Trivia.... The letter states the OP's M13 shipped to Banger L. P. (Limited Partnership) in Birmingham AL. That's a large distributor, perhaps best known on this forum for their 102712, a 3-inch Model 66-3 of which they had over 5,000 made beginning in 1988. You see a lot of them with BBN and BBT serial numbers.

Banger is still around and distributing Smith and Wessons. Here's a portion of their mission statement I copied from their web site.....

"Bangers focuses its efforts toward the independent stocking dealer who is fully committed to the shooting industry. We recognize that if our industry is to survive and prosper in the future, the independent stocking dealer will continue to be a keystone of Bangers' and the industry's success. It is with this in mind that Bangers has placed great emphasis on building our organization to effectively meet the needs of these retailers."

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~ S&W aficionado in training ~