Not Your Average History Lesson
Before we set foot on the Maryville campus, the folks at S&W hosted us for a special dinner. Placed in front of us were some very old and, by the looks of them, rare guns. Everyone was drawn to these tables like bugs to a porch light in summertime.
You could feel the history oozing from each gun. It’s tough to describe, but if you’ve ever been in a historic stadium (take your pick – Fenway Park, Dee Stadium, Lambeau Field, etc.), you know the feeling. I felt it when we toured the Springfield, Massachusetts, plant a few years back, and I felt it even more when I picked up these guns. There were so many stories to tell about each one of them, and we were all ears when we sat down to eat.
Mike Helms, Smith & Wesson factory historian, gave us a detailed walkthrough of the trials and tribulations of Horace Smith and D.B. Wesson. Like any great American success story, there were a lot of ups and downs for those two. If you haven’t explored the founding and rise of Smith & Wesson, I suggest tiptoeing through that story. It's a great one.
One of the guns that caught our attention was Mike’s personal gun and the oldest known Smith & Wesson New Model #5, serial number 5. I guess he wouldn’t be a very good historian if he weren’t an avid collector as well.
He dove into the story of this gun and how it launched the company to success after several previous failures by the two founders. With all the markings of a great comeback story, they were on the ropes, only to have the New Model #5 save them. The fact that Helms has the serial number 5 gun is incredible.
Perhaps the most interesting story to me, though, is the story of D.B. Wesson’s brother, Edwin Wesson. He was also a gunsmith and likely taught D.B. much of what he knew. Stay tuned to Guns.com because we’ll go deeper into that story soon.
The Smith & Wesson Academy
The purpose of this trip wasn’t just history. Smith & Wesson made sure the real goal was to get our hands on new products and to put lead downrange. Enter the Smith & Wesson Academy and Mark Cochiolo, aka Coch – pronounced “coach,” and it's fitting. Coch is a former Navy SEAL and BUDS instructor whom Smith & Wesson brought in to spearhead the Academy, which is a world-class training facility. I could give you a list of credentials about Coch and why he’s the perfect man for this job, but none would do better than the video Smith & Wesson made for him:
The Academy has a massive 50-yard flat range, another massive (almost) 360-degree range, a state-of-the-art shoot house, and a baffled 200-yard range as well, with plans to keep expanding the footprint. The goal is to train not only high-end professionals but ordinary gun owners as well. Smith & Wesson emphasized that it is a company goal to make sure people can use the guns S&W sells them. If you have a chance to take a class at The Academy, you should jump at it.
Though Coch has an intense warfighter background, that’s not how he teaches. He makes you feel like a good friend, then he breaks you down and builds you back up. With shooting, there is always something to work on (in my case, several things), and Coch has a way of analyzing technique and deciphering feedback that makes sense. Just a couple of weeks later, I was at another event, running through my first shoot house, thinking about some of the advice and tips Coch gave me on the range.
Training and Guns Used
If you’re lucky enough to get into a class with Coch, just know that Smith & Wesson products will be available for your use and pleasure. I can’t speak to the lineup they will offer consumers or professionals, but we got to use M&P M2.0s chambered in 9mm for handguns and the M&P 15 Sport III for the carbine training. Having reviewed the M2.0’s 10mm brethren in the past, I was familiar with the platform, but I didn’t realize how much I would enjoy this gun in 9mm.
They teamed up with Safariland to provide holsters, which gave me a new experience in training with a Level 1 retention holster. I didn’t find it nearly as intimidating as I expected, and it made for a good training companion to the pistol. Coch explained the basics I’ve learned in many other classes, but he offered different perspectives, so I came away with a lot of new tips and homework.
If you’re in the Maryville area, or even if you’re just a S&W fan, you should consider checking out the Smith & Wesson Academy for some world-class training. If you get to train with Coch, you’ll walk away a better shooter with a finer appreciation for getting the little things right. At least, that was my experience.
All the Guns on the Range
While training with the latest M&P lineup was great, we laid hands on all sorts of other goodies, from new to old. They had a couple of fun plinkers in the FPC and a Model 617 Mountain Gun, which is a 10-shot revolver chambered in .22 LR that I had a hard time putting down. Here's a quick compilation of some of those fun guns:
There was also a Bodyguard 2.0 Carry Comp with a Veridian micro green dot on top. It was cool to shoot because I reviewed a Monsoon Tactical approach to the same problem of putting an optic on top. I liked the Veridian, but I still prefer the modularity of my solution. Still, check it out, because it might make you pick up one of the Veridian's.
Perhaps the most intriguing item on the table was a pair of Smith & Wesson 5903 pistols. Picking them up instantly transported me back to 1985 – linen suit, white Ferrari in the background. Once I shook off the daydream and shot it, I could see why there has been an outpouring on social media for Smith to bring it back into production. Check out these old-school beauties in action:
Though it was conspicuous that the guns were included, everyone from S&W remained tight-lipped about any production plans. However, there just seemed to be a twinkle in their eyes when we asked – so I wouldn’t be surprised to see S&W revitalize this old lineup.
What’s Next?
I can’t say with any degree of certainty when and where Smith & Wesson’s new guns will be announced, but I think there is a lot to look forward to these days. The company seems to be in great hands, and its commitment to training at the Maryville HQ speaks volumes about its goals of arming and training Americans to be their own first responders. Whatever is next, the horizon looks bright for Smith & Wesson.
