Before I begin, I generally stick to M1903 Springfields and other U.S. military rifles, with a brief foray into M1911s. I do own a M&P15 AR, which I really like.

That being said, I'm not sure I'm even on the right forum of this website!! So be gentle with me!!

I picked up this S&W in .38 Special a month or so ago as a shooter. The seller made no bones about this being a "collector" or anything other than what it is. I decided to post some pictures and information and see what comments I could scare up.

1. The serial number is V 513523. The s/n is repeated on the cylinder. I've been told this may be one of the Victory models made during WWII.

2) You'll note the hole for the lanyard swivel has been plugged up.

3) The pistol overall is a deep blue. The seller said it may have been reblued, but if so, it wasn't a cheapie job.

4) The barrel and frame have the usual U.S. markings. However, there are some British proofmarks (BNP and the "cross") which, if it is like American Lend Lease, may be export markings. Note the cylinder is stamped "England".

5) The finish on the cylinder isn't as "deep" a bluing as the frame and barrel.

6) The pistol came with two "plain" grips, but they fit kind of loose, so I went with the ones currently on the pistol, which make the pistol easier to hold onto when shooting it.

7) Mechanically, it appears to be in good condition (except for the matter of a squib I had yesterday, which I described on the gunsmithing forum!)

8) I paid $185 plus FFL fee and shipping. Again, I wasn't looking for a collector and the seller didn't say it was one. Just a nice shooter.

Comments and/or questions?

I love it.
Great shape for a victory and sounds like you got it for a steal.
Pretty enough to be a safe queen and strong enough to be a shooter.
What else could one ask for?

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27-2, 66-1, 640 Pro, 10-5

I am not an expert on the Victory Models, but I would have expected your gun to be in .38-200 and not .38 Special. Does it say .38 Special on the barrel?

It's definately a WW2 Victory Model that has been refinished and original grips and lanyard swivel removed. You didn't state the caliber, however since the barrel is a 4 inch barrel, I'll assume it's a .38 Special, not a .38 S&W caliber. Some .38 Special caliber 4 inch guns were shipped to Britain, but most were the 5 in. barrel guns in .38 S&W ( .38/200) caliber. Somewhere in it's history , this gun got to Britain and received the British acceptance stampings,(Birmingham Nitro proofs, etc) then found it's way back to the US, probably imported prior to the 1968 Gun Act requiring importer stampings. A factory letter is the only way to find out where this gun was shipped by S&W in WW2. It should be a great shooter and worth the money paid. Ed.

Looks like an overhauled Lend-Lease Victory. Probably was .38 S&W when it was shipped to Britain. Does it fire .38 Specials now? If so, its probably been reamed to accept them. How is the right side of the barrel marked? It has been reblued and as you observed, the lanyard hole plugged. Those are some nice PC magna grips,

It looks like the strain screw on the grip frame is backed out. Tighten it up and see if the misfires don't stop.

__________________
NRA Life
Walk softly, but carry.

As you can see from the picture below, the pistol is chambered for .38 Special. As I understand it, the British Nitro Proof was a British EXPORT stamp, but again, I'm used to seeing it on U.S. military weapons exported from the UK.

The strain screw was loosened when I was trying to solve the problem of the "frozen trigger/cylinder, yesterday. It is now safely tightened. The problem wasn't misfiring, it was a squib round that lodged in the "cone". The unsettling thing was the ammo was factory ammunition, not reloads.

Most of the gun proofed with the Birmingham Nitro Proof stamp were former British service guns that had been released for civilian sale (a lot of them were exported). They had to be proofed before being sold to the public.

On Parallax Bill's forum, i post as 'Colin".

I understood that the BNP was an export mark, but I guess it comes down to the same thing. I also post on Parallax and other forums as "Rick the Librarian".

Welcome to the forum Rick. I've bought some 03 stuff before from you before on the old Culver's Shooting Page. I also specialize in military stuff but have branched into older S&W's. If you search my posts you will see I have picked up serveral 1940 vintage Commenwealth .38 S&W pre-victories. Anything from about serial number 700,000 to 999,999 are pre-victories and then they started with V1. As someone else posted, be real careful with 38 S&W chambered guns bored out for 38 Special. They rupture cases. Unless you are trying to collect it as a rare one, be careful for 38 Specials bored out for 38 S&W by the British. Yours is refinished and the plain stocks are original and are worth selling if you don't want them. Be very careful that shooting this one because you may really like it and it can lead to many more purchases! Don't ask how I know that!!!

Yes, I remember you! Thanks for the insight. The barrel says ".38 Special" as you can see in the picture above. This pistol represents a "rabbit trail" I take every so often. Bought a Colt M1917 a couple of years ago as well as a couple of M1911s. I admit I wouldn't mind a S&W M1917 to go along with my Colt.

The 38 specials are more valuable but since I reload, the 38 S&W is a nice cartridge to shoot. I have ended up shooting a lot of both. I started with a 1917 also and progressed. I like the craftsmanship in the 5-screw K frames and keep finding them for prices I can't turn down. Good luck!