identifying 32-20 CTG

[kellanj]

My great grandfathers revolver, unsure of the date.


SN: 756xx


4 inch barrel


Fixed Sights


There is no serial number on the grips that is visible, maybe covered by the wood trim? I haven't seen a grip like that from others photos so maybe not original. Thanks for any help!

 

[Truckman]

Can you show us pictures of the gun without the grips, including the bottom of the grip frame?...And welcome to the forum......Ben

 

[kellanj]

wihtout grips

Its like a strip of wood was glued to the outside.


Thanks!

 

[Model19man]

Its like a strip of wood was glued to the outside.

The serial number typically is where that strip of wood is glued on the butt.

 

[murphydog]

Welcome!

If you look at the rear face of the cylinder (the loading side) and the barrel flat near the extractor rod you will probably see the same number. That is the serial number, good news. With this number we can tell you about how old it is.

The problem is the official serial number is on the bottom of the grip frame, as mentioned above. If you can remove whatever is covering it and the number is still there, also good news.

If you cannot remove the covering material, or if the serial number is missing...bad news, as this means it has been altered and makes the gun illegal to own.

 

[DWalt]

I don't remember ever seeing a grip arrangement like that, and I can't figure out what I am seeing. To be legal, you must be able to see the serial number stamped on the butt.

 

[kellanj]

Well thankfully after scraping off the material the serial number is there and is the same. My grandpa was in law enforcement, so him having an illegal gun is interesting to say the least.

 

[JP@AK]

.32-20 HEs with nearby serial numbers were shipping in 1917.

 

[handejector]

Has the gun been painted black?

 

[kellanj]

It does look painted but i think its just wear on the bluing, I could be wrong

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Welcome to the forums from the Wiregrass! I was under the impression that S&W didn't stamp the barrel .32-20 CTG until late in production...after 1922 or so. IIRC, it started .32 Winchester, then .32 W.C.F and ending with .32-20. So, the serial doesn't match up with the date, IMO. It should be into the 100K serial numbers. I would like to see a picture of under the barrel where the extractor rod docks.

 

[glowe]

Welcome! The configuration of that revolver is pre-1927 and if it has MADE IN USA stamped on the right side of the frame it is post-1922.

I would immerse the butt in a can of paint remover, cover it and soak it for a few days until the glue that holds the wood comes off. My guess is that some owner found a set of Model 1917 N frame stocks and had to "build out" the butt-frame. Removing that wood is the thing to do to bring the gun back to original configuration. You can find square-butt stocks on ebay from the 1920s quite often and put them on the gun. The checkered diamond K frame stocks are much nicer and would have been what was on the gun when it left the factory.

Do not sand off the wood, since you will destroy the finish on the steel underneath. Stocks should look like the ones below.

Let me add that when that alteration was done, there was no law requiring visible serial numbers to worry about. That BATF regulation came much later. Also, look under the barrel for a serial number and let us know what it is? The serial number should be around the 300,000 range. Do't scrape any further on your frame just soak the glue off and you should see a 6 digit number. The teltale frame marking for the 1920s is the small logo on the left side of the frame.

 

[Green Frog]

You don't mention in your posts where you are nor where your g-grandfather served in law enforcement, but in certain parts of the country from the late teens up to about WW2, the 32-20 was a very popular, well regarded sidearm among lawmen. Those WW1 grips from the Mod 1917 would have been commonly available and I'm guessing maybe your ancestor had big hands and wanted to have a handful of grips. I'm always fascinated by guns with a family history.
Froggie

 

[handejector]

Also, look under the barrel for a serial number and let us know what it is? The serial number should be around the 300,000 range.

Huh? Not hardly on a 32/20!

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Oops! I missed that. The .32-20 M&P ended production at serial number 144684.

 

[glowe]

Huh? Not hardly on a 32/20!

32-20 serial numbers from around 90,000 in 1920 to 130,000 at the end of 1926.

 

[kellanj]

Welcome! The configuration of that revolver is pre-1927 and if it has MADE IN USA stamped on the right side of the frame it is post-1922.

I would immerse the butt in a can of paint remover, cover it and soak it for a few days until the glue that holds the wood comes off. My guess is that some owner found a set of Model 1917 N frame stocks and had to "build out" the butt-frame. Removing that wood is the thing to do to bring the gun back to original configuration. You can find square-butt stocks on ebay from the 1920s quite often and put them on the gun. The checkered diamond K frame stocks are much nicer and would have been what was on the gun when it left the factory.

Do not sand off the wood, since you will destroy the finish on the steel underneath. Stocks should look like the ones below.

Let me add that when that alteration was done, there was no law requiring visible serial numbers to worry about. That BATF regulation came much later. Also, look under the barrel for a serial number and let us know what it is? The serial number should be around the 300,000 range. Do't scrape any further on your frame just soak the glue off and you should see a 6 digit number. The teltale frame marking for the 1920s is the small logo on the left side of the frame.

Thank you for the info and your advice! Much Appreciated! After closer examination the barrel does have a different s/n in the low 100ks.

 

[kellanj]

You don't mention in your posts where you are nor where your g-grandfather served in law enforcement, but in certain parts of the country from the late teens up to about WW2, the 32-20 was a very popular, well regarded sidearm among lawmen. Those WW1 grips from the Mod 1917 would have been commonly available and I'm guessing maybe your ancestor had big hands and wanted to have a handful of grips. I'm always fascinated by guns with a family history.
Froggie

He worked as a guard at one of the earlier state prisons in Utah as well as the local pd in the area. I also am fascinated with family history firearms. I never knew my g grandfather so it means a lot to have a something passed down generation to generation, its even cooler that its a firearm with such history!

 

[Drm50]

I don't think a gun is considered illegal unless the serial number has been removed. Gluing a wood shim over number doesn't remove it. Compared to some rusty junkers I've encountered it would be considered preserving the SN.
Seems the 32/20 was popular among law enforcement in rural areas. The 38S&W and 32 S&W long was mainstream back then. I can see where a 32/20 might be advantage over them.

 

[DWalt]

On my list there are two .32-20 M&Ps having SNs very close to your #756xx. One shipped in 5/1917, the other in 6/1917. Yours very likely shipped at about the same time as those. M&Ps in .38 Special and .32-20 were serial numbered in separate ranges, both starting with 1. In other words, you could theoretically find a .38 Special M&P having the identical serial number of your .32-20 M&P. S&W ceased production of .32-20 M&Ps in the late 1920s, at around SN 144000, but some were sold out of factory inventory for years afterward. .38 Special M&Ps were made in vastly greater numbers and for much longer.

Colt was considerably more prolific in manufacturing .32-20 revolvers than S&W, and continued for longer. S&W made only one model, the M&P, in .32.20, but I can think of five different Colt models that have been chambered in .32-20.