I received a very special Christmas present from my father tonight, and I'd like to share my joy while also asking for a little assistance. When my grandfather passed away 21 years ago my uncle took the revolver I liked as a kid, and hung onto it as a reminder of him. Three years ago I got my dad back into shooting, and from time to time we'd talk about grandpa's old revolver, especially how I wished my dad had kept it since my uncle doesn't shoot. Well after all these years my Dad got it back from my uncle, and for Christmas today he gave me my grandfather's S&W K38 Masterpiece! It is a 5-screw pre-model 14 with a K 89XXX serial number, and in the box with it is the price tag showing the $10.95 my grandfather originally paid for it.



So here's where I need some help. Can anyone tell me what year this revolver was made, and anything special about it that you can educate me on? Although I'll never part with it until I can hand it down to my son (who's going to be born in less than a month), I'd love to get an idea of its value.

Oh, and it came with this too:


This K22 is serial K 102XXX and was my grandfather's go-to varmint gun. I'd also like to know approximately when this one was built too.

Thanks and Merry Christmas everyone!

Merry Christmas and WOW thats sweet.

Very nice. Both are probably 1950 guns, but the K-22 may have shipped in early 1951. Both appear to be the heavy barrel variety/wide rib variety, but the shadow leaves me a little uncertain on the K-22.

I can't make out the words on the price tag, but $10.95 is an impossibly low price for a Masterpiece of that era. That would be a terrific transaction.

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David Wilson

K 89xxx K-38
K84,150 – K104,047.....1950 (manufacture). It probably left the factory around Sept-Oct 1950
K 102xxx K-22
Same 1950 production range, but it probably shipped in early 1951.

Both look to be in excellent and original condition. With the boxes, I'd say you'd see each of them priced at $800-$1000 at a typical gun show. Do you happen to have the tools and paperwork originally packed in the boxes? That would add somewhat more to the value.

Merry Christmas..... two great family heirlooms.

Grandpa didn't happen to have a K32 tucked away as well? That is 2/3 of the way to a great trifecta. Congrats.

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

Wow! That sure makes for an awesome Christmas.

Merry Christmas. Great gifts. It's impossible to tell when they were shipped without the complete serial numbers. All anyone can do is guess, even then you can be off years. The only way to tell is to get a history letter.

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Don Mundell

Obviously you had a great Christmas. Wonderful.

I agree with David Wilson about the dates and the price.

When I blew up the picture of the K-22, it looked like the tapered barrel to me. The K-38 looks like it has the heavy barrel. What does the end label say on the K-38 box? Can you post a picture of it?

And yes. The tools would be a nice plus.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

A couple of tips.

First, NEVER EVER dry fire a 22 caliber revolver. Just one time can result in a dimple in the cylinder from the firing pin strike that cannot be repaired. If you really just have to try out that trigger then save your fired cases and use them to take the firing pin strike. BTW, rotate the cases between strikes and remove them after about 4 hits. Because if you hit them too many times the dimples will jam in the recess and you'll need to use a dowel pin to drive the cases free from the cylinder. BTW, I will give you just one guess on how I learned that bit of wisdom.

Second, 22LR ammunition uses a fairly slow burning powder and as a result it's one of the dirtiest shooting calibers in a handgun you can find. Sooner or later you'll find it difficult to get fresh cartridges fully seated into the chambers in the cylinder. When that happens you'll get some misfires so don't get freaked out by that. Just take a dry bronze bore brush and give each chamber 5 or 10 strokes, blow out the remnants, and resume shooting. Note, this does mean you'll have to remember to take a bore brush to the range with you every time you go to shoot. I'll also note the cheap Remington 22LR is about the worst ammo for this particular problem I've encountered, so when I can find it I prefer the Federal 22LR because it is much cleaner shooting.

Finally, the condition of your revolver and it's box are simply fantastic for the age. I would suggest that you place that box in a large Ziplock bag to preserve it and get yourself a basic silicone treated Gun Sock to keep that K22 looking good. For cleaning I like the M-Pro 7 Cleaning kit. While it's rather expensive the cleaning solvent is excellent and completely safe for a Blued Finish and the oil is also very very good. Note on oil, just an occasional (once a year) drop on the cylinder stop and each side of the hammer is all you need. Less oil means less "attractant" for powder debris and less "sludge" in the innards of your revolver.

Quite possible the "1" after the "$" sign on the price tag was a "7".
Long ago S&W model M&P retail was $65.00 with nickel at $70.00.
Model Combat Masterpiece was $76.95 with nickel at $81.95
Combat Magnum-$110.00 with nickel at $115.00
.357 (M27) at $120.00
.44 Magnum (M29) at $140.00
Highway Patrolman at $85.00

Yes, I will go take some better pics of the box and the revolvers.


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Thank you everyone for the great info, I will be taking more pics today to share.


