Is this a K38 Masterpiece? Please help identify

[east9thceo]

Hello everyone! I inherited this firearm from my dad. When he passed he had 3 gun safes filled with guns of all kinds, all in the same condition as this one. This gun has the serial # S78637 in three different areas - on the butt, inside the yolk and on the inside of cylinder. There’s also a 3-digit number on the insides of the stock (handle grip). The barrel is 6.5 inches in length from the cylinder. It doesn’t show up in the pictures, but the gun metal has a blue finish all over. I’ve gathered that the front iron was added later in the gun lifespan.

I’ve spent days going back and forth to different local Gun Shops trying to get an understanding of what my old man had tucked away inside this velvet, lined wooden box. No one knows what it is… or at least, that’s what they tell me. My dad kept his things meticulously nice, with all documents and original papers attached to everything. Out of 32 firearms, this was the only one that didn’t have papers, yet I’ve watched him quietly clean it a thousand times. It meant something to him for some reason, and I’m determined to solve this mystery for the old man, and I guess for me too.

Thanks to this forum and it’s members I’ve gathered that it is a k38 Target Masterpiece (maybe), possibly manufactured around 1950 (again maybe).

Any help on identifying the make, year and value would be GREATLY APPRECIATED! I’ve included as many pictures to help with identification, and I have more if needed. Thank you in advance for your time.

Also, speaking from someone who’s new to the world of revolvers, this forum is EXTREMELY HELPFUL! So thanks again, everyone!

 

[s&wchad]

Welcome aboard!

You have a .38/44 Outdoorsman, which is a .38 Special revolver built on a .44 frame (N frame). The K-38 was built on the smaller K frame and didn't have a shrouded ejector rod.

Your gun probably shipped around 1950 +/-. The 5.54 stamp on the left side of the grip frame indicates it went back to factory for service in May of 1954. The grips were made much later and probably date from the 1970's. It would have originally come with diamond Magna stocks (noncheckered diamonds around the escutcheons). I believe the target trigger and hammer were also added at some point. The presentation case is nice touch, but it's not original to the gun.

It's a lovely gun and I really like the red post Patridge front blade! I can see why your father was proud of it!

 

[murphydog]

Condolences on your loss. Your father would have fit in well here.

Chad has good information above. The only point to add is the gun would have originally had a less polished blue finish standard from the factory. It is possible it was special ordered in "Bright Blue", or went back to the factory in 1954 for it. Certainly appears to be factory-quality work. Enjoy!

 

[s&wchad]

I took a closer look at your front sight. It's interesting, but I doubt it was done by S&W.

This is what a factory red post Patridge looks like.

 

[22hipower]

Very nice Outdoorsman, don't see these for sale very often. Here's what it probably looked like originally, this one (S 101699, shipped July 1954) has the bright blue finish which yours might have had if it was a special order. Enjoy it.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

https://flic.kr/p/2n6XYkk

 

[RKmesa]

Beautiful Outdoorsman! Your father had good taste. The top 38/44 Outdoorsman in the below picture (wearing some Herrett thumbrest aftermarket stocks) is serial number S78597 and for reference it shipped in October 1950. I would expect that your gun (S78637) shipped somewhere in that same timeframe, but only an historical letter would nail that date down for sure.



Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing,

 

[east9thceo]

Wow. I’d be an absolute liar if I said that response didn’t bring me to tears. Not sure why, but I guess it gave my a bit of closure. I can’t thank you enough for your help, your speedy response and your kind words! This forum (it’s members) is amazing!

 

[east9thceo]

Thank you very much! Greatly appreciated!

 

[east9thceo]

Here’s a better picture of the front sight. This created quite a bit of confusion when I was attempting to get it appraised and identified. It’s absolutely nuts how much information is found here in this forum!

 

[DWalt]

A little additional information. Back in the early 1930s S&W saw the need for a more powerful cartridge than the .38 Special. The simplest way to do that is dump more propellant into the existing .38 Special cartridge to get higher velocity, and presto, the .38-44 cartridge was born. It produced a muzzle velocity of around 1100 ft/sec as compared with the standard .38 Special load velocity of around 800 ft/sec. Of course, the recoil increased proportionally, so guns were built on the larger and heavier N-frame (normally used for .44 revolvers) to tame recoil. .38/44 means a .38 caliber revolver on a .44 caliber frame. There were two versions of the revolver. The version with fixed sights was called the .38/44 Heavy Duty, while the version with adjustable target sights was called the .38/44 Outdoorsman, which is what yours is. The factory .38-44 load is still made by several of the boutique ammunition loaders, but not by the majors. However, any .38 Special ammunition can be used in yours. The .38-44 cartridge was later the parent of the .357 Magnum cartridge, and the .38/44 revolver morphed into the .357 Magnum revolver.

 

[Jim Watson]

I don't think anybody has said yet, the Outdoorsman is a LOT less common than the K38. The one here is a treasure.

 

[DWalt]

Definitely much more desirable than a K-38 Masterpiece and worth at least triple. If you took it to any dealers who knew anything about guns (many do not), they would have pulled all their sneaky ploys to get you to sell it to them cheap. It’s one of those guns which is actually worth getting a historical letter on, along with the factory service record.

 

[murphydog]

And in case you’re interested in obtaining the “letter of authenticity “:

Letter Process – Smith & Wesson Historical Foundation

The “deep dive” finds any associated factory records, including (possibly) why it went back to the Service Department in May, 1954.

 

[PieGuy314]

Sorry to hear of your loss. A great inheritance. I lost my father years ago well before I became interested in revolvers. This past year I began reading all about Smith and Wesson revolvers and decided to purchase one (first firearm ever!). It is a 38/44 Outdoorsman. I didn’t realize it when I got it, but it turned out to be a transitional Outdoorsman, and I believe it was manufactured 1947, my fathers birth year. I still need to get a letter to confirm, but it made me feel a connection back to my father that it is from his birth year. Enjoy it!

 

[Laketime]

I took a closer look at your front sight. It's interesting, but I doubt it was done by S&W.

This is what a factory red post Patridge looks like.

I doubt this one will come loose like the factory ones tend to in time.

 

[bluetopper]

That finish is stunning. So glad you posted it here.

 

[mikeruns]

east9thceo-
This is an awesome revolver! My friend carried one into the mountains and hills with me on a deer hunt in our native Montana back about 1984 and I thought at that time it was something special and different, as it was so significant a handgun for the .38 special. The next year I bought a model 28 and realized it looked the same except the finish, anyways it was several years later that I read into the history of the Outdoorsman and am intrigued. This is one of the few left that I would like to add to my inventory. This Outdoorsman model eventually became the Model 23 in the later 50’s and is also pretty rare or at least not seen much. Thanks for sharing your Dad’s wonderful Outdoorsman!

 

[jtcarm]

east9thceo-
This is an awesome revolver! My friend carried one into the mountains and hills with me on a deer hunt in our native Montana back about 1984 and I thought at that time it was something special and different, as it was so significant a handgun for the .38 special. The next year I bought a model 28 and realized it looked the same except the finish, anyways it was several years later that I read into the history of the Outdoorsman and am intrigued. This is one of the few left that I would like to add to my inventory. This Outdoorsman model eventually became the Model 23 in the later 50’s and is also pretty rare or at least not seen much. Thanks for sharing your Dad’s wonderful Outdoorsman!

The Model 23 is beyond rare. Less than 100 were marked that way.