.44 Special ctg?!?

Z

Zooyork77

Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2012
Messages
16
Reaction score
45
Ok, so i inherited this gun from my grandfather recently and i can not find any information on this gun. It has a ".44 special ctg" on the barrel, the serial number is "S 127890" and it has a 2.5" barrel. any information would be greatly appreciated.

Blake
 

Attachments

  • Picture 015.jpg
    Picture 015.jpg
    91.3 KB · Views: 764
  • Picture 016.jpg
    Picture 016.jpg
    59.5 KB · Views: 741
  • Picture 012.jpg
    Picture 012.jpg
    98.7 KB · Views: 1,145
Register to hide this ad
Hi Blake,

Welcome to the forum!!

By visual comparison of your extractor rod length and the 3" pictured in the now deleted post, I can tell that your barrel is longer than 3". Since about 1" of barrel is in the frame, you have a 3 1/2" and the barrel rollmarks look centered. So it could be a special ordered length and quite rare.

But it's either been re-nickel plated or nickel plated over an original blue finish because the hammer and trigger were not nickel plated by the factory. Look in the channel with the extractor and cylinder opened for a B or N. Also see if the # in there matches the one on the butt.
 
Last edited:
Nice old gun! It is a shame that it has been refinished, but a classic nontheless. Potentially worth a restoration and factory lett.
 
If this was originally a .44 Special from the factory, it is called a .44 Hand Ejector Target model of 1950. The most common barrel length and finish would be 6.5" and blue; 4" are known but uncommon, and yours appears to be a 3.5" (measured from cylinder face to barrel tip). I agree that it may have been special ordered, or the barrel may have been shortened at the time of the refinish.

If you could post close-up photos of the front sight and the base it sits on we might have a better idea as to its originality. Hope this is helpful.
 
It's a 1950 Target Model 44 Special. Also called the 4th Model Target 44. The serial is likely from 1954 or early 1955.

These did not come with the 3.5" barrel seen on yours (measure muzzle to cylinder face) so it has been cut. As noted, it is refinished (rather poorly).

In original condition this gun would sell for around $1,500. As it is now, it would be a fun "shooter" but monetary value is greatly diminished. Maybe $500.
 
Blake,

I believe your grandfather's .44 Special was manufactured in the mid fifties and from the centered-up roll makings
on both sides of the barrel may very well be a special ordered barrel length.

I base that on the location of the marking, (pretty well centered) the die font itself and comparing it to my examples
of the Model 1950 .44 Special Target. A four inch, five inch and a 6 1/2" variations.

With a cut off of a 1950 style barrel I believe we would not see the position of the lettering of roll marks
as close to center as your example appears to be.

With all that being said, I'd bet the barrel length is original. Although the revolver has a challenged re-finish,
it being a family heirloom, you may want to send for a factory letter and consider a re-restoration or not,
I hope your revolver proves out to be of un-altered configuration.
That would be a new wrinkle on all of us! ;):D

Welcome to the forum....Your grandfather's revolver is priceless.
Please cherish it for your families' future generations.

Su Amigo,
Dave
 
Last edited:
Good looking revolver!! What is the history of it, did Grandpa carry it as a policeman or anything interesting, we like stories.
 
How do I go about getting a factory letter or seeing if it worth restoration. My grandfather has passed away and most of his guns where left to me and my father. I'm never going to sell them and they are in my family for good. But I would like to have this s&w restored if necessary and have all its history.

Thank y'all for all the information! It is greatly appreciated!
 
Call S&W (see their website for ##) and ask for the historian, Roy Jinks. Roy is himself a bit of a legend. Tell him what you have and then send in $50 and wait for the letter. It will tell you if your gun was shipped with a blue or nickle finish and who they sent it to. It may have come with a 4" bbl, which was standard, or it may indicate a custom 3.5". Either way, I would leave the bbl lenght as is.
If your gun was originally nickled, I'd leave it alone, but maybe swap out the hammer and trigger for original color-cased ones. Maybe.
If it letters as a blue gun I'd send it to S&W for a refinish if it were me. I'd send the grips to DWFAN (forum member) for a restoration too.
For what it's worth, that would be my basic plan.
 
If it was shipped with a 3 1/2" barrel, it is very rare and should be properly restored. Before you do anything, you need to determine the original configuration. If it's a cut down 6 1/2", it's just a shooter.
 
Hi Blake,

Looks like I'm a little late to the party!! Anyway, from what I see as far as the positioning of the Barrel Roll-Markings, I'd have to believe your Revolver was originally shipped with the 3 1/2" Barrel!!

Granted, your Revolver has been refinished at one time, but I believe a Factory Research Letter is "Definitely" in order regardless of this fact!! Reason being, if the letter confirms this 3 1/2" Barrel Length it still has considerable value as it is most assuredly a Special-Ordered Revolver & rarely seen!!