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You've obviously been a good boy this year. My heirloom guns are my favorites. Merry Christmas!

all I know is Santa has never found me to be THAT good for a Christmas like yours... and any value I can put on them is priceless... the same price I put on my grandfathers guns....

VERY nice. Print out or write down everything Scooter123 said. He is spot on.

I TRIED to explain all those allegations to Santa, but he must have believed his C.I.s . So, I got sox, and you got 2 of the best revolvers in the world.

HEY ! Guys received firearms for Christmas presents ???
All I ever get in my Christmas stocking is lumps of coal and switches !

Here's the boxes and more of the K38:













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You are correct. I googled all the terms on the tag below and it seems this tag was for a C A Hoffman & Son clamshell swivel style holster. It makes much more sense for the holster to be $10.95!




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Wow, I can't even see a hint of a "turn line" on that K-38. That leads me to believe it's not just unfired it is also unhandled, meaning truly New In Box. For me that would really create a conflict, because I purchase my guns to shoot and it would be really difficult for me to resist the urge to shoot that K-38. I'd suggest that you start looking at the various shops in your area for a Shooter grade K-38 or model 14 to ease the temptation to try out that NIB sample.

No, this has definitely been fired, and has a faint turn line you can see in this closeup picture, but it is in great shape for its age.






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Beautiful pair, and from your Grandfather to boot. Awesome!

What a treasure. Those are two very desirable revolvers. When your grandfather purchased them I'm sure back of his mind he imagined a fine grandson admiring and cherishing them as much as he had.

And if he'd even dared to dream that that grandson intended to pass them on to his son, he would be ecstatic to know that would happen too. Multi-generational ownership of two of the finest handguns ever made. That is the 2nd Amendment at work. Thanks for sharing.

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Join the NRA today

The K-22 looks like it's maybe nicer than the 38. Both extremely nice old firearms and OP is very fortunate!

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Just Say No - To Social Media

Very nice. Congratulations and Merry Christmas.

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

I was a little doubtful too, but the presence of the target hammer pushed me to the heavy-barrel side of the equation. There is no reason NOT to put a target hammer on a narrow-rib revolver, but precision shooters had asked for both features, and both were available by early 1950 (or maybe even very late 1949). Ignoring the absence of target stocks, this just feels to me like a competition configuration -- or at the very least a package for a demanding shooter whether he was into competition or not.

The way the light catches the back of the barrel where it enters the frame makes it look flared, as you would see on narrow rib revolvers. But I think that's just an accident of illumination and reflection. A picture of the muzzle end of the .22 barrel would tell the tale.

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David Wilson

Here's a top view of the K22 showing the taper as the barrel leaves the frame. The K38 doesn't have that little taper as it is the same diameter the full length of the barrel.



Here's a side view:



I thought it was odd that everything but the barrel is an exact match to the K38. I was guessing they shaved a little weight off the barrel so that the gun would be the same weight as the K38, since the .38 caliber bore would make the it lighter than a .22 barrel of the same diameter.


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Yes, David. Thanks for your additional comments.

We got better, closeup pictures of the K-38, but not of the K-22. However, the label on the K-22 box would tend to support it being a tapered barrel, no? (That is, there is no heavy barrel reference.) Also, I'm trying to see what the taper looks like on the frame, just behind the barrel. But it isn't clear in the picture, either. If it tapers off to the side and isn't just flat (like we see on the K-38), I'd think that would be another indication of a tapered barrel. That side-facing taper disappeared from the K-38 in the early 1950s, while it remained on the Combat Masterpiece. I suspect the same was true of the K-22, when it went to the straight barrel (I no longer own a K-22 from that period so I don't have one to look at).

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

I was simply wrong in my understanding of the original photo and my interpretation of the secondary evidence. That's clearly a narrow-rib barrel on the K-22. Thanks to the OP for the later photo and to Jack for his additional comments.

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David Wilson

Yep. I had not seen Post #28 when I wrote Post #29. The latest pics confirm, as you said, David.

1911luvr
Do you see the difference on the forward-most part of the frame? The K-22 has an angular taper. The K-38 has a flat, front-facing taper. That is the slight difference in the frame when the two different barrels were used. After the K-38 became a heavy barrel-only revolver, the flat taper was used exclusively on it. The .38 Combat Masterpiece continued to have that angular taper for quite a few more years because it continued to be fitted to the narrow, tapered barrel.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

1911luvr, I can tell you the EXACT value of your wonderful Christmas gift. It is the amount of money you will receive for it when you SELL it. Circumstances being equal in my household, it would be PRICELESS, as I would never SELL it; nor, would I ever include it on my "Net Worth Statement". I would try to evaluate why my grandfather never (seemingly) shot the K-38, but used the K-22. You've got at least a dozen years to figure this out before explaining to your son how all of this came to be. Living life is a wonderful adventure, and hopefully, with the help of your Dad, he will also know the gift of a loving family. Dennis