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S&W Hand Ejectors: 1896 to 1961 All 5-Screw & Vintage 4-Screw SWING-OUT Cylinder REVOLVERS, and the 35 Autos and 32 Autos


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Old 05-18-2017, 03:22 PM
CleanHarold CleanHarold is offline
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Default M&P 1905 Fourth Change Grip Question

Hello all, first time poster here. I recently picked up a square butt M&P 1905 fourth change at a LGS. It's in pretty good cosmetic shape and locks up like a bank vault. The s/n begins with 577xxx and there is a star at the end. Based on the homework I've done, that puts the gun manufactured in 1939, and having been back to the factory for service. This gun is not a British gun, Victory model, and does not have a letter in front of the s/n so in my mind we have a pre-war gun. The only inconsistency is that the gun appears to have post war magna grips on it. Does anyone know if they were putting those on in later production 1905's? I have seen other 1905's online with similar grips but most seemed to be lend-lease. The gun shows some wear around them suggesting they have at least been on for a very long time.I can't seem to figure out how to add a picture, but they look like the post war pre model 10 diamond grips, also no lanyard hole. Thanks in advance, I look forward to hear what you guys think.
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Old 05-18-2017, 03:57 PM
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Welcome to the Forum. Not quite right on the date . . . your 38 M&P shipped around 1927 and should have stocks like the one in the image below.
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Last edited by glowe; 05-18-2017 at 03:59 PM.
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Old 05-18-2017, 04:36 PM
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Grips often get swapped around, and it is fairly common to see period-incorrect non-original factory grips on older guns. Magnas were not available prior to the late 1930s, and virtually all seen are from the post-WWII period. Far later than the ca. 1927 date of this one.

Last edited by DWalt; 05-18-2017 at 04:39 PM.
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Old 05-18-2017, 04:52 PM
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Interesting that you guys are dating 10 years older than I thought. This is my first pre 1957 S&W. The clerk at my LGS said he would "get it straight from the horse's mouth" and made a phone call, which I assumed to be to S&W, and 1939 was the number I was told.
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Old 05-18-2017, 04:53 PM
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And that horse would be incorrect.
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Old 05-18-2017, 08:11 PM
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I'm not buying 1939 either.

I have s/n 877679 that shipped in Dec 41 and s/n 765111 that shipped in Apr 1941.

I also know that s/n 564xxx shipped in 2/27 and s/n 571565 shipped in 1/27 as well as s/n 597966 shipping 1/36.
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Old 05-18-2017, 08:20 PM
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"s/n 597966 shipping 1/36"
Would that be an M&P snubby? Only reason I can think of for that SN to have shipped that late.
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Old 05-19-2017, 09:36 AM
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Thanks for all the info! Looks like I'll have to just suck it up and sell a kidney so I can buy some pre-war round tops for it.
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Old 05-19-2017, 09:39 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DWalt View Post
"s/n 597966 shipping 1/36"
Would that be an M&P snubby? Only reason I can think of for that SN to have shipped that late.
Yep. That was a 2" barrel.
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Old 05-19-2017, 12:17 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Targets Guy View Post
Yep. That was a 2" barrel.
So what's the deal with the low serial number and 2" barrel being held back for 10 years after the frame was made?? Were they manufactured in the 1920s and not sold for years?

As far as the "horses mouth", S&W no longer has a historian and the information obtained from them is now often suspect toady. It seems that no one at the company has any interest in their own history.
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Last edited by glowe; 05-19-2017 at 12:19 PM.
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Old 05-19-2017, 01:17 PM
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Yea, it's kind of sad really. I called them myself to ask about the grips, and all I got was that they should be walnut grips with a diamond around the screw. Ya don't say?? It's too bad they don't care about their own history, because I have really enjoyed delving into the history of this gun. How easy are the round top style grips to come across, and what would you say is a fair price for ones in decent shape? I've seen some on eBay that are over $200 and a little dingy.
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