You've also made no mention if you've checked for Matching Serial Numbers either, but it would be a good idea to look in the Ejector Rod Channel on the Barrel Shroud, Rear Face of the Cylinder & on the inside of the Right Grip Panel to see if those Numbers match the Serial Number on the Butt of the Revolver to confirm it has all it's Original Parts before sending in for the Factory Letter just in case!!

Like the rest, I'd also be interested in hearing any provenance this Revolver has in relationship to your Grandfather as this is a Very Interesting Revolver & would like to hear what sort of background he & it had together!!

By the way Blake, Welcome to the Forum!!
 
Last edited:
gkitch said:
Call S&W (see their website for ##) and ask for the historian, Roy Jinks. Roy is himself a bit of a legend. Tell him what you have and then send in $50 and wait for the letter. It will tell you if your gun was shipped with a blue or nickle finish and who they sent it to. It may have come with a 4" bbl, which was standard, or it may indicate a custom 3.5". Either way, I would leave the bbl length as is.
Click to expand...

I agree with this advice to call Roy Jinks but believe you will find he is on vacation until approximately October 25th. Given the special nature of this .44 he is likely to give you a hint whether a factory letter will reveal significant new information. Or, you could go ahead and submit the letter request now and get in the queue. My guess is you'll want a letter in any event to hand down with this family treasure.

Russ
 
I diverge a bit from the "restore it" sentiments. :)

IF I were fortunate enough to have inherited such a revolver from either of my grandfathers, it would remain as he left it, assuming it was functional. If not functional, the farthest I'd go would be to make it functional.

Just my opinion & viewpoint, but the value of such a gun would lie more in who its original owner was, and what he wanted that gun to be. His preferences, in other words, that reflected his character, personality and needs, not mine, and regardless of whatever the rarity or "market value" might be if restored.

I do have one grandfather's Model 94 Winchester that I treasure greatly, with much of the bluing worn. No way in Hell I'd ever consider a re-finish or a restore on that gun. :)
Granted it's not rare, but the same principle applies. It stays as Grandpa used it & left it.

To me, some things should just be left alone. :)

Denis
 
Dpris said:
I diverge a bit from the "restore it" sentiments. :)

IF I were fortunate enough to have inherited such a revolver from either of my grandfathers, it would remain as he left it, assuming it was functional. If not functional, the farthest I'd go would be to make it functional.

Just my opinion & viewpoint, but the value of such a gun would lie more in who its original owner was, and what he wanted that gun to be. His preferences, in other words, that reflected his character, personality and needs, not mine, and regardless of whatever the rarity or "market value" might be if restored.

I do have one grandfather's Model 94 Winchester that I treasure greatly, with much of the bluing worn. No way in Hell I'd ever consider a re-finish or a restore on that gun. :)
Granted it's not rare, but the same principle applies. It stays as Grandpa used it & left it.

To me, some things should just be left alone. :)

Denis
Click to expand...

Well put Denis! I believe most inherited guns were not personal to thier previous owners, however, but just something they picked up along the way. The personal ones are usually obvious. There is a huge difference in how a decendant should handle the important pieces than how one should handle something bought in a garage sale and put in a drawer.
Blake, what say you? Are there pictures and stories of your grandfather with this 44 Special? Did he have a preference for nickle guns? Was he the type of man who would send a blue gun off and pay to have it nickle plated? Was he in law enforcement? These would all be clues as to whether the 44 was special to him or not.
 
More info would be nice.
The fact that it apparently was a special-order barrel length & later nickeled indicates it met SOMEBODY'S particular preferences somewhere along the line. :)

Denis
 
Very interesting piece. Thanks for sharing and for posting any more facts that become available.

The .44 Specials of 1950 Model [and other models] are much treasured, as you can discern.

Regards,

Dyson
 
Anybody want to put $5 on it right now? I say cut. Has anybody ever seen an original 3.5" barrel on a 1950 Target?

Being refinished to me is a big clue that other modifications were also done... like... oh, I dunno... maybe cutting the barrel?
 
I dont think it looks that bad as-is. Why would you dump a ton of money into it to refinish it blue and have all the roll marks be worn down
 
SaxonPig said:
Anybody want to put $5 on it right now? I say cut. Has anybody ever seen an original 3.5" barrel on a 1950 Target?

Being refinished to me is a big clue that other modifications were also done... like... oh, I dunno... maybe cutting the barrel?
Click to expand...

OK, odds are against me going up against a senior member but I'll take the bet. I'll PM you with my address when I win.

Odd that somebody would renickle the gun so poorly, not change the factory grips... yet so masterfully hack the bbl, dont you think?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

N
ID Help
Replies
8
Views
862
Muley Gil
M
J
38 S&W Special CTG
Replies
3
Views
631
sceva
sceva
H
History Hunt
Replies
4
Views
451
Wiregrassguy
Wiregrassguy
J
Date my 38 Special
Replies
4
Views
611
Goony
Goony
C
Please help with grandpas 38 Special
Replies
10
Views
1K
janman
janman

Latest posts

Back
Top