Walmart parking lot find.

[Mbrgr1]

I am tooling along on my way to Wally world for some supplies when I get a call from my friends at the pawn shop. "There is a guy in here with an old S&W that we do not want to buy, are you interested?" I laughed! "give him my number" says I.


As I am loading my London broil and Blue Moon Belgians into the old dodge, a young feller rolls up in a BMW that had seen better days and sounded a little too fierce.


He unrolls and old orange t shirt to reveal this (see pics) and an old Colt 32 acp.


"Ive had these in my safe for 8 years or so" he says as I eye his hip mounted semi auto, I quickly scanned the parking lot to see who was going to witness the impending robbery.


I looked in my wallet to see what I had. "Ive got $241 dollars"


He said, "that will work, thanks man" and off he went.


Soooooo, I was not robbed, but he may have been? I really did not know what I was looking at the time and am still not sure, guessing a New model #3, 4" barrel in 44 Russian? 44/40 does not fit and 44 special is too long, plus the chambers are ridged.


It has a few problems but is all numbers matching and pretty tight. The cylinder rubs in the bottom strap, I'm guessing bent top strap and the screw in the middle of the side plate is broken off.


Funny where you find interesting specimens.


Let me know if the pics don't show, thanks



M

 

[Geno44]

I don't see the pictures.

 

[03hemi]

Means nothing without pictures?

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Yep. No pictures...in either of your threads.

 

[Mbrgr1]

Yep. No pictures...in either of your threads.

I added attachments....





Maybe someone could explain why I add images from my album in the form of the bb code listed under the image and I can see them in my post but no one else can?


Thanks.

 

[Telecaster]

I see the pictures. Looks like a fun project.

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Like this? Make sure you are copying all of the BB code. Left click the link 3 times to fully highlight it.

 

[Engineer1911]

Gun buyers don't need reasons, just $$$ . I have bought expensive grips that came with a "cheap" gun, a M19-2 with Patridge front sight, for example. My wife didn't like me shooting her gun (that I paid for).

 

[Alton]

You might want to check serial numbers to see if it is hot?

 

[Tom S.]

Duplicate posts merged.

OP: Here's some info on posting pictures:
Video Tutorials on Posting Pictures

 

[merl67]

Ok I am confused did you buy a Colt 32 or a S&W topbreak ?

 

[kryten67]

It looks like a new model number 3 frontier. Whats the serial number?

 

[double-dipper]

Alton beat me to it. I'd have the SN# checked. You don't want to have a stolen gun in the stable.

 

[s&wchad]

Ok I am confused did you buy a Colt 32 or a S&W topbreak ?

According to the original post, the seller had "this" and a an old Colt .32 auto. Sounds like a 1903 Pocket Hammerless that he passed on...

Looks like a New Model #3 to me, but I'm certainly no expert on these. I've only owned one. I have no idea if the barrel was shortened, but I would have bought that for $241 in a heart beat!. The OP should post some photo's showing the barrel markings on top of the rib.

I didn't see a serial number listed, but I believe they're all classifieds as antiques by the ATF. I'd be surprised if a gun in that condition that's probably 120+ years old was stolen, let alone reported.

Excellent purchase! A replacement screw or two and some gentle cleaning should make it a fun shooter! Very cool!

 

[BloodyThumb]

If approached by a stranger in the WalMart parking lot to buy a gun, if you ALWAYS assume it is stolen, you will be RIGHT far more than you are WRONG! Guaranteed! Even if it does not yet, or even never does show up on a hot list.

 

[Mbrgr1]

It looks like a new model number 3 frontier. Whats the serial number?

Serial number is 240** 1888?


Last patent date is 1880. All wording is intact and starts right behind the front sight, I can take a pic if needed.





As far as stolen, I wondered stolen from whom? Wyatt Earp? I'll check. I have his phone number and license plate #


The $241 included the 1903 colt 32 auto which is rough but workable with a lot of cleaning.


M

 

[Mbrgr1]

Ok I am confused did you buy a Colt 32 or a S&W topbreak ?

Both, the Colt cleaned up pretty well, seems functional, I dug through my pile and found some old ammo.


M

 

[s&wchad]

Serial number is 240** 1888?

The $241 included the 1903 colt 32 auto which is rough but workable with a lot of cleaning.


M

Wow, great deal!

I'll see what I can dig up after dinner.

 

[Gunhacker]

Well... you got more than your money's worth just on that Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless alone.

Chipped/broken hard rubber grips are not uncommon for these guns as they get really brittle. On my pistol, even though they were flawless, I replaced them with aftermarket wood grips for shooting.

Looks to be a type IV based on the grip style, can't tell for sure from the pic, but the serial number looks like it begins with a 4, which is in the range of 1922 - 1929. You can check the website below to narrow it down to the year.

Extensive info on these pistols at this website: Colt Pistols and Revolvers for Firearms Collectors - Model 1903 .32 ACP & Model 1908 .380 ACP Pocket Hammerless Production Dates

 

[s&wchad]

Yours does fall into the serial number range and has the features of a New Model #3.

Compare yours to the one I owned:

Mine had an adjustable rear sight and yours seems to have two pins visible at the rear of the frame on the right side. It may just be a mark/ding, but mine only had one visible pin. Other than that and the barrel length, they're near identical.