Question on a 40’s 44 Special

Jameseledge · #1 12-31-2020, 10:57 PM

I inherited this .44 Special from my Great Uncle a Houston Texas Police officer. To my understanding he ordered this gun in the 40’s. I think it’s a Special Edition for Houston Police Officers way back when. I enclosed a 2012 forum pic of a prior discussion and pics of a similar gun. Please elaborate and tell me what I have experts on S&W !
The unique stampings are a number 415.
Thank you,
James

cgt4570 · #2 12-31-2020, 11:22 PM

I hate to burst your bubble...
CTG is simply the abbreviation for Cartridge. It's been stamped on several million S&W's.
The 415 is a meaningless assembly number used by the factory to mate parts after soft fitting. The only number that matters is the SN on the bottom of the grip frame (and repeated in several other places).
I doubt it was ordered in the 1940s. Several of its features were discontinued a decade or two earlier.
Unfortunately the barrel has been cut off.

That really hurts its value.
It's obviously been poorly refinished. That hurts its value even more.
If it's a family heirloom, carried on the job by a relative, then it's priceless.
From a collector standpoint, it's only a shooter at this point. It has no collector value. The gold tone hammer and trigger will make most folks run away fast.
Your link to the previous post is of a completely different model.
You have a .44 Special 2nd Model (no ejector rod shroud).
The link you attached is of the Wolf and Klar 3rd Model with the shroud.

44specialfan · #3 01-01-2021, 12:48 AM

James ... Welcome to the forum and we always enjoy seeing pictures of firearms folks are trying to discover more about. Especially when they belonged to someone in their family. As ctg4570 indicated, the barrel on your revolver had been cut down at some point in time and the serial number is the number found at the base of the grip frame. That same number will also appear on the face of the cylinder and inside the ejector rod recess on the barrel. You should also find the letter B preceding the serial number in the recess indicating that when it originally left the factory it had a blued finish. Additional clear pictures to include markings under the grips will help others provide you with more information. And again welcome to the forum.

Kinman · #4 01-01-2021, 05:34 PM

Welcome aboard, looks to me like you have a very nice 2nd Model shooter in your possession, the fact that it belonged to your great uncle is icing on the cake. I like the stocks which seem to resemble those seen on Wolf and Klar 3rd model H.E's. They are most likely bone that has been relieved to resemble antler. Regardless of whether or not it has been cut down and refinished I like it since I'm a fan of the 2nd Model H.E. One place to look is on the inside of the left grip frame, under the stocks. If there are a series of numbers like 00-00-00, they would indicate it went back to the factory on day-month-year. If the work was done by the factory that would be worth more than any other competent gunsmith. As a modified piece it collectible value has been seriously decreased, its personal value is of course up to you and if it were mine that would be significant considering your family attachment. Enjoy it, I'm sure its a great shooter.