Victory model caliber/ cartridge help

[JDubya]

Howdy Friends!
I have recently acquired a (modified) Victory model revolver and am looking for a few more details.

Serial # V672,439
Butt, barrel, cylinder and ejector star numbers match.crane numbers match as well. "P" proof marks on top left of frame, barrel flat and cylinder.
Grips are replacement, although I have smooth walnut grips on the way.
Barrel has been cut down to about 2-2.5" and underlug removed. Front half moon sight (crudely) reinstalled.
Besides the proof and s/n on the barrel flat, all other barrel markings are gone.
"MADE IN U.S.A" and S&W patent logo on right plate.
No logo on left side
No markings on top strap
Sling hole has been satisfactorily plugged.
Black or blued finish, not phosphate. Maybe a post war refinish? No factory markings indicating such.
As you may have gathered, I've been doing some research! Lol
I am pleased overall, as the pistol was FREE! My main concern is the caliber. With no barrel markings and my head spinning from trying to obtain details about what calibers (.38 special, .38 S&W, .38-200) were created in this time, for these particular guns, I would like some reassurance. At first glance the chambers appear to have been reamed. They have "rings" that I'm not familiar with in most factory guns.I am not worried about condition or value. The cut barrel pretty much kills that! It should be a decent shooter with a little TLC!
Thank you for any and all your comments/questions/help!
J
I'll get some pics up as soon as I figure out how. Lol

 

[Texas Star]

Barrel was cut and underlug/lock has been removed...

I'm in a rush, but that alone will let someone else here give you the bad news about what you have.

At least, you evidently got it as a gift and aren't out any money!

As a historical aside, a mutilated gun like this was used by Lee Harvey Oswald to kill Dallas Police officer J.D. Tippet the day that JFK was murdered.

 

[Targets Guy]

You'll have a real expert show up sometime soon.

More than likely yours shipped in 1944. Many of the Victory's were brought back, chopped up and sold as a snubby for $29.95 back in the day.

If you have both a .38SW and .38 special drop them in the cylinder. If the special doesn't go all the way in it is still a .38SW.

The closest I have to the s/n you stated is s/n V650093. It shipped 8/44. It remains a .38SW but was refinished.

Here is what a reamed cylinder would look like......

The upper ring is for the longer .38 Special

 

[JDubya]

Yes Sir. I am aware the collector and monetary value is nill. I would most like to know that it is OK for .38 special. Just looking at it as a beater shooter.

 

[Targets Guy]

What the cartridges look like side by side....

in front of the blue letter opener

 

[Targets Guy]

If the ream job was done poorly you can have the .38 special casing swell or even burst and they are tough to extract. My experience with one such case.

 

[JDubya]

Thank you, Mike!
It appears that I have the reamed cylinder, although not as pretty as yours. And from what I've gathered I believe you're very close with the date. I had it pegged for around Sept. '44 based on another posters close proximity.

 

[JDubya]

Thanks for the pics Mike.
Quite a visual difference in those rounds! I definitely would rather not deal with bulged cases. Had a .22 wmr that had a cylinder out of spec. What a pain!

 

[Targets Guy]

Thanks for the pics Mike.
Quite a visual difference in those rounds! I definitely would rather not deal with bulged cases. Had a .22 wmr that had a cylinder out of spec. What a pain!

I had quite a time with mine but learned a tremendous amount of info thanks to forum members who walked me through it.

Mine was reamed but very poorly. When I took it to fire I had no idea about it might have been a .38SW. After four rounds the gun locked up and the cylinder would not turn. I thought I would have to hammer the extractor rod to get the shells to eject but I'm not totally daft and took a rod and pushed out each casing.

I then tried shooting .38SW which worked fine except the forcing cone trimmed off some of the lead from the wider bullet. Didn't like that at all.

I finally bought an old Victory .38SW barrel and replaced the .38 special barrel and all is well.

Plus I am a lot smarter about the two different cartridges.

 

[JDubya]

It may come to that, but hopefully not! .38s&w is pretty rare and pricey near me.Thank you!

 

[JDubya]

A couple pics. I'll add some more when I have better light.

 

[Targets Guy]

It may come to that, but hopefully not! .38s&w is pretty rare and pricey near me.Thank you!

I keep checking Brownells and Target USA. Sometimes they have sales; Magtech and PPU's work for me. I also may have found a handloader at my LGS and we are talking about him reloading my SW brass. Fingers crossed.

 

[Waveski]

Greetings and welcome.
There is not much you can do to make that former BSR into a "decent shooter", as you put it. It is too far gone. You may want to consider getting what you can for it and putting the proceeds towards an older intact model 10 ; they are great shooters.

 

[Targets Guy]

Don't give up hope.

Mine shipped in Dec 41 as a blue, 5", SW. Somewhere along the line it was reamed, new 4" .38 special barrel (they used a drill bit shank for the pin on the barrel), and chromed.

I changed it back to a .38SW with a .38SW Victory which I had chromed to match the rest of the gun; a 5" barrel.

Shoots just fine for me. The round in the 8 ring was done with my head down and eyes closed.

 

[Absalom]

Don’t overthink this, just shoot it

Buy inexpensive remanufactured .38 Special target loads and don’t worry about the cases. Whether they just bulge a bit or split depends on the care taken with the reaming; one encounters all kinds.

But unless the chambers have been so thoroughly over-widened by some Bubba that the cylinder walls are translucent, it’s not dangerous; these conversions were done in the tens of thousands in the 1950s/60s, if not more, and there is no track record of any blowing up on a regular basis. The K frame and cylinder are sturdy and sized for .38 Special pressures.

 

[DWalt]

The only people who got hurt by chopped and reamed Victories are those who paid way too much for one because they didn't know what they were buying.

 

[Waveski]

"I changed it back to a .38SW with a .38SW Victory which I had chromed to match the rest of the gun; a 5" barrel."

Targets Guy -
Hats off to you for performing a legitimate resurrection.

 

[Rmasters3]

Me too

A friend picked this one up last week. He knows S&W's but isn't into milsurps so input would be appreciated. He understands: it looks like it's been used as a hammer. I told him: Lend Lease to Britain, maybe some other part of the Empire. Thanks

 

[Absalom]

... I told him: Lend Lease to Britain, maybe some other part of the Empire. Thanks

You told him right. Looks all-original, but first of all looks like it needs a good cleaning

Pre-Victory from about Jan./Feb. 1942. No post-war proofs visible. Just missing the swivel.

On the butt: Ordnance inspection marks standard for that time frame, Waldemar Broberg’s initials (the Army Inspector at Springfield at the time), flaming bomb, P proof.

 

[Targets Guy]

A friend picked this one up last week. He knows S&W's but isn't into milsurps so input would be appreciated. He understands: it looks like it's been used as a hammer. I told him: Lend Lease to Britain, maybe some other part of the Empire. Thanks

Is the first letter/number on the grip frame an S or a number?