The LGS called today to say that the .32 Long I won at auction had arrived. Tom K started a thread about this auction last week.

It looks better in hand than from the photos on GB. And much better than my hasty photos show.

It is a K Frame M&P, .32 S&W Long, 6” barrel, pinned front half moon sight, barrel ejector rod. Serial number 677992 is in the pre-war K32 Target series according to the SWCA Database.

Serial numbers on butt, barrel flat, yoke, extractor star, and cylinder match.

The non-matching grips bear the number 672521 on the right grip and the left grip has the word “Slugger” written in ink on it.

The front of the ejector rod barrel is white. Side plate screws show some evidence of an ill-fitting screwdriver. No rework dates on the sides of the grip frames.

Overall good shape, sharp rifling, some freckling on the sides of the frame, blue wear indicates it spent some time in a holster. Tight lockup and smooth action.

I need to get some photos printed to enclose with the letter request.

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More pix to accompany the first

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And some more photos

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congrats, very nice looking revolver. i would be proud to add it to my little collection. krs

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Too good

Wow, that really is nice! I'm glad it went to a fellow Forum and SWCA member.

I WANT ONE! that is one fine revolver. Lee

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VFW, NRA, VVA, S&WCA 1758

I have to say that is a very nice revolver. Very classy, I am more than a little envious.

What he said

Robert

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

Good for you for recognizing and getting it! Please post the letter results if you are able?

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Alan
SWCA LM 2023, SWHF 220

That is a great gun. I doubt we will ever see another one from that late 30s era.
BE SURE to describe and send pics of both sights to Roy.
BE SURE to ask what kind of grips it shipped with. They might have been magnas.
After you get the letter, BE SURE to check with the SWHF for correspondence about the gun.

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Regards,
Lee Jarrett

Lee, thanks for the advice on what to emphasize in the letter request.

I have the letter request, attached amplifying information, and the photos ready to mail tomorrow.

And I definitely will check with the SWHF after I receive the letter.

The letter contents will be posted here. This forum has been invaluable in broadening my S&W education.

Now for the most important question: How's she shoot?

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SWCA #3356, SWHF#611

I intend to find out. The gun club range is only about 3 miles away, but it is an outdoor range and it is a mite cold here in MN right now.

The stocks that came on the gun were not original to the gun. Letter request mailed off today so perhaps the original grip style will be revealed. In the mean time these will suffice...

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Did ya get the letter yet....waiting

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Robert
SWCA #2906, SWHF #760

I have never seen a pre-war .32 Long M&P, only the Target model. But there were some of them made in the postwar period and they are very seldom encountered as most were exported. Could be that yours was a special order.

Yup, still waiting. My check was processed on Feb 23rd. I'm thinking pretty soon. Kind of like a kiddo waiting on Christmas morning

Roy gave a ship date of April 1939, so 83 years old this month.

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S&WCA #1955, S&WHF #818

Two concerns about this one? How can it come from a lot of K32 Targets without being a target? Frame is that of a standard Military & Police. Second, there should be no reason to have a pinned front sight?? Standard M&P barrels came with a forged front sight.

If there is no sign of sleeving of the cylinder, the frame and barrel likely go together and it would still make it a 32 Long M&P, just not a Target. Is there any such thing?

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Gary
SWCA 2515

Good questions, and I am hoping all will be answered in the letter.

The gun was advertised as a Regulation Police, which it obviously is not.

The S/N does fall within the range of the pre-war .32 Long Target models, and, as you point out, it is in fact a M&P frame.

As to the pinned front sight, from photos I have seen of the pre-war .32 Long Target models, it appears that the pinned front sight is a standard feature on that model. Assuming this was a special order, I think S&W would have used a barrel and cylinder from the .32 Long Target model on the M&P frame.

The post-war .32 Long M&P’s appear to have front sights forged as a part of the barrel, rather than pinned, but these were planned and produced as a production run of M&P .32 Longs.

Was this gun a one-off special order, or perhaps one of a half-dozen ordered for an agency?

I’ll share the contents of the letter, when it arrives, and any info that may be provided by the S&WHF.

As is often said of S&W products, “Never Say Never.” That’s part of what makes all this interesting, if not a little frustrating. My hunt for an inexpensive K-Frame .32 Long shooter has resulted in quite unexpected twists and turns. I’m more of a shooter than a collector but I really enjoy learning about the older S&W revolvers and this Forum has been an excellent resource to further that education.

