Hi Folks,

Was gonna waste the new years eve away tucked in tightly away from the cold safe in my abode , when.....

The youngest daughter tells me that her brakes feel funny on her car. With her classes getting ready to ramp back up I knew I had better have a look.

Got dressed headed out to look it over and test drive it , to see what needed fixin'. Just a little low on fluid , but why?? Not sure so time to drive it a bit and see if it is gonna leak back out.

Now this is where the fun begins. I decide if I'm gonna drive it then I need to head to town and use the brakes a bunch and maybe stop into some pawn shops along the way. You never know what might have been brought in during the holidays.

First shop I stop at was a little place and the gun inventory is stashed away downstairs. Told the guy I was looking for nice condition older S&W's. He goes off for a few minutes and comes back with 4 S&W's piled up in his hands , sets them on the table and let gravity sort them out.


First thing I notice is a 4"28-2 in really nice shape(maybe 98%).
There was a tag on this one of $575. Another one was a heavy barrel 10-8 in decent shape. A 13-1 was also in the pile , no price tag if I remember correctly. But one in the pile I was not familiar with looked to be possibly a heavy duty.

I pick it up , look at the centered stamping on the barrel , flip it over to the side plate , and whoa...5 screw! Not a 38 but a 44 special!

Now I was not familiar with this gun at all. I was ashamed to be caught off guard. . So I calmly check and all matching numbers but was not sure on the grips but I had to assume they matched as the fit was perfect.

I ask the shop owner how much. He says around $1200. I look at it for a minute and said "I'll take it". After tax $1284 out the door.

Now mind ya , I don't usually take this big a risk on an unfamiliar gun but I just had to this time. Walking out a little nervous yet happy at the same time. Strange feeling.

Got home to do a little research and from what I have found I believe it to be a pre-21 model of 1950. made somewhere around 1955. All numbers matching grips too. 4" barrel . about 90 to 92% finish I would guess. Maybe a little better or worse.

Only about 1200 of these made in a 16 year span and around 400 of them were 4 inch. I think it may be a kinda rare bird.

Anyway , enough rambling , time for pictures.

Twig.
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a few more pictures.

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Go buy some lottery tickets you may be on a lucky streak. Also, you have found about one of the nicest fighting gun Smith & Wesson ever made.

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Bill Bates

Rare bird indeed at a bargain basement price! I hate to tell you what I paid for my 4" pre 21 but it was a whale of a lot more... That's one that belongs in your permanent (never gonna sell, trade, etc) collection!!

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Randy
Provenance nerd

Congrats on your find. It is beautiful. Your pics of that gun just made
my day. Thanks for posting.

Congratulations. What a way to start the new year.

Pawn Shop finds here are rarer than the guns I'm looking for.

Frank ,
This is my first real good find at a pawn shop. The owner was a little reluctant to sell it to me but he put a price out there to me and I jumped.
Twig.

WOW, just wow!
Congratulations,

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Tim
SWCA #2697

quinn,

I was so pleased when I got home and did a little research.
It was really a shot in the dark for me , but I am around s&W's a lot and knew I had not come across one before. The time to buy is when you see'em.
Twig.

This gun is definitely on my list, great acquisition!

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The American dream is alive

great find. need to check those brakes more often. safety first. I've got it's younger cousin, S142691. thanks for sharing. lee

Wow Lee ,
Those are pretty close in number. Do you know the ship date on yours? I'm guessing sometime in early 55 for mine. Just a guess though. They mighta shipped to the same place!

Twig.

Quinn, Lee,

Do you guys shoot yours? Is it wrong to wanna throw a few down range with this? I am torn.
Twig.

I'm callin the PO-lice.
You done went an stole that gun!

Congratulations.

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Regards,
Lee Jarrett

That is a fantastic find Twig! And a steal at that! I think yours shipped February - March of 1955, though S&W didn't ship serial numbers in numerical order. I have two pre-21's, 142499 shipped 3/7/55, and 142950 shipped 2/25/55. Uh, I paid a heck of a lot more than $1,284 for them too.
I don't shoot my pre-21's as I have other .44 Special shooters, though there is no reason why you can't put few rounds downrange. Just keep it clean and feed it good ammo. I mean, someone shot it back in the day, right?
Congratulations on a great find. I can't recall at the moment how many pre-21's were made. 1,200 I think.
PS: I like your arrowhead collection, too.

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Tom in AZ
Respect the Dingbat

what a way to end the old year and start the new year.
congrats

Terrific find! Found my four inch, only a few numbers away from yours (S142674), also in a pawn shop. This one was $225, but 15 years ago, and lettered as blue finish. I'm envious of yours. Enjoy.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

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The 5" I had was over around Marysville CA, last I saw of it in 1966. With luck like that, maybe you ought to drive through there some time.

Nice. I hope your luck carry's on into the new year.

Thank you,
I really didn't know for sure when I paid for it , but I just had a good feeling about it.
This is such a great site for all things S&W.


Twig.

You did great on that one! Thanks for sharing!
Bill

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38-44heavyduty.com

Congrats on a great find. Looks like I need some more time studying on the forum, I may have let that one slip by.

Say OP, think I saw that one on "another" forum! Lol. Looks good here too!

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USMC 83'-87', NRA Member.

That's a true find. Congrats, and Happy New Year!

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50 Years of DSOTM

Yes you did...Im pretty stoked about finding it and wanted to show it off to our friends over there too. I think a lot of members over there are members here as well. The s&w community is a awesome bunch no matter what forum.
Twig.

That's a really nice find, make sure to thank your daughter for getting you out the door.

Now, about that finish. It needs a good cleaning, oil, and then wax. I would suggest that you get out a can of WD-40, soak a paper towel with the oil and use that to clean every nook and cranny you can get at. Then wipe it dry with a fresh paper towel or two and apply a coat of pure wax to seal the remaining oil into the finish. The result will be a high polish bluing typical to the era instead of that dull semi matte finish you have right now.

Really jealous, glad you didn't hesitate. Congratulations.

I'm on it boss. I'm afraid I need to take that item into evidence while I get to the bottom of this.

Great find sir and beauty of a revolver. Gets me psyched for the Gun Show tomorrow. BTW don't forget your daughters brakes..

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Baby Chief Admirer
SWCA 2870

S 142504 another 4" shipped Mar 2, 1955.

i would love to be so lucky , shoot & enjoy 1

And, this is why we all keep going to pawn shops, gun shows, auctions, etc. There are still some rare birds out there, if only we can be lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

That is what keeps me checking also. The time you convince yourself that it is a waste of time is the time you can miss something good.
Twig.

Grand Larceny! But congratulations.

SN S 142644 shipped on March 14, 1955.

Bob

(note to Lowriderfxr: Many, I still swallow hard when I remember what I paid you for this one at Tulsa in '05. But it is a beauty and I don't regret it...it was the first of my Pre-M21 barrel length trilogy.)