I went to a pawn shop today and picked up an old 22lr. I dont have my SCSW right now so I am hoping I can get info from you guys. It is apparently an I frame with a 6 inch barrel and has a brass bead in the front sight. has an adjustable rear sight. One line "made in USA" trademark line. S&W emblem under cylinder release. Serial number is 488251. It is marked on the frontstrap and the cylinder face. Top of the barrel says Smith&Wesson Springfield Mass. U.S.A Patented February 6.06 September 14.08. In front of the trigger guard screw it is marked P267.

Lucky you! That's a .22/32 Heavy Frame Target. The S/N suggests it was manufactured in the late 1920s. Looks to be in good condition.

These are accurate guns and fun to shoot. I'd restrict myself to standard velocity or subsonic ammo, but others say they have shot punchier stuff in these guns to no ill effect.

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David Wilson

And I just noticed that the stocks on your gun have been reshaped. The stocks on your gun originally looked like the ones you can see in this image:



On your gun, the wood that extends back beyond the frame and backstrap has been cut down to match the frame profile. Looks like about 3/16" has been taken off the bottom of the wood as well.

That picture is from my I-frames album here: S&W Forum - DCWilson's Album: I-Frames

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David Wilson

Thanks for the quick reply. I am always worried that I pay to much. This gun has NO normal wear and no rust or pitting. There isnt even a turn line that amounts to anything, barely even noticable. It does have some small spots on the barrel and trigger guard that the bluing has been scratched off but no metal damage. I would be surprised that a round has ever been down the tube.

What would the value of this gun be?

If it had the original box and unchopped wood, probably north of a thousand. There are/were a couple of .22/32 Targets in nice condition on Gunbroker now/recently in the $800-900 range, but they have been listed more than once and aren't moving. I have seen beat up guns nowhere near as nice as yours go for $350-400. So somewhere in the middle for this one. It kind of depends how much a potential buyer is turned off by the modifications to the stocks. But the wood doesn't look butchered. Whoever did the modification (presumably a prior owner) seems to have been fairly careful about rounding the edges where surfaces had been cut down. He left enough wood under the steel to support the second screw that these extension grips utilized.

The bead front sight is a nice touch. Those were options from the factory, but not standard on this model.

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David Wilson

The finish looks pretty nice and the stocks look worn. Would that not be indication that possibly the stocks are not the originals?

DCWilson, pointed out to me that the backs of the grips have been sanded down. They are the originals, just butchered.

I think what bgrafsr was getting at is that whether the stocks have been reshaped or not, what's left of them looks a lot older than the gun. So maybe the original stocks were left alone, and a set of older, perhaps damaged stocks were given the reconfiguration treatment to give them the proportions of the square butt I-frame stocks you see on, for example, .32 Regulation Police models. If you check the inside of the right panel for a serial number, you might find evidence that this wood was originally on a different gun.

It doesn't look like these stocks ever had inset medallions, for example. I need to research medallion history to know whether that says anything about the age of these stocks or the model on which they would originally have been installed.

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David Wilson

I'm suspect of the metal finish. The polish grain seems to be vertical, the sideplate screw holes looked dished out and the trigger and hammer appear blued, when they should be case color hardened.

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"I also cook."

I have S/N 4417XX. It shipped 9/1926, so yours would be around 1928 I guess. Very good shooters. Seem to be getting more scarce as people are putting them back in the safe.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

That revolver has been refinished, no question.

David I don't think the grips were the same as yours. Notice no repaired hole were the eschusion would be. Also I don't think the original could be shrunk to proportion. Maybe I'm nuts? Tell the truth I believe these to be a very nice copy. Notice how low the bottom screw is.

DW

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"NUTS"

Difficult to say with 100% certainty, based on the pictures, but I too think the gun has been refinished . It shows signs of metal polishing .

As such, the collector value would be significantly effected, but this still would make a great little shooter. I also vote for subsonic or standard velocity ammo usage. I have one of these built in about 1911 that I am presently doing a little work on to make a shooter. With the price of early kit guns being what they are , a shootable old .22/32 is still desirable in my house.

Well after checking the things you guys pointed out, I too am convinced it has been refinished. Not to say that I am relieved, but I wanted to shoot her, just not too much. Now I feel like I can shoot and shoot and not have to worry about wearing it out. Just when I think I get a smoking deal, it goes down the drain. lol... But I am still happy with the purchase. I guess when it comes down to it, that is all that matters. Thanks for all of the info guys. I am really excited that I get to shoot the heck out of it now.

By no means feel that you got a bad deal. That's still one slick little .22, and you will enjoy the heck out of it!!!!

We still wonder what it cost you.
BUT< They can be fine shooters!
I picked this one up from Cabelas from all places, Timing was off and I got it for 235 this spring,,,, I replaced the hand with a parts hand from a J frame and it's a great shooter.
Be advised that your cylinder is not recessed for the shell casings and you should stick to regular velocity ammo, Otherwise you may crack a base and get unhappy results.
.22 is still recessed after all these years while the 357/44 mag no longer are, It is for good reason!
I shoot shorts and the like out of mine whenever I get to the range...
It may be real dirty inside and have lots of dried oil or grease, A good cleaning may be just what it needs to spruce it up!

Enjoy it ! ! ! ! !
I believe mine is from 1922, Stocks may be incorrect for year, But I like shooting the lil bugger!
Peter

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Need 1/2 moon Chiefs special

Well theprice was a good price before I knew it was refinished. I paid $450 OTD. Now knowing it is refinished, the price is a little on the high side.
My cylinder is recessed, and the serial number on the cylinder matches the number on the frame.

This situation with recessed and non-recessed cylinders on .22/32 revolvers perplexes me no end. The order to change to recessed cylinders was issued in 1935, but 1920s guns (like yours) turn up from time to time with recessed cylinders on them. I used to think that these situations represented return trips to the factory during which a current-standard cylinder was numbered and installed in the gun that had come in for some other type of repair. But I don't know. I would really like to see a census of known .22/32 target models from, say, 400000 to 529000 to see how many of them have recessed cylinders. I am pretty sure that all .22/32s numbered 529000 and higher will be recessed.

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David Wilson