It's hard to see, due to the glare on the side of the barrel and the lack of sharpness of the focus, if it has been refinished. Generally refinishing will take away from a gun's value/desirability.
HOWEVER . . .
Since this is a family heirloom, its desirability is totally different due to who owned this sweet little revolver!
HOWEVER . . . the price it is worth on the market, which you are trying to establish would be affected by whether it has been refinished or not so you could pay the fair market price.
Others will chime in on how to tell if it has been refinished but if you could post a sharper photo it will help immensely, even if you have to prop a book under your camera to get things sharper.
I can tell you that this gun IS one of the Hand Ejector versions, and that the barrel is the 3 3/4" version. Smith made 'em in 3 3/4" and 4 3/4" versions in those days.
I can tell you that this popular little gun was so popular that S&W made zillions of 'em . . . ruining their rareness factor and thus holding down their prices today (good for you). These revolvers came either blued or bright nickel plated.
They generally came with black rubber stocks, though some had reddish brown and they looked like the stocks in the photo of my 1903 Hand Ejector I'm enclosing below. The pearl or imitation pearls on your grandfather's gun aren't original but they sure dressed it up and I'd surely leave it that way!
Also, if it is a SIX digit, rather than a 5 digit gun it will be a tad newer. Mine, # 2459xx is a six digit, made in 1916, and thus a 5th change version of the Model 1903.
I can also tell you that these little tack drivers are super fun to shoot today. I just had mine at the range this weekend and it never disappoints me. They are chambered in .32 Long, still a cartridge you can get today . . . very low recoil and noise . . . a pure pleasure to shoot! Hope this helps!!!
BTW, I paid a tad on the high side of the M1903 current value this year for mine. It came from a private estate and had been well cared for, and it was in perfect mechanical condition too . . . and never refinished. I paid $350 for this nice specimen after consulting here with the experts like Mike Prewar. Hopefully he'll chime in.
Please hang onto that gun. Its true value inside your family is PRICELESS! BTW, if the gun has not been refinished your roll marks and such will be crisp, as pictured below. If refinished, the buffing will "melt" the lettering and round off the pins and such.
Tom
Oh yeah . . . I almost forgot . . .
.32 Long Value
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Linear Mode
