Revolver I.D.

Coleman H · #1 05-22-2022, 07:26 PM

Howdy,
Trying to figure out year and model of a revolver I just picked up. It has no model # on the yoke. It has a swing out cylinder and a serial number reading C 170119 on the buttplate. It has a 4 inch pinned barrel with "38 S&W Special CTG" stamped on it. It also has 3 screws on the side plate and one in front of the trigger guard and it has fixed sights.

I have been looking thru my gun books and the internet and cannot get any info. Can you guys help?

Coleman.

handejector · #2 05-22-2022, 07:30 PM

38 M&P from around 1950. Could be called a Pre Model 10. It is a 5 Screw. There is one more screw on the sideplate under the grips.
Look here for a pic of that other screw- Sticky: To IDENTIFY your Gun >

quinn · #3 05-22-2022, 07:31 PM

Sounds like a Military and Police model, K frame sized, and shipped in the early 1951s. A couple of years later, about 1958 this would become the Model 10 when S&W started giving numbers rather than names to their models. This is one of the most plentiful moles S&W ever made.

Coleman H · #4 05-23-2022, 09:02 AM

Thanks guys, thats more info than I could have found on my own! Smith's are pretty well built, would this revolver handle +P ammo or just use standard pressure?

robertrwalsh · #5 05-23-2022, 10:25 AM

You would not want to shoot a lot of +P ammo thru it.

Wiregrassguy · #6 05-23-2022, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coleman H

Thanks guys, thats more info than I could have found on my own! Smith's are pretty well built, would this revolver handle +P ammo or just use standard pressure?

Welcome to the forums from the Wiregrass! That revolver can handle any commercial ammo being produced today. +P is what it was designed to consume and it will happily shoot it all day.

Bald1 · #7 05-23-2022, 06:27 PM

Shoot +P till your hearts content. I do.

Pizza Bob · #8 05-24-2022, 02:58 PM

Maybe a little in the way of an explanation about the responses regarding +P ammunition.

Contemporary with the build date of your revolver, standard .38 Special ammunition was about the equivalent of today's +P ammunition. The standard variety stuff of today has been reduced considerably over what it used to be, due to the number of older (much older than your 1950 K-frame) guns out there.

So shooting +P ammo is pretty much what this gun was designed for back in the day.

Now you know the rest of the story.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

Coleman H · #9 05-26-2022, 09:43 AM

Lots of good info on this forum, thanks gents!