Sorry about not having any pictures, it is quite late here and the lighting is bad. I found my grandfather's old revolver which he said was his uncle's who was a police officer in the 20's and 30's in Chicago.

It says 38 S. & W. Special CTG along the barrel, the barrel itself is 6 inches I believe if I measured it right. And the serial number is 3908xx. I'm not much of a gun guy but I tried to follow the instructions of the forum as best I can. I just want to know what the model is and if it has any value as a collectible.

Thanks,
Eric

It's a Military and Police (M&P) model which shipped in the late 1921-early 1922 period. Most will have a square butt, some will have a rounded butt. It's value would depend greatly upon condition, but without a few good pictures, it's not possible to make an assessment of condition. Typical range $250-$400.

Welcome to the Forum.
The Catalog says # 241,704 is from 1915. # 700,000 is from 1945, so it's somewhere in there.
I would imagine it is a Military and Police model. They didn't get model numbers until 1957. It then became the Model 10.
Jim

My guess would be a Military & Police Model from around 1920 +/-. S&W made millions of these, so while they are classic revolvers and great fun to shoot unless it's in absolutely pristine condition the monetary value is pretty low because they are so common. Like a few hundred dollars. As a keepsake it's priceless.

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No life story has happy end.

Alright, I really appreciate the help, I'll probably just hold onto it for sentimental value as he just passed away, maybe something to give to my kids someday.

A priceless piece of family history from a unique historic period and place.

If you really want to do the family a favor and make the gun a priceless heirloom, get in touch with the Chicago Police Dep't ( or what ever city police dept. your Great Great Uncle worked for ) and get all the info. on his service history.Did he get any awards? Did he have a shoot out with Al Capone? Get his picture in the papers? etc. etc. Maybe a picture of him in uniform with the gun, his badge number, etc. Get a S&W factory Historical letter telling when, where and to whom the gun was shipped, etc. Your descendants will honor you! Ed.

I'm with Ed on this... it would be a good thing (and probably interesting as well) to gather as much history right now as possible on your ancestor as well as the gun itself, and store it along with the gun to be passed on to future generations. As each generation passes on, the most interesting parts of their life can either be recorded, or lost... I much prefer recorded so future generations can enjoy and feel a connection with the family history. BTW, since you are "not a gun guy" it might be a good idea to have someone familiar with guns clean and oil the gun, at least on the outside, to preserve the current condition for those coming descendants. Oh yeah, welcome to the forum as well!

Froggie

Too many vintage guns get sold off to the first to bite and end up losing the real value which us the history and lineage behind it.

Totally agree with what was said above. Get all the history you can and honor both the gun and the man. Behind every LE gun was a real flesh and blood man who walked a beat, drove a patrol car and served his community.

I, for one, would really love to see pictures of it when you get the chance.

Bob

By all means, don't sell or trade the gun. If it had been in my family since the early part of the 20th Century, the word "probably" wouldn't even enter into the equation.

I went ahead and took some pictures of the gun. I definitely like the idea of finding out about who my Great-Great Uncle was and where the gun came from and all of that. I have never really taken a liking to guns before but finding this is really cool and it may have sparked an interest in something I didn't know I had an interest in before. I want to thank you all for the information and your help. It's really appreciated

-Eric

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That's a nice old M&P. It may not be worth a lot of money but it's priceless as a family keepsake. It should be a good shooter too.

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AL
Pax Per Potens

It looks completely correct, and the wood grips are correct for that period. It is important that you keep the grips to preserve value of the revolver. It's still as good a .38 Special revolver as you can get today.

Also be sure to NOT store it in the holster. I suggest a wipe with a silicone cloth after handling the revolver, and store it in a silicone sock. Keep the holster separate so it does not adversely effect the finish on that handsome revolver.Keep safe with it, too.

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NICK-SWCA-NRA BENEFACTOR LIFE

You know, knowing where it came from and a little bit of the back story makes that one of the most beautiful revolvers I've ever laid eyes on. It just reeks of character.

If only it could talk.

Bob

That is a very nice old gun. Very interesting too.

You might also want to wax it occasionally. Johnson's paste wax works fine, or you can even use shoe polish or Turtle Wax.

That was my next question in terms of polishing it up, good that got answered, I also think it's cool he got his initials on the side of the gun. J.J.O., definitely gives it some character. And I'll be sure to keep it out of the holster.

Wow, he even has a nice pre-war H.H. Heiser holster too!

Is that good? I know nothing of the holster, just thought it was cool.

Lineage is important! I have a Colt Cobra that I could easily sell but it came from a friend whose ancestor carried it. Thus, I keep it.

***GRJ***

Please dont store it in the holster as previously mentioned. I once had an older 44 Special S&W that had a perfect set of grips and perfect finish on the grip frame. It had been stored in a holster and the front part was rusted to relic status. Front sight was mostly rusted off. (3rd Model 44 HE 5 inch BL)

You might want to clean up and preserve that Heiser holster
so it will last a long time. If you notice, there is some green
crud around the metal fittings. That's called "Verdigris", which
is produced when the metal snaps and other items come into
contact with the chemicals used to tan the leather. You can
remove with a pointed tooth pick and a wet paper kitchen towel.

After that, take a wrung out wet face cloth and wipe down the
holster to remove dirt and grime. Allow it to air dry.

After it's dried, use a good leather preservative on it like "Black-
rock Leather 'N' Rich". Follow the directions. It will recondition
the leather and make it look as good as new. I use it on all of
my collectible Heiser holsters and they all look fantastic!

Have fun.

The gun is a 4", not a 6".

Also, I don't want to rain on anyone's parade but I must offer a word of caution. You didn't say where you live or where you found the gun. Illinois is a rabid anti-gun state and you could be charged with possession of an unregistered handgun.

You might want to check to see if your state has a mechanism for registering heirlooms found in attics, garages etc. If so, you would have to notify the police and have them pick it up, with a receipt to you. If your current state of residence has no registration requirement, then you're home free.

I also agree with Ed above regarding lettering it and cherishing it. I have several very collectable handguns in my meager collection, but I wouldn't take a one of them in trade for the single shot 20 guage shotgun that my dad gave me. It's the only gun he ever gave me. He's been gone since January 19th 1991 but my model marked 22 .45 military and my 2nd model K22/40 will leave me before that shotgun EVER leaves my safe! Why?.. because Eugene Epperson gave it to me in about 1969.
It's probably worth, um, $50 on the market, but a bit more than that to me.

Roger

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Eph 2:8-9

I'm from Michigan and I don't believe we have any crazy laws regarding gun control, I may be wrong though.

The other thing I found was a leather case for holding bullets that has some really old bullets inside of it. I thought that was kind of cool but I imagine the bullets aren't safe as they look rather corroded on the outside.

While you're looking, see if you can find the original box, paper
work and tools. It would increase the value of your S&W quite
a bit.

You should definitely keep the old ammo, but don't shoot it. It
will be kind of a time capsule thing. Clean and condition the
ammo holder like the holster.