Guns Magazine, Feb, 2000 by Charles E. Petty
Although they are no longer available, these custom pistols blazed the way for today’s concealed carry handguns.
Today, compact handguns are hardly out of the ordinary. Shooters are buying up guns like the Kahr, the mini Glock and the S&W 3913. When I think of compact guns, I think of names like “ASP” or “Devel” — no longer available, but valuable collector’s pieces.
Long before any manufacturer produced a compact pistol, custom gunsmiths were chopping inches off of slides and grip frames and making little guns out of big ones. We’re talking serious surgery here. Both the Devel and ASP modifications began with the S&W Model 39 — and then they cut. The slide was shortened by about 0.75″ and the frame by about 0.6″.
The first thing we need to do is a little historical research. The ASP was designed by Paris Theodore in New York City in the early 1970s. Hints were dropped that the gun was made for all manner of clandestine organizations. When the ASP pistol went public, it sure got lots of attention.
First Of Its Kind
The most unusual feature of the ASP is the patented Guttersnipe sight. It’s a strange looking thing designed to be very fast by eliminating the conventional aspects of sight alignment.
The principle is based upon the theory of disappearing parallel lines, for example, if you’ve ever looked down a long stretch of railroad track you’ll know that at some distance the two rails appear to come together. That was the premise behind the Guttersnipe sight.
Theodore chose to use the S&W Model 39 because of the double-action trigger mechanism. Good choice, but the gun did not have a sterling reputation for reliability. In addition to shortening the frame and slide, a lot of time was spent making sure everything worked properly.
The trigger guard was reshaped into a hook and Theodore advocated putting a finger there for better control. One side of the trigger guard was cut away to provide easier access for the trigger finger. This means that you can find both right- and left-handed variations of this gun.
All sharp corners were rounded, the safety thinned, and very thin plastic grips installed. The original S&W magazines were shortened and lost one round (from eight to seven), and the sides were cut away so the rounds in the magazine were visible.
The ASP also has a very clever magazine base that provides a resting place for the little finger and also an extension to allow the magazine to be seated quickly in a speed reload. The magazine well is neatly beveled. Included with the gun was a patented double magazine pouch that used a magnet to hold the spare mags. Each gun came with a total of three magazines.
The ASP may well be the first gun to have a polymer finish. They coated the pistol with black “Teflon-S” as a final touch.
Rebirth Of The ASP
The actual history of the ASP is a little cloudy. Published references say that one day the doors closed in New York and nobody knew anything. A short time later, ASP — minus Paris Theodore — reappeared in Appleton, Wis. An article in S.W.A.T,, (March 1983) indicated that approximately 250 ASP pistols were built in New York. No information is known about the production in Wisconsin.
Production ended later that year. Some published reports criticized the later guns, but mine came with papers indicating Wisconsin manufacture; it looks just fine and functions perfectly. The cost for the complete ASP modification package on a customer-supplied gun was $475.
Improving On Excellence
In 1976 a gunsmith from Cleveland, Ohio, by the name of Charles Kelsey decided to improve on the ASP. He consulted with tactical expert Ken Hackathorn on what could be done to improve the compact custom pistol, and from that conversation the Devel was born.
Pistolsmith Wayne Novak said, “Charlie Kelsey was my biggest inspiration and the most innovative man in the custom pistol business. His designs and modifications were years ahead of their time.”
Kelsey began by shortening a Model 39 to within a tiny fraction of the ASP, but that is pretty much the end of the similarities. The S&W rear sight was retained and a new front sight fashioned and installed. The front sight had a contrasting insert of either yellow or red plastic.
Kelsey offered three different models: Full House, Basic, and Function & Reliability. The F&R package was lightly modified compared to the other two. It was a full length M39 and is most easily identified by the characteristic Devel electroless nickel finish and the red Devel label inlaid into the original grips. Both the Basic and Full House pistols were shortened.
There’s no mistaking a Full House Devel. The most striking characteristics are the scalloped lightening cuts on the slide. There are two on each side. We can argue whether they do anything or not, and I won’t care one way or the other, but they certainly make the pistol stand out.
Groundbreakers
Since the slides of both ASP and Devel pistols are shortened, the companies had to find a way to support the front end of the barrel. The original Model 39 used a removable bushing. The ASP has a simple circular bushing that is permanently installed and looks very much like the style that is currently used by S&W.
The Devel is different. At first glance it looks as if the original bushing is used, but in fact it is a new design that is silver soldered to the slide. The barrel fits quite snugly into the new bushing, so much so in fact, that a relief cut is required so the barrel can tilt down and unlock. Once more, this is a feature that is common today.
When you lock back the slide of a Full House Devel Model 39 you’ll see a small roller bearing just in front of the magazine. Everyone thinks that this is to improve feeding, but Kelsey reports that it has nothing to do with that.
It’s pretty common for the top cartridge in the magazine to move forward a bit under recoil. Kelsey identified this as a possible reliability issue; the roller bearing is there to prevent the round from shifting forward in the magazine. Almost 20 years later, S&W came up with the “Accu-Guide” dimples in the magazine, which accomplish exactly the same thing.
Bigger And Better Things
A little later Smith & Wesson’s high capacity Model 59 — the first of the Wondernine generation — received the Devel treatment. At a glance it’s hard to tell the Devel 39 and 59 apart. The quickest clue is the grips, for the M59’s are quite thin. The grips are made of red Micarta with a clear window inset so the magazine status can be seen.
The magazines are extensively modified too. New springs, followers and bases are included but the magazine body is also extensively cut away to make the remaining rounds visible. Kelsey reports that, since the magazine steel is very hard, cutting was hard on tools until they found a shop that could do it with a laser. They really are high-tech aren’t they?
They weren’t cheap either. A price list from April 1981 illustrates the price structure for modifications to the customer’s gun. A Full House M-59 listed at $550, while a Full House M-39 was $505. The Basic M-59 was $295; the Basic M-39, $255. The F&R M-59 and M-39 sold for $160 and $145 respectively.
Published reports have praised the Devel’s accuracy and criticized the ASP’S. My rather limited shooting experience bears that out. I can’t say whether the ASP is accurate or not because I can’t shoot well with the Guttersnipe sight. Shotguns would laugh at the patterns I shoot with mine, but I’m not willing to blame the gun.
Accuracy is better with the Devel, but I gotta tell you that none of them are going to see much shooting. These are now valuable collector’s guns which deserve a special place in the gun safe.
Not Invented Here
Theodore tells the story of going to Smith & Wesson to show them the ASP and being less than well received. He talks about leaving with, “my tail between my legs.”
Even though both Devel and ASP pistols are no longer being manufactured, their influence continues to this day. They set a standard of form, function and price. These guns were really expensive in their day and now are avidly sought by collectors. They are truly a part of American firearm history.
Kelsey’s work wasn’t too popular there either although S & W bought a Full House Model 59. It wasn’t long after that that S&W’s first compact, the Model 469, appeared.
Theodore talks about the, “NIH syndrome (not invented here)” as being the reason for his treatment at S&W and I daresay that was accurate, but apparently S&W was willing to learn. The 469 was OK, but when the new Third Generation pistols came along in 1988 S&W autoloaders really began to be appealing. When the 3913 came out in 1990 S&W made the best store-bought compact 9mm you could find. Strangely it is remarkably similar to the Devel 39.
