Am helping a friend identify a handgun that he received from his father. It is a 38 caliber hinged frame revolver. Can someone help me find some history on the handgun itself, or by the serial# 198296? From information I have read in my reloading manuals it says "Not a good idea to fire this type of handgun due to its age and design." I'm guessing this handgun was manufactured around 1930.

When you say, "hinged frame" do you mean it breaks open like a double barrel shotgun? If so, we can have this thread moved to the correct Forum section where these guns are discussed.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

Yes like a shotgun. Sorry don't know how to add a picture to the message yet or navigate thru the website!

Oregon.. Hit your Back button and go to the top of the posts. There is a/an 'how to identify my gun section'. After looking through it and with the info you can provide, maybe we can help a bunch more. The "..hinged frame revolver." covers many weapons. We need more information.

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Mike Maher #283

First off, welcome to the Forum. Actually, you did not say the revolver was a S&W or some other brand? If a S&W, ther is absolutely no reason why your revolver should not be safe to shoot. The top-break revolvers of the late 1800s into the early 1900s are great fun to shoot and if the caliber is 38 S&W, you can still buy ammo from Remington, Winchester, etc.

The link mentioned is To IDENTIFY your Gun >

Also, how to post Images is covered as follows Smith & Wesson Forum - FAQ: Reading and Posting Messages

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Gary
SWCA 2515

The attached picture is an exact match for the 38 Smith & Wesson revolver. The barrel length is 3.250. The serial number 198296 is the same at the correct locations on the gun. The last patent number stamped on the top of the barrel is Jan 5 82

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With that serial number, you have what is properly named as a 38 Double Action, 3rd Model revolver, that would have shipped from the factory around 1888. There were over a half-million of this type revolver manufactured, so unless in pristine condition, the value is low.

Even though it is an antique, current 38 S&W ammunition will work just fine as long as the revolver is in good working order.

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Gary
SWCA 2515

Thank you for taking the time. I've done hand loading for a long time and am inclined to agree with you that the condition of this gun would warrant a safe discharge if fired with the correct amo. Before this happens I will take the firearm to a professional gunsmith shop down here in Oregon (Allison & Carey) for them to take a look at. The attachment is for your information and is from a reloading manual around 1985. I hope you will find this of interest. Thanks again!

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I have fired thousands of .38 S&W reloads from a .38 DA. My typical load is 3.0 grains of Unique and a 125 grain or 145 grain cast bullet. For a long time, I even used .357 diameter bullets instead of the correct .361, and they worked OK.

I am a huge fan of Trail Boss for these old BP calibers. You can not double charge and you can not overload. I am currently using 3 grains under a 145 RN. This gives around 500 fps. I have also used 3 grains of Unique and get an average of 640 fps, but it had the highest standard devation of several loads I have used. Factory loads yield 600 fps, so I am very comfortable with my 500 fps TB load, especially since I am only shooting paper targets. Interesting that original black powder loads I have tested were quite hot, averaging almost 700 fps.

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Gary
SWCA 2515

The original BP loading for .38 S&W: 14.125 gr Black Powder, 146.3 grain bullet. The 10 shot avg. velocity was 635 ft/sec @25' with a 5" barrel. Data from the 1890 Army revolver trials. Obviously, MV would be a little higher.

For awhile, I used 3.5 grains of Unique, but felt it was a little too much. I believe I was getting somewhat over 700 fps with that, so I dropped back to 3.0 grains. When shooting a .38 DA, one cannot expect one-hole groups, even at about 50', which is my usual firing distance. So I don't worry too much about minimizing SD. Just getting in the black is OK with me. My .38 DA has a 6" barrel.