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Mine is a 3rd Model, 10" brl .22lr (the one with the centered trigger and useless double action mode) that was in fair condition with a good bore when I got it. Tightened-up the latch/lock, spent about a solid week hand polishing it and had Mike Dubber gold inlay the barrel marks. Spent another week making and 32 lpi checkering the English walnut grips with a minimum saw kerf for a good book match. Steve Moeller charcoal blued the gun, had the trigger and hammer re-case colored and I (non-factory) nitre blued the screws. After it was all done I found out why Roper and others added fore-stock and barrel weights as it is entirely too light, especially in the front end, to shoot very accurately. I love the gun (and took some time fooling around with PhotoShop backgrounds, lableing) and will post similar for others.
Best,
Steve

This is the GREAT thing about the internet, I thought I was the only S&W single shot looney, found out about Terry's years ago, but never though there would be three of us!
These are Very Cool pix from Set-Trigger, I'll let him explain.



Hope we get to see more of the pistol!
(and to think I could have stamped my barrel?!?)
And I missed posting this barrel pic the first time around!

Here is a Model 1891, which was available as a revolver or single shot, hence the recoil shields. The original owner was J E Gorman of San Francisco, Captain of the 1908 U.S. Olympic team, and winner of the gold medal at London. The medal is shown in the case. The barrel on the pistol is marked H M Pope, but does not carry his code lines as his rifle barrels almost always do. Perhaps the limited space changed his practice.

This photo shows the open case with the factory barrel, spare grips, tools, and Stevens Pope ammo. Many people were involved in this project: engraving by Lynton McKenzie in a style typical of London 1908; grips by James Tucker and Monte Mandarino from briar; metal finish by Pete Mazur; tools by Bill Crowley; case insides by Steven Alexander.

There were lead weights hanging from the barrels when I bought it circa 1962. I removed them in a perhaps misguided aesthetic decision.

Terry, thanks for moving them!
Are the grips held on by a screw from the bottom?
Are both barrels Pope?

The case is very nicely done, I especially like the pyramid holding the medal and the pistol.

SDH: Yes, the grip retention screw comes up from the bottom. The second (original) barrel is Smith & Wesson.

I will add photos of another pistol, this one marked "A O Niedner, Malden, Mass", It is serial 1610. The barrel has a liner and there is a trigger stop. The remainder of the pistol looks factory.

I'm not sure what the 688 in Set Trigger's numbers imply. The 4428 is apparently the Smith & Wesson serial number. Pope barrel number 681 is dated 6/18/26, so with a target from 1913, 688 could not be the Pope serial. 603 is dated 12/20/22, so Pope's production was very low by the 1920s!

The A O Niedner marking is stamped on the side barrel flat, between the hinge and the standing breech. Unfortunately, it really is not legible in this photo.

Steve,
Thanks for posting the photos.
There's not much to say about Pope barrel # 4428 - 688. I don't know much of anything about Pope numbers, all I can tell you is what is on the barrel and of course you see what is written on the targets.

I bought the barrel just as a barrel with the targets, no frame came with it, bought it from an old guy in CT in the late 50's, only bought it to shoot, I had a third Model S&W to put it on, of course you know what they look like, if you seen one you have seen them all. I still have both the barrel and the third model S&W, in fact I have all the single shot S&W's plus a bunch of other single shots like the Colt Camp Perry, USRA single shots, Stevens single shots etc. Over the years I've shot just about all of them in slow fire competition. The Camp Perry, USRA, and the S&W's all shot about the same, very tight groups at 50 yds., the only ones that were not up to the accuracy standards were the Stevens, of course I never had a Stevens Pope.

The odd thing about this Pope barrel is that it's a third model barrel but it's numbered in the second model range, second model numbers run from 1 to 4630 so you can see it's well within the second model range. # 4428 would be 1909 production barrel, the third model numbers were supposed to have started around 4620, in fact S&W number 4656 has a Pope barrel # 704 that was C. S. Axtells gun. As you probably know the first and second model barrels are interchangeable, but the third model barrel only fit third model frames.

Probably already yakked way to much about my stuff, would like to have more info on Terrys 1891 J E Gorman gun.

I have searched some of the records I have on J E Gorman and the 1908 Olympic records say that he came in third with a score of 485 X 600 for a Bronze, the Gold being won by a Paul Van Asbrock of Belgium with a 490, and the Silver won by R. Storms of Belgium with a 487.

Also checked who the team Captain was as most times the team Captain would be way to busy with other things to shoot an event like the Olympics but it can happen, my records show that Reginald H. Sayre was team Captain ?.

Terry,
I don't want to be picky, picky but can you tell us what is engraved on the other side of the medal and where you found your info.
ST

ST,

I got the information from two sources; Mr. Gorman's Granddaughter's story to Trader Chappel, and the book "Bullet Holes" by Wesson. I'll try to find the book, as it is not where I just looked.

As I recall, nothing is engraved on the back of the medal. I'll have to get it out, but I think the clasp/ring that encircles the medal has ".22" engraved on it. The medal is NOT Gorman's unless it is coincidence as I bought the medal from Flayderman several years after getting the pistol, and perhaps three years after finding the book.

ST,

The reverse side of the medal is also high relief, but a different scene. The front carries the inscription Olympic Games, London 1908 beside a male athlete over whose head two seated women hold a wreath. The back is a knight in armor seated upon a prancing horse next to a woman or angel. I'll try to get decent photos to post. So, no blank space for engraving. Nor do I see the .22 I remembered.

I thought the book might be in the safe with the case, but it was not. I will find it, I'm sure.