Hi:

I ended up iwth my father-in-law's S&W hand ejector .38 special ctg (fixed sight, 5" barrel). Serial number S 876693

Before I had someone local look at it, I wanted to have a little more information. My understanding is that the 'S' puts it somewhere between '45 and '48 (probably the latter end based on the number). But I was hoping someone could confirm this as this is as far as I got with online research so far.

Although I'm thinking I want to hang onto it (it hardly looks broken in), I was hoping I could get at least a ballpark value as well. If these are a dime a dozen I'm more inclined to put a few rounds through it. On that note, is regular .38 special ok? Everything I own is decades newer and I don't want to make assumptions just because it has 'special' in the name! Pardon my ignorance on that point.

Finally - between the S and the six digits of the serial number, in different engraving, is the three digit number '720'. Is this perhaps part of a lot number for a bulk purchase or something? I haven't seen talk of this in the research I have managed so far. I made sure to get a good picture of it.

I have tried to include the most relevant pictures, but if something else is needed for valuation purposes or would be helpful for further identification I can post more.

Thanks!

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Welcome! It is a .38 Military & Police. Jack (JP@AK) is the local expert on these and will probably be able to give you the month/year it shipped. Mid-1947?

It is fine for standard pressure .38 Special loads of any kind. The extra 720 stamping is likely an inventory or rack number; if you are inclined a letter of authenticity may reveal it was sold to a law enforcement agency:

http://www.swhistoricalfoundation.com/swhf_letter.pdf

In your first photo the strain screw (on the lower front of the grip frame) appears backed out; it should be tight. Apologies if this is not the case.

As you noted it looks original and unworn so I would guess it to be worth $450-500 or so to the right buyer.

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

Welcome to the forum.

That’s an early post-war long action Military & Police revolver, a predecessor to the model 10. Your date estimate sound pretty close to me. There’s no problem shooting current manufacture .38 Special cartridges through it. The “720” was probably stamped there by a law enforcement agency as a rack or badge number.

If the finish is original, it’s probably worth $400-$500. It’s hard to tell from your photos. The stocks look correct and are probably original to the gun. The serial number should be stamped on the inside of the right panel.

I’m sure you’ll enjoy shooting it. The strain screw need to be fully tightened (front bottom of the grip frame). Some people back it out to lighten the trigger pull, but that can create other problems and is not recommended.

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"I also cook."

You beat me by 1 minute, with basically the same info. Great Minds!!!

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"I also cook."

S871463 shipped 1/47 so yours would likely have been shipped in the first quarter of '47. I think that the post war M&P's with the brushed finish and sharp shoulder stocks are the best looking fixed sight revolvers that S&W ever produced and your looks to be an excellent example.

Thank you all. This is great information and I'm glad to know my research wasn't entirely off base. Whatever its role, it obviously didn't see much action. After that it sat in a closet as a home defense weapon for the next 50 years. If nothing else, I now know more about S&W serial numbers than I ever thought I would.


Thanks!

The closest SN on my list to yours is SN S874114 which shipped in 2/47. Most collectors would call yours a "Postwar M&P". It differs from earlier M&Ps in that it has an improved hammer drop safety (i.e., to prevent an accidental discharge if the revolver is dropped on a hard surface) which began in early 1945. That is where the S in the SN comes from. Yours has what is called the "long action". At about S991xxx, the action was redesigned to the "short action", meaning a shorter hammer fall, and it has continued ever since. At that point, collectors call those earlier short-action M&P "Pre-Model 10s" until S&W began model numbering in the late 1950s, when those M&Ps became Model 10s.

Hi FJRider

Welcome to the Forum!

Your .38 Military & Police revolver is a dandy. My research shows revolvers in that serial range shipping as early as February, 1947. However, some 4" and 5" examples did not leave the factory until April of that year. Interestingly, the closest one to yours in my database is only four digits away - S876697. It shipped to a distributor in Philadelphia on April 23, 1947. I suspect it was a LEO gun and I believe yours was too, based on the rack number on the butt.

Your revolver appears to be all original and in excellent condition. It may have some interesting provenance and I would recommend getting a letter on this one. If you do, I would appreciate hearing from you about whatever information the letter provides.

As to the value, I think Alan and Chad are in the ballpark. I'd price this one at $500 minimum. If the letter enhances the interest, I'd probably go higher if I were the purchaser.

Regards,

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

One more observation about your gun:

This serial range is the point at which the end of the extractor rod experienced a profile change. The prewar style knob end was barrel shaped. That was replaced with a knurled end that was the same diameter as the rod itself. Your revolver displays this new profile and there was no need to machine a notch in the bottom of the barrel to accommodate the fat knob.

This change seems to happen around S873xxx, but the larger knob shows up a few times on higher serialized guns. For example, S876765 has the barrel-shaped knob, as do S877228 and S877613, and a few others in that range. After that, we pretty much see only the small knurled end, with occasional exceptions in the S902xxx and S907xxx serial range.

Here's a picture of an earlier S prefix M&P with the older barrel-shaped rod end.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

Wow. This gets more and more interesting. I'm not a collector, but I certainly understand the fascination! I know the letter might not say much, but I think I'm going to get it for the sheer joy of having it at this point.

You are correct, it will probably not tell you as much as the previous comments will, except it will provide a precise shipping date. If you are extremely lucky, it might indicate an interesting shipping location other than the usual wholesaler/distributor or retail store. If that information is worth $100 to you, have at it.