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S&WCA #1955, S&WHF #818

The barrel is, of course, the same as the 32-20 except for the front sight height. Perhaps, the factory used left-over 32-20 barrels and the forged sight was too low, so installed a higher sight blade to accurize the 32 Long? I am sure that all rough forged barrels had forged sights and when used for target barrels, the factory simply milled off the round sight and fitted the sight base with a target blade for all calibers pre-WWII.

I seem to recall other 32 Long M&Ps on this Forum, but it would be hard to find them.

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Gary
SWCA 2515

Here's one, but not prewar. It shipped to Sloane's on April 21, 1948.

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Jack
SWCA #2475, SWHF #318

The letter could be interesting. It seems yours may have been a one-off non-cataloged example. I wouldn’t argue about the 1939 date provided. Please provide the letter contents when received. BTW, I have a postwar .32 Long M&P identical to the one pictured above, but no box. There is a bit of mystery about where they all disappeared to. Some have shown up in Mexico and South America.

My 32 S&W long has seen a good deal of use and is of the "I" frame era. The original stocks were a bit abused, so it received a nice set of goodyears to better fit my hand.

I frame 32's are a dime a dozen compared to the OP's K frame 32.

Congrats!

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SWCA #3356, SWHF#611

I insist on adjustable sights on my revolvers. I love this 32 M&P.

Sometimes being bipolar is an advantage!

Froggie

I received the Authentication letter from Mr. Jinks and he confirms that this revolver is a .38 Military and Police, Model of 1905 Fourth Change, Special Order Variation, .32 S&W Long caliber.

Per the letter it is the only fixed sight standard .38 M&P in .32 S&W Long documented prior to WWII, and its production was authorized by Douglas Wesson, S&W Vice President.

It was shipped to Col. Alfred J. Handel, U.S. Marine Detachment, Norfolk, VA on April 18, 1939.

I researched Alfred J. Handel on ancestry.com and find no reference to a COLONEL by that name, but there are numerous references in the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps Registers to a CORPORAL Alfred J. Handel. Perhaps there was a transcription error in the original records?

Corporal Handel was the Clerk to the Squadron Marine Officer stationed aboard the USS New York, BB-34 and he transferred to Marine Barracks, Navy Yard, Philadelphia, PA, in April 1939, before the date this gun was shipped from S&W.

The Squadron Marine Officer at the time was Major Benjamin W. Gally. I am inclined to think that Corporal Handel , as the clerk, was the addressee to receive the gun, but question whether a Corporal in 1939 might have sufficient funds or political / social connections to convince the S&W Vice President to authorize production of this one-off handgun.

A search by the S&W Historical Foundation did not turn up any additional documentation on this gun. I appreciate their efforts.

The Letter of Authentication confirms that the gun is in the configuration in which it shipped, with the exception that the grips, though the correct style, number to an earlier gun.

Post WWII both long and short action M&P’s were produced in .32 S&W Long. It appears most were in 4” and 5” barrel lengths, with a few 2”. Are there any documented 6” guns postwar?

It has been well cared for by previous owners though it has some obvious holster wear and freckling in the highly polished blue finish.

Someone asked the inevitable question - “how does it shoot?”

Very well, considering both the gun and owner qualify for “Geezer” status

I have only gotten it to the range twice and the load used was the Accurate Molds SWC bullet #31-100R over 2.0 grains of Bullseye. That load, in the Bisley 6.5” barrel chronographs just under 750 fps on the Oehler 35P.

I put about 40 rounds through it and it was a real treat to shoot. Since receiving the letter, and documenting its rarity, it has been retired to the safe.

Attached are a few new photos though I still need to work on my photography skills.

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	Muster Roll Handel Apr 1939.jpg (162.8 KB, 107 views)
	DSCN6707a.jpg (99.8 KB, 86 views)
	DSCN6714a.jpg (78.7 KB, 67 views)

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S&WCA #1955, S&WHF #818

The typo in the letter is hilarious, Mike is going to enjoy that one.

Congratulations on the fantastic letter on an already enviable gun. You have a true treasure there!

findagrave

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Read his sibling, Daniel, for full family history.
Alfred James Handel (1911-1962) - Find a Grave Memorial

I'm sure the letter intended to say "prior to WW2", but must have been thinking about some else at the same time.

