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Old 07-20-2017, 10:39 AM
WayneC WayneC is offline
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Default Identify old S&W 38 police special

Have above owned by my grandfather and believe it was manufactured in the 1920's or earlier. Hope someone can help.
Serial number is 583058. Thank you
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Old 07-20-2017, 10:52 AM
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Your best bet for an accurate identification and additional comments would be to post a few photos.

"Police special" is not a S&W term, but the serial number you provide would match a late-1920's Military & Police model.
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Old 07-20-2017, 11:06 AM
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Welcome to the forum.

If you go to the first sticky above your post you will find instructions for supplying information to learn more about your gun. S&W made a lot of models and serial numbers are sometimes duplicated within these models so more information is needed to give you an accurate answer.

At over 7,000,000 Military and Police guns made since the model was first introduced, the .38 M&P is a good guess but it could also be something else.
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Old 07-20-2017, 11:44 AM
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Welcome to the forums from the Wiregrass! It is likely your gun shipped in the late 1920's if it is a .38 M&P. We need to see pictures to view some characteristics that tell us when in the 1920's such as the shape of the ejector rod knob. Yours probably has a barrel-shaped knurled end whereas months or a year or so earlier they were mushroom shaped. That change occurred in 1928.
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Old 07-22-2017, 09:34 PM
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Since the OP called it a "Police Special" isn't it likely a Colt?
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Old 07-23-2017, 12:20 PM
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Nope. Colt didn't have a model named "Police Special" either. I think one of the second line makers did.
S&W has Military & Police and Regulation Police; Colt has Police Positive, Police Positive Special, and Official Police. No major make Police Special I know of.
The confusion may arise from the common .38 Special chambering.
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Old 07-23-2017, 05:46 PM
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If it is in fact a S&W and it is chambered in .38 S&W Special (that should be stamped on the barrel), it would be called the Military and Police (M&P) Model. Your serial number would date its probable shipment to be around early 1928. These are extremely common revolvers. Good pictures always help in correct identification.

Last edited by DWalt; 07-23-2017 at 05:50 PM.
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