Gun Of The Week: Smith & Wesson Model 1854

Let’s face it—lever-action rifles are just darn cool. So why doesn’t every brand make one? Well, it’s not that easy. Just look at the origin story behind Smith & Wesson. Horace Smith and Daniel Wesson initially started out by trying to make a lever-action design way back in 1854. That design didn’t pan out, so the two men joined together to make handguns under the Smith & Wesson brand.

All these years later, Smith & Wesson has maintained a hard focus primarily on handguns. In 2024, Smith & Wesson shocked the industry with a radically new product well outside its usual product lines: the Model 1854. This new gun wasn’t a revolver or a pistol-caliber carbine, or a rendition of America’s rifle; Smith & Wesson’s newest model pays homage to its past in the form of a lever-action repeater.