Quote:
Originally Posted by Driftwood Johnson
Masterpiece:
Here is a photo of the SN on the butt of my new NM#3. I have altered the last two digits of the SN, but you get the idea. There is clearly something marked to the left of the lanyard ring boss, or whatever it's called. When Don looked at it he thought it was the remnants of the original SN that had been polished away before the current SN was marked. I could not see well enough to make it out. However looking at this photo, the marking almost looks like a proof mark of some type to me. My brain is trying to make it look like a winged eagle with a sideways letter A over the top.
What do you think?
Just for the heck of it, here is the legend on top of the barrel rib. No blue left in this area.
There is also a small trademark on the right side of the frame. Other than the SNs on the rear of the cylinder, and the latch, this is all the markings on the outside of the gun.
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When these were ordered with the Lanyard the serial number on the butt was placed in this position. Only when a gun that was already manufactured without a lanyard was sent back to the factory to have the lanyard added ... or ... S&W needed to fill and order fast, took a completed, non-lanyard, NM3 from stock to add the lanyard prior to shipping ... will you see the remnants of the lengthwise serial number and the perpendicular serial number.
This one was ordered with a lanyard. Although it looks like a US lanyard, the Japanese orders usually had a circular ring more than the D shaped ring but there's no formal rule on the type of lanyard.
Then, major dealers / distributors would add a lanyard to a S&W if the customer wanted one and they did not have a factory lanyard model in stock. I have seen many Americans to New Model 3s (mostly Americans and Russian contract REISSUE guns) with a dealer added lanyard. Many of these with dealer added lanyard were originally shipped to M.W. Robinson, NYC or SH&G (H&G). Those with the later added lanyard by the dealer, would not have the serial number restamped in the perpendicular position. The serial number would just be partly hidden by the lanyard. Even when the serial number on the butt is obscured by a dealer added lanyard, you still have 3 more areas to check if ... at least those numbers you CAN see ... match the other 3 spots.
Numbers on the latch, cylinder face and on the barrel in the recess under the latch. for example if the SN is 12345 in all the other spots and with the lanyard obscuring part of the SN you can see 12xx5 ... you've got a matching gun. No rocket science invovled.
The S&W logo is good. The pins and trigger axis shaft (and sideplate screws) that protrude to the right side are perfectly rounded and unmolested. Nice.
You'll never know for sure until you letter it. I'm curious about the proof mark behind the lanyard.