 With the first snubnosed models with barrel lengths of 2", 2.5" and 3" being made in 1936.Over 6,000,000 Model 10s have been produced over the years, making it the most popular handgun of the 20th century.The Smith & Wesson Model 36 was designed in the era just after World War II, when Smith & Wesson stopped producing war materials and resumed normal production.