Mike Priwer

I'm wondering if the abbreviation for Corporal, "Cpl" and for Colonel, "Col" couldn't easily be mixed up. Especially since "O" and "P" are right next to each other on the keyboard. (Or, maybe it was intentional???)

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

Benjamin W. Gally retired from the Marine Corps as a Brigadier General. He was a colonel on Iwo Jima.

"For the assault of Iwo Jima the 5th Marine Division created the 5th Shore Party Regiment with the Commanding Officer from the 16th Marines, Col Benjamin W. Gally as commander. It was composed of the 5th Pioneer Battalion and 31st Naval Construction Battalion.[3] The 5th Engineer Battalion was under Divisional control." (Taken from Wikipedia)

There was a law in effect that when an officer who had received (IIRC) a combat commendation was retired at the next higher rank. Gally was probably a colonel when he submitted his retirement papers.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

This gun and its story just keep on getting better and better. I wonder whether Cpl Handel in his position as company clerk just handled the order and shipping for Maj Gally, his boss? If it didn't get to Norfolk until after the Cpl had already been transferred, I wonder how it would have been forwarded. Of course in those days it was a lot easier to ship guns wherever they needed to go.
Regardless, the M&P in 32 S&W L is the one revolver in the series that sets my amphibian heart racing. Nice find!
Froggie

Back in the '30s, the Marine Corps was VERY small and generally all of the officers knew each other. It wouldn't be hard to find Major Gally.

The SgtMajor would be able to track down Cpl Handel.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

I really enjoyed researching your revolver. Congratulations on a fantastic revolver. Only thing better would have been if I owned it!

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Don Mundell

Thank you Don. The effort you and Roy put into researching and documenting our “finds” are a real asset to we S&W fans.

It is a bit humbling to have found such a jewel and to be its caretaker for a while.

Love the history behind these guns - if they could only talk! But the mystery is part of the appeal.

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S&WCA #1955, S&WHF #818

Wow! Quite a story. Thanks for sharing.

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S&WCA #1955, S&WHF #818

AKtinman, did you get any indication of where the gun had been recently? I assume that it was consigned to the auction house from somewhere, but any indication where it's been for the last 83 years?
Froggie

That turned out to be exactly what I had expected. I would like to know why a Marine would want a .32 M&P.

Maybe for target shooting? The course of fire used to be .22, .32 or larger, and .45.

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John 3:16
WAR EAGLE!

Have a link?

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Regards,
Lee Jarrett

Alfred James Handel (1911-1962) - Find a Grave Memorial

He has good taste?

No idea, Froggie.

The gun was sold by a gun shop in Madison, Mississippi and represented as having come from the estate of a “local collector.” The collector must have been an interesting guy - the majority of the guns purported to be from this estate have been pre-war S&W and Colts, many having the original grips replaced by ivory, pearl, or bone/stag.

I checked the serial numbers of many of the older K-Frames in the auction over the past couple of months in the hope that the gun serial might match the mismatched grips on my gun and that gun might have the correct grips for this .32, but no joy.

As to where it has been? The gun came to me out of Mississippi.

SWSC’s link to find-a-grave shows Alfred J. Handel buried in Seattle.

Colonel Benjamin W. Gally was advanced to Brigadier General upon his retirement and is buried in California.

Questions: Was Corporal Handel the actual buyer, or was he acting as the intermediary to receive the gun and pass it to the new owner?

Was Major Gally the intended recipient?

Were Corporal Handel and Major Gally participants in a plan to ultimately present this gun to a respected senior officer / enlisted man as a retirement gift?

Lots of what-if’s.

I did not see any indication that either Corporal Handel or Major Gally were involved in competitive shooting, and if they had been, an adjustable sighted gun would have had more appeal.

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S&WCA #1955, S&WHF #818

I missed this thread the first time around, but I really enjoyed it on its "letter rebound."

Congratulations on such a rare find. Like others, I'm envious.

Thanks for sharing.

Curly

That was exactly what I figured. If either had been a competitive target shooter, the much more likely choice would have been to get a target model having adjustable sights, not a fixed-sight M&P. I suppose we can never know why a Marine would want such a pipsqueak revolver enough to have it special-ordered.

Because it's really cool?

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SWCA #3356, SWHF#611