Manufacturer catalog

Smith & Wesson

Smith & Wesson is a United States firearms manufacturer whose current public company, Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc., traces the brand to Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson's 1852 partnership. Its modern product base spans revolvers, semi-automatic pistols, modern sporting rifles, pistol-caliber carbines, lever-action rifles, shotguns, handcuffs, suppressors through Gemtech, and related firearm products.

3 weapons

Smith & Wesson's catalog importance comes from both historic revolver and cartridge development and a current manufacturing footprint in Maryville, Tennessee; Springfield, Massachusetts; and Houlton, Maine. The company describes itself in its fiscal 2026 Form 10-K as one of the world's leading firearms designers and manufacturers, with products sold to consumers, law-enforcement agencies, security users, military agencies, distributors, retailers, and international channels.

The manufacturer's older military relevance is visible in wartime revolvers such as the Victory Model, while the catalog's cartridge records connect Smith & Wesson to long-lived U.S. handgun rounds including 38 Special, .44 Smith & Wesson Special, and .40 S&W. Those entries should be read as system-specific records; this page provides the manufacturer context behind the shared Smith & Wesson attribution.

Handguns, including revolvers and semi-automatic pistolsLong guns, including modern sporting rifles, pistol-caliber carbines, lever-action rifles, and shotgunsHandcuffs, firearm suppressors, firearm parts, accessories, and precision manufacturing services

Notable Systems

Smith & Wesson Victory Model revolver, Double-action revolver, Infantry Weapons

Smith & Wesson Victory Model revolver

Double-action revolver

World War II Military & Police contract revolver family built in .38 Special for U.S. contracts and .38 S&W/.38-200 for British and Commonwealth requirements.

Sources: Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K, American Rifleman Victory Model article
38 Special, Rimmed centerfire revolver cartridge, Munitions

38 Special

Rimmed centerfire revolver cartridge

Long-lived Smith & Wesson-linked revolver cartridge associated with the company's late-1890s Military & Police revolver context.

Sources: Speer The Great 38, Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K
.40 S&W cartridge, Semi-automatic pistol cartridge, Munitions

.40 S&W cartridge

Semi-automatic pistol cartridge

Semi-automatic pistol cartridge introduced by Smith & Wesson and Winchester in 1990 to put a reduced-velocity 10mm service-load concept into a shorter duty-pistol package.

Sources: American Rifleman .40 S&W history, Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K
.44 Smith & Wesson Special cartridge, Revolver cartridge, Munitions

.44 Smith & Wesson Special cartridge

Revolver cartridge

Rimmed revolver cartridge developed for Smith & Wesson's large-frame New Century / Triple Lock revolver setting and still covered by modern standards and commercial loads.

Sources: American Rifleman .44 Special history, Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K

Manufacturer History

  1. Smith and Wesson partnership founded

    Smith & Wesson Brands' fiscal 2026 Form 10-K states that Smith & Wesson was founded in 1852 by Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson.

    Sources: Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K

  2. Wesson buys Smith's interest

    The same filing records that Daniel B. Wesson purchased Horace Smith's interest in 1873, after which the Wesson family remained associated with the company until its 1965 sale.

    Sources: Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K

  3. Sale to Bangor Punta

    The Wesson family sold Smith & Wesson to Bangor Punta Corp. in 1965, beginning a sequence of later corporate ownership changes.

    Sources: Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K

  4. Smith & Wesson Brands name follows separation

    The company changed its name to Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. in 2020 in preparation for the completed August 24, 2020 separation of the outdoor products and accessories business.

    Sources: Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K

  5. Maryville relocation plan reaches operating phase

    Smith & Wesson's Form 10-K describes a 2021 plan to move headquarters and significant operations to Maryville, Tennessee in 2023, and lists current principal executive offices in Maryville.

    Sources: Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-K

Website links
Official websiteInvestor relationsSEC company filingsCurrent revolver productsCurrent long-gun products

Smith & Wesson has used several corporate names and ownership structures since 1852. Current corporate, headquarters, facilities, and product-scope details follow Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc.'s fiscal 2026 Form 10-K; older system-specific details are cited to the connected weapon records' public sources. No reusable rights-clear image is retained in this profile.

Manufacturer Sources

  • Smith & Wesson FY2026 Form 10-KPublisher: Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. | Note: Supports current corporate name, headquarters, Nasdaq listing context, founding and ownership timeline, product categories, manufacturing locations, distribution channels, and facilities. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Smith & Wesson revolvers product pagePublisher: Smith & Wesson | Note: Supports current revolver product-line context. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Smith & Wesson long guns product pagePublisher: Smith & Wesson | Note: Supports current long-gun product-line context, including M&P15, M&P FPC, Response, Model 1854, and related rifle offerings. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • American Rifleman Victory Model articlePublisher: American Rifleman | Note: Supports Victory Model revolver context, contract chamberings, and wartime production background. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Speer The Great 38Publisher: Speer Ammunition | Note: Supports 38 Special design and first-production context tied to Smith & Wesson. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • American Rifleman .40 S&W historyPublisher: American Rifleman | Note: Supports the .40 S&W cartridge's Smith & Wesson and Winchester introduction context. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • American Rifleman .44 Special historyPublisher: American Rifleman | Note: Supports .44 Smith & Wesson Special origin context and its relationship to Smith & Wesson's New Century / Triple Lock revolver setting. | Accessed: 2026-07-11

Produced weapons

Category

Infantry Weapons

Portable weapons used by soldiers and small units.

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Category

Munitions

Standalone missiles, bombs, rockets, torpedoes, and guided or unguided explosive payloads.

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.44 Smith & Wesson Special cartridge, Revolver cartridge, Munitions.44 Smith & Wesson Special cartridgeRevolver cartridgeBuilt in: United StatesThe .44 Smith & Wesson Special is a U.S. rimmed centerfire revolver cartridge developed from the .44 Russian lineage for Smith & Wesson's New Century / Triple Lock revolver context. C.I.P. lists the cartridge at 29.46 mm case length, 41.02 mm overall length, and 1000 bar Pmax, while SAAMI lists 15,500 psi MAP and recognizes 44 S&W Spl as the abbreviated name. Later .44 Remington Magnum development used the .44 Special case family as its starting point.
.40 S&W cartridge, Semi-automatic pistol cartridge, Munitions.40 S&W cartridgeSemi-automatic pistol cartridgeBuilt in: United States.40 S&W is an American centerfire semi-automatic pistol cartridge introduced by Smith & Wesson and Winchester Ammunition in 1990. It packaged the FBI's reduced-velocity 10mm service-load concept into a shorter cartridge suitable for 9mm-size duty pistols, while SAAMI and C.I.P. standards define the cartridge's pressure and dimensional limits. The strongest documented context is design history, specifications, and firearm compatibility rather than conflict-specific battlefield use.