Antique Smith & Wesson .44 Double Action Frontier .44 Russian 5″ Revolver

More Sold Revolvers

SOLD FOR: $1,136.00

LSB#: LSB260622FM161

Make: Smith & Wesson

Model: .44 Double Action Frontier

Serial Number: 832

Year of Manufacture: 1885-1913 / Antique

Caliber: .44 Russian

Action Type: Single action, top break revolver

Markings: The top of the barrel rib is marked “SMITH & WESSON SPRINGFIELD MASS. U.S.A. PAT’D JAN. 17 & 24. 65. JULY 11. 65” / “AUG. 24. 69. JULY 25 71 DEC 2 79 MAY 11 & 25 1880”. The grip butt and beneath the barrel latch are marked with “832”. The rear face of the cylinder is marked with “46707”.

Barrel Length: 5″ Full rib

Sights / Optics: The front sight is a round sight blade pinned to the barrel rib . The rear sight is a U notch built into the barrel latch.

Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are two-piece checkered black rubber with S&W monograms at the top and diamonds around the escutcheons. There are scattered handling scuffs and compression marks. The checkering is worn completely smooth in places. There is a 1/8″ chip out of the back of the right grip panel. There are no cracks. Overall, the stocks rate a Very Good condition for antique.

Type of Finish: Blued

Finish Originality: Original

Bore Condition: The bore is bright and the rifling is sharp. There is light fouling in the grooves. There is minor corrosion in the bore. In this writer’s opinion, this bore rates 6/10.

Overall Condition: This handgun retains 55% of its original finish. There is finish loss along the barrel, frame, cylinder, and grip straps, as well as thinning throughout. There is a brown patina on the thinning areas. There are scattered scratches and compression dings. There is scattered oxidation staining. There is original blue remaining in the protected areas. The screw heads display minor tooling. The markings are mostly legible. Overall, this handgun is in Good condition for antique.

Mechanics: The action functions correctly. The barrel latch is loose and the timing is off. We did not fire this handgun. This handgun should not be fired before being inspected by a gunsmith. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance requirements.

Box, Paperwork & Accessories: None

Our Assessment: The Smith & Wesson .44 Double Action Frontier is one of the scarcer and more historically interesting variations of S&W’s great large-frame top-break revolver. Introduced in 1886, the Frontier was specifically chambered for the .44-40 Winchester cartridge, allowing users to pair the revolver with popular Winchester and Marlin lever-action rifles chambered for the same ammunition.

At this point, the astute reader may be saying, “Wait a minute! You just said the .44 DA Frontier was chambered in 44-40 Win. But it says .44 Russian in ‘Caliber’ above.” And he would be right, except that this one has a new cylinder to convert it to .44 Russian.

This revolver retains approximately 55% of its original blue finish, with substantial honest age represented by finish loss and thinning, exposed brown patina, scattered scratches and compression marks, and oxidation staining. The bright 6/10 bore retains sharp rifling with only minor corrosion and light fouling. Its action and timing need a little work. Please see our photos for a better understanding of the condition. -C.B.