Gun Collectors Dream Auction #72 Collectible Guns
Lot 336:
Up Next is a Scarce and Desirable Smith & Wesson Model 52-2 Also Known as the 38 Master Semi Auto Pistol Chambered in .38 SPL MidRange semi-automatic pistol developed by Smith & Wesson for Bullseye shooting. This Example is in Pristine Condition and Comes in The Factory Box With Two Magazines. It was one of the first semiautomatic pistols chambered in .38 Special with flush-seated, full wadcutter bullets. The shape of the rimmed cartridge limited the magazine capacity to five rounds. Serial #A483104
More From the Internet: It was a pistol target shooters could only dream about—a .38 Special autoloader that held its groups into 2-inches or less at 50 yards. Yes, there had been prior 1911-frame-based .38 Special automatics before the S&W Model 52’s debut in September 1961, but they were the handcrafted creations of gifted gunsmiths like James Clark with his .38 Conversion and the gunsmiths of the US Army Marksmanship Training Unit at Fort Benning, Ga., working with their unique .38 AMU ammunition, a semi-rimless, .38 Special round designed for enhanced stacking and feeding from an autoloader magazine.
The introduction of the Smith & Wesson Model 52 chambered for .38 Special, mid-range, wadcutter ammunition was a stunning first—the first successful, factory, .38 Special target autoloader ever launched, and it took the target shooting community by storm.
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