I was given the hand gun by my father. It was originaly owned by his Grandfather. It needs a some love, but it does work. ( I last fired it about 25 years ago.)

I would like to find out how old it is.

Ser# 279691
22 long rifle ctg
The patent date on the bottom of the grip 1917

I don't see any other marks on it.

Any info is greatly appreciated.

Welcome! Photos would be helpful here, but from your description it is likely a .22/32 Heavy Frame Target, which has a 6" barrel. The ship dates on these are well-known to others on the Forum, but somewhere in the early 1920s would be my best guess.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Sorry about that. I thought I attached one. Here is a picture. Thanks for the info.

Attached Images

image.jpg (165.1 KB, 186 views)

I agree with Murphydog's ID as a .22/32 HFT, a .22 caliber made on the .32 I frame.
The lack of a S&W logo stamp dates it's production to a small window from c. 1918 to 1919-20. And the dated stocks ID them as Regulation Police rebated square butt. The serial # coincides with both items.

They are great fun and accurate shooters but should't be used with High Velocity ammo.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Oh I see a photo was posted while I was posting and interupted by a visitor. That appears to be in beautiful condition, but not a good enough pic to evaluate it for a refinish.

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Jim
S&WCA #819

Welcome to the forum. S&W introduced that model in 1911 and made it until just before WWII. After the war the model got a slight redesign and went into production again about 1953. After 1957 it was known as the Model 35.

In 1931 S&W introduced a larger .22 revolver based on its mid-sized K-frame, and commercially speaking that is where the company's .22 action has been for 80 years. The small frame .22s are still great shooters, but the larger frame revolvers are more accurate -- or perhaps I should say easier to shoot accurately with minor amounts of practice.

Not that the small-frame .22s were any slouch. Here are a couple of pages from the company catalog of 1925.





By the mid-'20s the standard front sight design had changed and the company had returned to installing the larger extension stocks as the standard grip configuration for the model. The stocks on yours were introduced in 1917 for a .32 fixed sight revolver, but they were also mounted on the .22 and .32 target revolvers of the era.

My guess is that your gun probably shipped in 1919; that year saw a lot of guns in the 27xxxx range leave the factory.

Looks to be a nice specimen. They are fun to shoot, but in my experiences it takes some effort to develop accuracy with them.

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David Wilson

Rubber stamp:
The CTG is "cartridge", nothing to do with a model label.
It's just telling you what the gun shoots, .22 Long Rifle Cartridge.
The title of your thread is a caliber, not a gun.
Denis

I thank you all for all the input. It is nice to find out about some of the history with this weapon.

You're very welcome.
But a weapon; did you threaten or shoot someone with it? Please, let's not play into the hands of the anti gunners and the lame stream media; it's a gun like a hammer is a hammer, a car is a car, a knife is a knife, etc., until used as a weapon.
Thank you,

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Jim
S&WCA #819