Smith & Wesson ".38 Master Model 52-2 "

thunderflash

thunderflash

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Just acquired one of these in Excellent condition. It only eats .38 Special wadcutters --(but haven't had the pleasure to shoot it yet ) It is a surprisingly smooth & tight semi - auto . So far , A quick search netted a few tidbits , but am craving more.
Any expert opinions from past &/or present user/owners , & links to info, & serial # dating would be GREATLY appreciated. :)
 
I owned one last year, incredibly accurate and pleasant gun to shoot; definitely in a league of its own. Ended up selling it 'cause I didn't shoot it enough...

It's pretty finnicky about ammo though. I found I had to do a lot of tweaking to ensure reliable feeding and extraction.
 
I had one many years ago for bullseye shooting. Excellent guns.
As you know it only takes .38 wadcutters. The mags only hold 5 rounds as that is the bullseye method-strings of 5 shots.

I knew several other shooters that had them & none of us had feeding problems. Plus they are very accurate.
Smith & Wesson ceased making them a number of years ago as bullseye shooting went into a decline.
 
I owned one.
A very accurate target pistol.
I tried West Coast plated 148gr. DEW bullets and the pistol did not like them.
I bought a case of the BDX lead DEW and they worked beautifully.
It's been a while,but as I remember you also have to load the bullet flush with the case mouth.
Anyways,if you shoot plated and are having problems,get a box of the BDX lead wadcutters,which I believe have a graphite type of lube.
The problem with the plated was their diameter.
I could not get the gun to cycle properly.
The Bdx worked perfectly.
I used W231 and it didn,t take a lot of powder to cycle the gun.
Go to the S&W forum and there will be pages of info on the 52.
 
Mine works best with the hollow base wadcutter, seated flush. 2.7 to 3.0 of Bullseye.

Note that the mainspring is quite weak - about 10 pounds compared to 15 for most 9mms. Don't load it hot!!!
 
They are very accurate pistols, good for checking how you are doing in the accuracy deparment. The Model 52-2 was made from 1971 to 1993, if you give me the first 4 digits in the serial number I can tell you the year it was made.
 
Appreciate all the info so far ! Really looking forward to shooting this thing .
The first four digits on the serial # are -- A483###
 
A few things to keep in mind...

- Depending how what you are used to for bulleye... You might want to get a spare rear sight blade and file the opening a little wider. The factory is pretty darn tight!

- If you reload, don't forget to put a good crimp! Your M52 will thank you for it.

Using home cast bullets (Lee 148WC), my best results are with 3.6gr of HP38.
 
thunderflash said:
Appreciate all the info so far ! Really looking forward to shooting this thing .
The first four digits on the serial # are -- A483###
Click to expand...

Your 52-2 falls in the 1978-1979 serial number range of A475001 to A565000 according to the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson. I found with my Model 52-2 that a slight taper crimp works best, just enough to get rid of the flaring used to allow the bullets to seat.
 
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