S&W 38spl 001.jpg

S&W 38spl 002.jpgI recently came across an old 38 spl S&W 6shot,6inch barrell with fixed sights.I am curious of the year and model the serial # on butt is 5845xx and there is no letter prefix.I have been told it may be from 1927 but not sure.Any info would be great. Thanks

Its about 1927 - 1928 . The grips, of course, are not factory. They
look to be Ajax modern ivory, or maybe some other material.

With the square butt, it's a 1905 4th change .38 M&P .

Later, Mike Priwer

.38 Military and Police, also known as the Model of 1905, Fourth Change. 1927-28 sounds about right for that serial number.

Those are not the original stocks on the gun. I suspect that is a synthetic or composite ivory material.

The gun looks to be in OK shape, judging from the finish. Does the action feel smooth? Do you plan to shoot it? If so, you should probably check it out thoroughly before sending a bullet down the barrel.

This model is not rare. S&W made over 700,000 of these before WW2, and then about a million more during the war. But they are definitely rich with history. That's a nice catch.

EDITED MOMENTS LATER TO ADD: OK, Mike beat me by a few seconds. But I'm glad to see my comments confirmed by someone who knows a lot more about S&Ws than I ever will.

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David Wilson

I have fired it about 30 rounds.The guy i got from bought it used in the 80's and never fired it.Seems to function 100%Thanks for the info.