The Smith and Wesson Model 52 was a semi-automatic pistol developed by Smith & Wesson for Bullseye shooting

Bullseye (shooting competition)

Bullseye, also known as conventional pistol, is a shooting sport in which participants shoot handguns at paper targets at fixed distances and time limits. A number of organizations, including the NRA and Civilian Marksmanship Program in the United States, have established rules and keep records for...

. It was one of the first semiautomatic pistols chambered in .38 Special

.38 Special

The .38 Smith & Wesson Special is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & Wesson. It is most commonly used in revolvers, although some semi-automatic pistols and carbines also use this round...

 with flush-seated, full wadcutter

Wadcutter

A wadcutter is a special-purpose bullet specially designed for shooting paper targets, usually at close range and at subsonic velocities typically under 800 ft/s . They are often used in handgun and airgun competitions...

 bullets. The shape of the rimmed cartridge limited the magazine capacity to five rounds. A variant, known as the Model 952, in 9 mm Parabellum, is still produced in limited quantities by Smith & Wesson's Performance Center. The Model 52 was discontinued in 1992 when the machinery to manufacture the pistol broke down and it was deemed too costly to replace.

History

The Smith and Wesson Model 52 was introduced in 1961 as a match weapon derived from the Smith and Wesson Model 39. The first version known simply as the Model 52 retained the basic trigger mechanism of the Model 39, with the Double-Action disconnector removed, allowing the pistol to be fired in Single action only. In 1963 the Model 52-1 was introduced with a separately developed single-action trigger system and was manufactured until 1970, when it was succeeded by the Model 52-2. Changes to the 52-2 included an improved extractor. In 1992, the 30 year-old machinery used to make the Model 52 broke down and Smith & Wesson decided against replacing it, so the gun was discontinued. The last model 52-2 bore serial number “TZW9149” and was completed on July 23, 1993 and delivered to the S&W gun vault.