Quote:
Originally Posted by Lee Barner
.38 S&W, 5" with the FTR stamp on the lower right frame. frame, cylinder and barrel all match. 688056. grips do not but I believe they are period correct. the serial number on the butt is lightly stamped with much larger numbers than the factory used but match the barrel and cylinder.
....he would like to know more about when it shipped and app value in today's market...
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The appearance is very typical for a Lithgow-FTR’d gun and the Australian acceptance and FTR stampings all are standard. I think I see the VEGA import mark that most have, too.
I don’t really know what to make of the apparently re-stamped butt serial. Nothing to worry about if it all matches.
The small service stocks are correct and it’s fairly typical for them not to match the gun. My theory is that they got separated during the refinish at Lithgow; they likely refinished the guns in batches, threw the stocks in a box and then randomly re-attached a set to each gun.
A serial from the 688-range is quite early for an Australian. The direct shipment of BSR’s to Australia is somewhere in the 760-range, in May 1941; this one would have been produced in later 1940. It could have either been held back due to QC issues and then added to a later shipment, or gone in an early shipment to Britain and transfered to Australian service later. The pictures aren’t good enough for me to see whether there are pre-Australian British markings.
I have one like that, with British and Australian stampings.
Value: I’d roughly estimate 300 to 400.