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S&W Revolvers: 1980 to the Present All NON-PINNED Barrels, the L-Frames, and the New Era Revolvers


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Old 06-13-2017, 07:55 PM
gunsmoke101 gunsmoke101 is offline
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Default Model 16-4

I have just acquired a Model 16-4 8 3/8" with Serial Number BET9199. There is not much information about this model on the internet. I was able to determine there were about 8000-9000 made between 1989 and 1992 and the one I acquired is probably one of the last ones made. Can anyone tell me what is the last serial number made for the Model 16-4, and exactly how many were made?
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Old 06-13-2017, 08:38 PM
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Default Model 16-4

Welcome to the Smith & Wesson Forum from Central Florida! I don't have all the specifics you're asking for on your Model 16-4, mine is a 6" and is Serial BEH2069.
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Old 06-13-2017, 08:53 PM
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The only thing I can add to what you have is that there were approximately 8800 produced in the three combined barrel lengths during that period. You might want to send an email to Smith, they may be able to be more specific on the manufacture date of your revolver.
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Old 06-13-2017, 08:59 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gunsmoke101 View Post
I have just acquired a Model 16-4 8 3/8" with Serial Number BET9199. ...
The normal ship date range for that s/n prefix is....
January - April 1990.
The latest 8 3/8-inch gun I've seen shipped in September of 1990. I think the 4-inch and 6-inch guns were made in about equal numbers. The 8 3/8-inch gun, maybe at about half their rate.

I don't know how many, but if your 8,000 to 9,000 total number is right, and my observation is right, then there would be approximately 1,700 of the 8 3/8-inch guns.

(2x + 2x + 1x = 5x = 8,500; x=1,700. It took 40 years, but Jr. High algebra finally served a propose. )
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Old 06-13-2017, 09:08 PM
g8rb8 g8rb8 is offline
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Welcome to the S&W Forum.

The 16-4 in an 8-3/8" barrel is not often seen.

A quick look at the SCSW (Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson) 4th edition does not detail the last serial number for the 16-4. Off the top of my head I cannot figure a way to determine the last serial # for the 16-4.

The SCSW cites total production of 8800 of the 16-4 produced in the 3 different barrel lengths.

The SCSW is not helpful for year of manufacture for the BET prefix serial numbers. Extrapolating from information in the SCSW the BET prefix could be from 1989, 1990, or 1991.

$75 for a "letter" can help you determine the date of shipment from S&W.

If you have the original box the end label will shed some light on the date of manufacture of your revolver. On the end label of your box should be a 4 digit Julian date code in the section "Special Order". The first digit will be the last digit of the year. In the case of your particular revolver the 8-3/8" barrel was made from 1989 and discontinued in 1992 so the first number should be a 9 for 1989, 0 for 1990, 1 for 1991, or less likely 2 for 1992. The following digits will be the day of the year it was made - for example 001 for January 1 and 365 for December 31. For example 1001 would be for January 1, 1991.

I was typing this reply while Kernel Crittenden was replying and he beat me to the post. Since I would consider the Kernel's knowledge sine qua non on this vintage of S&W revolvers, I defer to his response.
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Last edited by g8rb8; 06-14-2017 at 07:05 AM. Reason: changed 1999 to 1989 - correctly pointed out by D Brown
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Old 06-13-2017, 09:33 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by g8rb8 View Post
Welcome to the S&W Forum.

The 16-4 in an 8-3/8" barrel is not often seen.

A quick look at the SCSW (Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson) 4th edition does not detail the last serial number for the 16-4. Off the top of my head I cannot figure a way to determine the last serial # for the 16-4.

The SCSW cites total production of 8800 of the 16-4 produced in the 3 different barrel lengths.

The SCSW is not helpful for year of manufacture for the BET prefix serial numbers. Extrapolating from information in the SCSW the BET prefix could be from 1989, 1990, or 1991.

$75 for a "letter" can help you determine the date of shipment from S&W.

If you have the original box the end label will shed some light on the date of manufacture of your revolver. On the end label of your box should be a 4 digit Julian date code in the section "Special Order". The first digit will be the last digit of the year. In the case of your particular revolver the 8-3/8" barrel was made from 1989 and discontinued in 1992 so the first number should be a 9 for 1989, 0 for 1990, 1 for 1991, or less likely 2 for 1992. The following digits will be the day of the year it was made - for example 001 for January 1 and 365 for December 31. For example 1001 would be for January 1, 1991.

