with a large rounded fixed front sight and a groove for the rear until 1961 when a heavy barrel was added to the line with a ramped front sight. Both versions were commonly used by police departments well into the 1990s with little modifications. Some departments (like the New York State Department of Corrections) still use Model 10s as their primary duty weapon. The grips were originally made of wood, but the current Model 10 can be ordered with rubber grips as well. The Model 10 manufactured by Smith & Wesson today is nearly the same gun that was being produced one hundred years ago.