Smith & Wesson Brings Back the Model 1917 and Model 22 Classics

Smith & Wesson is reaching back more than a century for its latest Classics release. In all honesty, yours truly thought the Classics line was gonna get shuttered or discontinued way down the line, so this is a pleasant surprise. The company just announced the return of two large-frame .45 revolvers, the Model 1917 Classic and the Model 22 Classic. Both are built on a blued carbon steel N-frame with smooth walnut grips and an original-style lanyard loop, and both run moon-clipped .45 ACP. The Model 22 adds a trick the old guns never had: it also chambers .45 Colt.

A Wartime Fix

The original M1917 exists because the U.S. Army ran short of pistols. When America entered World War I, Colt couldn’t build 1911s fast enough to keep up with a rapidly growing military. The Army turned to Smith & Wesson and Colt to adapt their big-frame commercial revolvers to the service cartridge, and both delivered a revolver designated the Model of 1917.

The catch was that .45 ACP is a rimless cartridge, and a revolver’s extractor needs a rim to push against. Smith & Wesson’s fix was the half-moon clip, a stamped steel clip that holds three rounds by their extractor grooves. Two clips fill the six-shot cylinder, and the clips give the extractor something to work against. The design is credited to Joseph Wesson, and it’s the same basic idea still used in moon-clip revolvers today. Smith & Wesson built its M1917 on the .44 Hand Ejector Second Model, an N-frame, with a 5.5-inch barrel and a lanyard ring on the butt for securing it to a soldier’s belt.

Smith & Wesson delivered more than 150,000 of them during the war. They stayed in service long after the Armistice, saw use again in World War II, and turned up overseas, including a 1937 contract for 25,000 revolvers for Brazil. In 1920, Peters even introduced the rimmed .45 Auto Rim cartridge specifically so M1917 owners could shoot without clips. Later on, the M1917 picked up a second life on screen as the revolver most associated with Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The Model 22 is the M1917’s civilian descendant. Smith & Wesson released a commercial version in 1950, often called the Model of 1950 Army, and it became the Model 22 when the company switched to numbered model designations in 1957.

What’s New for 2026

The Model 1917 Classic is the more faithful of the pair. It keeps the 5.5-inch barrel, the half-moon front sight, and the gutter-style rear sight cut into the topstrap, just like the original. Smith & Wesson also kept the large ejector rod knob, the lanyard loop, and a six-shot .45 ACP cylinder that accepts both original-style half-moon clips and modern full-moon clips.

The Model 22 Classic takes a more practical route. It shortens the barrel to 4 inches and swaps the half-moon front sight for a serrated ramp, which is easier to pick up quickly. The headline feature is the multi-caliber cylinder. It fires .45 ACP in moon clips or .45 Colt loaded directly into the chambers, so one revolver handles both cartridges without swapping cylinders.

• Model 1917 Classic Caliber: .45 ACP (moon clips)
• Model 22 Classic Caliber: .45 ACP (moon clips) and .45 Colt
• Capacity: 6 rounds
• Frame: N-frame, blued carbon steel
• Barrel: 5.5″ (Model 1917), 4″ (Model 22); 1:16 twist
• Front Sight: Half-moon (Model 1917), serrated ramp (Model 22)
• Rear Sight: Gutter-style
• Action: Double action/single action
• Grips: Smooth walnut
• Extras: Original-style lanyard loop, large ejector rod knob, no internal lock
• Included: Five full-moon clips
• MSRP: $1,299 each

That “no internal lock” line deserves a mention. Smith & Wesson added an internal key lock to its revolvers in the early 2000s, and plenty of revolver collectors have refused to buy any revolver with it ever since. Earlier Classics reissues of the 1917 and Model 22 carried that lock. These new versions drop it, which makes them much closer to the originals in both looks and function.

Back on the Shelf

This also isn’t the first time either gun has been reissued. Smith & Wesson offered Model 1917-style Classics in the past, along with a Model 22 Thunder Ranch variant. What sets this round apart is the lockless action, the dual-caliber Model 22, and full-moon clips included out of the box.

At $1,299 each, both revolvers sit in the upper half of the Classics line, close to the Model 27 and Model 29 Classics. That’s a lot more than a surplus M1917 cost decades ago, but original examples in good shape now regularly bring well over $1,000 at auction, and many are worn, refinished, or simply too valuable to shoot much.

“These are both legendary Smith & Wesson revolvers, and it’s an honor for us to bring them back for commercial market today,” Smith & Wesson said in its launch video.

For shooters who want the look and history of a World War I service revolver without risking an original, the Model 1917 Classic is the obvious pick. For anyone who wants a big-bore N-frame they can actually shoot often with .45 ACP and still feed .45 Colt, the Model 22 Classic makes a strong case.

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