I was typing this reply while Kernel Crittenden was replying and he beat me to the post. Since I would consider the Kernel's knowledge sine qua non on this vintage of S&W revolvers, I defer to his response.
Hi g8rb8,

Since you have corrected the typo in your OP, I will leave this as a place holder and just say thanks for the great information on Smith & Wessons. The Special Order Code on my box is "9299" and I definitely purchased my Model 16-4 in 1989. Thanks.
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Old 06-13-2017, 11:12 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by D Brown View Post
...I'm going to assume you meant to type "1989" instead of "1999"...
That's the "trick", as g8rb8 well knows. Being able to infer the decade from other available details. Like the style of box, the gun's features (the presence of a lock, barrel pin, ...), the dash number, s/n, etc.
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Old 06-14-2017, 03:12 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by g8rb8 View Post
.....I was typing this reply while Kernel Crittenden was replying and he beat me to the post. Since I would consider the Kernel's knowledge sine qua non on this vintage of S&W revolvers, I defer to his response.
I had to Google sine qua non, and was relieved to discover it's not a bad thing.Model 16-4

Don't ever think that I don't want to read what other members have to say. Everything I know and have learned about s/n's and ship dates, product codes and dash numbers, has been gleened from posts by other individuals, here and around the web.

My own small collection of Smith revolvers doesn't amount to much, and is growing at a snail's pace. It might be worth a few thousand. My data base of s/n's and label details is constantly growing. Almost daily. Over 3,500, and hasn't cost me a nickel out of pocket.
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Old 06-14-2017, 07:09 AM
g8rb8 g8rb8 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by D Brown View Post
Hi g8rb8,

I'm going to assume you meant to type "1989" instead of "1999" in the above text. The Special Order Code on my box is "9299" and I definitely purchased my Model 16-4 in 1989. Thanks.
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D Brown,
Thanks for pointing out my mistake. I changed my post in order for it to be correct so as to not confuse a future reader.
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Old 06-14-2017, 07:47 PM
Bill In Texas Bill In Texas is offline
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Welcome to the Neighborhood and congrats!
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Old 06-15-2017, 07:39 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kernel Crittenden View Post
The normal ship date range for that s/n prefix is....
January - April 1990.
The latest 8 3/8-inch gun I've seen shipped in September of 1990. I think the 4-inch and 6-inch guns were made in about equal numbers. The 8 3/8-inch gun, maybe at about half their rate.

I don't know how many, but if your 8,000 to 9,000 total number is right, and my observation is right, then there would be approximately 1,700 of the 8 3/8-inch guns.

(2x + 2x + 1x = 5x = 8,500; x=1,700. It took 40 years, but Jr. High algebra finally served a propose. )
1700 sounds about right!

I recall seeing a breakdown of the 8800 16-4s a few years ago. I didn't bother trying to memorize the numbers as I knew I never remember them, but I did some quick calculations to get the rough percentages-- which I do remember:

45%-- 6"
35%-- 4"
20%-- 8-3/8"

20% of 8800 would be 1760, so I'd suggest somewheres 1700/1800 were produced.
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Old 06-16-2017, 12:06 PM
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By prefix is "BER", and it was verified shipped Aug 1989. Mines a 6".
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Old 06-16-2017, 08:40 PM
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By prefix is "BER", and it was verified shipped Aug 1989. Mines a 6".
Wondering if you had the box. If so, what was the Spec. Ord. number?
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Old 06-16-2017, 10:36 PM
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1700 sounds about right!
I didn't think smiffs could be that old!
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Old 08-28-2017, 09:13 PM
gunsmoke101 gunsmoke101 is offline
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Thank you all replies and wonderful information. Sorry, I do not have the box.

Last edited by gunsmoke101; 08-28-2017 at 09:17 PM. Reason: Additional text.
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Old 08-29-2017, 03:26 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RdrBill View Post
All.
Serial # BFE6185
Product Code 100558
Spec. Ord. 0250
Bill@Yuma
Your ship date, based on the Spec. Ord. code, is......
September 7, 1990
It's pretty late in the 100558 production run. I've seen them as far along as mid October of '90.
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Old 08-29-2017, 09:31 AM
glenncal1 glenncal1 is offline
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If you want to have some fun with that new gun, get some Fiocci .32L wadcutters and see what kind of groups you shoot with them. My 16-4 4" is a tack driver with this ammo. Your long tube should shoot them like a rifle.
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