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S&W Hand Ejectors: 1896 to 1961 All 5-Screw & Vintage 4-Screw SWING-OUT Cylinder REVOLVERS, and the 35 Autos and 32 Autos


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Old 02-03-2011, 11:25 PM
LOGELLY LOGELLY is offline
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Default i need help about my revolver

I have this revolver that my wife grandpa left for her and i have no idea what model and year it is. 38 S & W special CTG
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Old 02-03-2011, 11:35 PM
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I am probably the least qualified to respond, but If you open the cylinder you should see a something like MOD. then a number right above the hinge. That will help. But if I had to guess from the picture I would say it looks like a model 10. If you look on the bottom of the grip frame you will see the serial number. If you post that number and letter(s) someone can tell you the approximate date your gun was shipped from Smith and Wesson.

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Old 02-03-2011, 11:35 PM
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That is a bona fide .38-44 revolver. .38 Special on a .44 frame. Otherwise known as a Heavy Duty and later on, the Model 20 when S & W added model numbers in 1957. A very nice gun to be left. It is not a Model 10 because it has a shrouded ejector rod which the Model 10 or Military & Police does not have. The best way to tell the age is by the serial number.
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Old 02-03-2011, 11:41 PM
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Welcome to the forum!

Looks to be a pre-WWII 38/44 Heavy Duty.

Can you post a picture of the other side and give us the first part of the serial number to narrow it down more for you?
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Old 02-03-2011, 11:44 PM
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Yep you are right guys. I didn't notice the ejector shroud. Dang, I still have alot to learn.
I will stick around and keep reading.

Wing master
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Old 02-04-2011, 12:03 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by snw19_357 View Post
Welcome to the forum!

Looks to be a pre-WWII 38/44 Heavy Duty.

Can you post a picture of the other side and give us the first part of the serial number to narrow it down more for you?
The serial number can be found on the butt of the grip frame and will be either a five digit number (if made before WWII) or a prefix letter S followed by a five digit number (if made after WWII).

Welcome to the Forum and thanks for posting. The 38/44 is a very desireable S&W and we have some very knowledgeable folks here who can help you learn more about it.

Russ
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Old 02-04-2011, 12:14 AM
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Logelly, welcome to the forum.

As others said, the gun is very likely a prewar .38/44 Heavy Duty. Those were introduced in 1930, so there is probably only a 10-year span when that particular revolver could have been made. If you tell us the first three digits of the five-digit serial number, someone can ID the likely year for you. (That same design was also produced for about four years after WWII as the company used up leftover prewar parts. But the postwar HDs mostly have four inch barrels. When you see one with a five-inch barrel like yours, odds are it is prewar. When you check the serial number, look to see if it has the letter S in front of it, even separated by several spaces. That S is an indicator of postwar production.)

The grips on the gun are not original. Those are postwar magna stocks. It looks as though there is no diamond shaped relief around the screw hole, so they are not earlier than 1968.

That seems to be a very dark and consistent finish for a gun that is over 70 years old, so it may have been refinished. If it was, the new stocks may have been added at that time.

In any event, a very nice gun, and a heck of a way to introduce yourself!
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Old 02-04-2011, 10:29 AM
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This could be either a pre or post war gun and we would need the serial number or a picture of the other side to say which. The Model marked Heavy Duties that we know of are all 4" blue or nickel guns with the exception of a single 6.5". The Model 20 marked guns were shipped in 1963 and the Model 20-2 guns were shipped in 1964. Since it has a large ejector knob, it is either a pre war or post war transition heavy duty.
I hope this helps,
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Old 02-04-2011, 10:38 AM
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Grandpa had good tastes in guns.
The Heavy Duty is one my favorite shooters.
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Old 02-04-2011, 12:57 PM
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yup, posting that HD is a heck of a way to introduce yourself to this crowd. We would all like to see more pictures when you can post 'em up
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Old 02-05-2011, 02:57 AM
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LOGELLY:

Beauty! It looks like it's in excellent condition too; use it well!
Welcome to the Forum.

Chief38
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Old 02-05-2011, 03:17 AM
LOGELLY LOGELLY is offline
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Thank you all for this great news here is a picture of the other side as requested. the numbers are as follows "S 65238" it is a 5" barrel. its not my favorite gun to shot but by the way you guys talk about it maybe it will be more fun for me.

Thanks again and anymore info would be great.
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Old 02-05-2011, 09:04 AM
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Looks like it's a Post War Transition Gun from 1946 / 47
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Old 02-05-2011, 09:12 AM
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It's a fairly rare version of the Heavy Duty, about 2500 made from 1946 to '50. It has stocks from a later N frame. Enjoy!
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Old 02-05-2011, 10:17 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LOGELLY View Post
Thank you all for this great news here is a picture of the other side as requested. the numbers are as follows "S 65238" it is a 5" barrel. its not my favorite gun to shot but by the way you guys talk about it maybe it will be more fun for me.

Thanks again and anymore info would be great.
More info? Start with the signature line in post no. 8 -- 1Aspenhill is the expert on all things Heavy Duty, and his website will give you a great introduction to the model.
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Old 02-06-2011, 04:51 PM
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Thanks to all the info you guys gave was great and helpdful.
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Old 02-06-2011, 07:08 PM
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LOGELLY,
Your gun was probably shipped in August 1946. Most of the early guns were 4", so this was one of the early 5" guns. It will need a letter to find out where it was shipped to.
Hope this helps,
Bill
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ejector, military, model 10, postwar, prewar, shroud, sig arms, smith and wesson, transition, wwii

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