Hi Guys,

I just received my great grandfathers service revolver which is a SW .32/20 hand ejector 1905 fourth change.

The story I've been told was that this revolver was my great grandfathers service revolver while he was a customs agent back in the early 1900's. The question I have is: did the US government issue their border patrol / customs agents these revolvers?

Welcome to the Forum.

I doubt that this is a issued revolver. Many agencies required officers to provide their own firearms. I carried my own .32-20 S&W on occasion while I was a sheriff's deputy, back in the mid '70s.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

Interesting, thanks for your response. I wanted to verify the validity of this story. Do you know what type of revolver would have been used / the popular choice for customs - border patrol agents?

From your response it sounds like it was a variety of different revolvers being used.

Welcome to the forum.

I'm sure that we'd all like to see a better picture of your grandfather's revolver without that darned reflective glass in the way.

It rather depends on what you mean by "early." Based on the stocks, this example is from the 1910-1920 period. And if it is a "4th Change" it is from the period after the war to about 1920.

Is the last patent date on the top December 29, 1914?

Agree about the glass.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

Do you know whether this gun has been professionally refurbished, maybe at the factory?

In the current pristine condition, I would say it is not just unlikely, but impossible that the gun was carried as a service gun at all. It does not even have much of a turn line on the cylinder. The blemishes on one side look like storage issues. The stocks and the checkering look barely touched.

I see no obvious signs of any refinish in these photos.

I agree with Muley Gil...almost all agencies required officers to furnish their own guns. My dept. didn't issue them until 1972.
Both Colts and S&W's were popular, especially in .38 Spl, but 32-20 was still a popular caliber.
Your great grandfather left a nice legacy!

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Mike H

My impression also. It apparently led a soft life which would be inconsistent with the condition of a service revolver which had been carried by a border patrolman.

To my knowledge this revolver was never refinished. My grandpa would occasionally oil the revolver and wrap it up in a oil soaked tshirt. He never mentioned to me that he nor his father refinished it.

My great grandfather worked as a translator for customs / border patrol for the incoming chinese immigrants in San Francisco. Not sure if those agency's back in the day were separate or operated under the same agency. He definitely wasnt a gunslinger or a Bill Jordan. He worked behind a desk which probably why the revolver is in such great shape.

First of all welcome to the forum. Your grandfathers revolver is an absolute treasure in pristine condition!

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U.S. Coast Guard, retired CPO

At the time when this revolver shipped, the Border Patrol had not been created yet (that didn’t happen until 1924), and the Immigration Service was a bureau within the Department of Labor, not a law enforcement agency. As a translator, Great-grandpa would have been a civil servant working, as you say, behind a desk, and unlikely to have a service gun, no matter how acquired.

I would suspect he purchased this gun privately for whatever reasons, and any purported connection between the gun and his job developed later in family lore.

Welcome and very nice revolver. By the way, any current production factory 32/20 ammo should be safe in that firearm. Civil servants in the first part of the 20th century were not always like civil servants in the first part of the 21st century. I can easily see that revolver living in the desk drawer of a translator in San Fran.

The condition of those grips tells me this revolver didn’t see much, if any, “service”. You can tell if they are the originals by the number stamped or written on the back of the right grip. It should match the serial number on the butt (and other locations). That’s a beautiful and priceless piece of family history.
Good shootin’,
Doug

This is true; HOWEVER, the rifle only ammo has not been produced for many, many years. It can be IDed by the hollow point 80 grain jacketed bullet and the head stamp, which should say "Hi-Speed" or something similar. See picture below, taken by alk8944.

To further confuse matters, Remington .32-20 comes in a box that states "Express Rifle", but it is safe in quality, well maintained revolvers. This is due, I believe, to the fact that the .32-20 cartridge being introduced in rifles before being adapted to revolvers.

Attached Images

Hi-Speed .32-20 alk8944.jpg (1.8 KB, 261 views)

__________________
John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

I picked up a box of Black Hills .32/20 Win. I doubt I'll ever put any rounds through this revolver.

That is one nice gun. You're lucky it's been taken care of.
Oh, yeah: GO STEELERS! Jeff T. PGH PA

Well, you will be missing out on some fun shooting. I've had at least one .32-20 since 1975. All of mine have been good shooters.

__________________
John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!