my new to me terrier,sn is564**,the s&w catalog says the postwar sn started at the 54000 range in 48,could this be a 49

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Just out of curiosity, did you get it via GunBroker from a Pawn Shop in NC? That looks like it may be the one I just missed, and if it is, I'm jealous!

Just kidding, I guess. Congratulations on a neat find. For some reason, they just don't seem to show up that often. Hope you will enjoy it.

Froggie

Kim, fine gun. Congratulations.

The postwar production schedule for S&W's I-frame (that is, small frame) revolvers is a little confusing. A few small guns were sold in the late '40s that I think were probably mostly made up from prewar parts. Actual production in volume didn't resume until about 1950. It is possible that your gun shipped in 1949, but I suspect that you will find it left the factory in 1950-51. I have two .38 Regulation Police (same SN sequence as the Terriers) numbered 54804 and 58470, and both shipped in July 1951. You just can't tell. (The two guns I mentioned are the rarely seen round-butt RPs, so they look like Terriers with four-inch barrels. Very strange.)

Will one of you Terrier guys please start a dedicated .38/32 Terrier thread? If I had one, I would do it myself.

__________________
David Wilson

Kim,

That's a little honey of a Terrier. Congrats, sort of a 'transitional' I frame. Pre war round top stocks with post war checkering and medallions. Good show!

Uh oh, it has 3 notches on the stock....3 bad guys?

__________________
Jim
S&WCA #819

Very nice Terrier ,
I have Serial 58078 shipped in December 1950 so probably either a 49 or 50 .

yup green frog i got it off of gb,been wanting one for a while just never could bid enouge i guess.i was kinda worried the stocks would not number to the pistol,but they do so im happy. oddly enough i was going to put some of my once fired brass from my lend-lease victory to dry fire it and they will not chamber, loaded ammo go's in fine so if its not raining today will put a few rounds thru it,

Good on ya, kimporter. If I couldn't get it, I'm glad it went to a good home. I'm guessing those chambers have had a lot less ammo run through them than those of the Victories, so I'm not surprised they are tighter. I would go with FL sizing then keep that brass separated if I were going to shoot the Terrier much, so as to not overwork the brass being used in the tighter chamber. BTW, what bullet are you using/planning to use with it?

Froggie

If so, Wow!! This cracks me up to see it again. FYI, that cylinder rocks a bit on one chamber. When I saw it it was $349.99 and marked as a Pre-36 .38 special. I regret to say I corrected the errors, as one of the employees has been very helpful to me. I went back for it the following Friday and it was gone.

yup got it from thunderpawn,what do you mean by cyl rocks a bit? just wanted to know as all my factory ammo fits in the cyls the same,as to bullet weight,i got some 146 Lrn from matts bullets in ark,tried them in my 38 sw victory and was not impressed at all,this SHOULD shoot better(i hope)also gonna try 3 gns of unique for starters,most of my reloading info for it is out of the 43rd edition lyman manual,printed in 1964

Thunder Pawn is a nice place, I believe they own four stores in the area. I usually deal with George.

Unload your Terrier, cock it single action on each chamber. With your other hand, place your fingers on either side of the cylinder and try to rock it side to side, and try to slide it forward and backward (end shake). Push on the hammer to try to make it fall (push off). Hold the revolver up to the light and observe the gap between the cylinder and barrel for uniformity. With your thumb on the hammer pull the trigger and observe how far the firing pin protrudes through the hole (to make contact with a primed cartridge). These are a few ways to check the action of a revolver for soundness. Also look at the notches in the cylinder for burrs or scuffs and the fit of the yoke to the frame. Such things could be signs of some moron flipping the cylinder shut.

Your Terrier was fine, did rock a bit on one chamber, but that is nothing serious. If I carried that gun, I would simply shut the cylinder so the "rocker" chamber was either up first or last. I had a Terrier once, sold it to a young nurse, who used it to defend against an assault shortly thereafter. I just gave my D-I-L a .32 similar to yours. They are wonderful guns.

The British load for the Victory was a 200 grain bullet, so a heavier bullet might work better for you in the Victory.

Jim,
Help me out. How do you ID the Post War Checking? What differs? Or what are you using as a reference?
That is a sweet gun. I see it has a strain screw so it is an I Frame.

Del
SWCA#2635

Del, I see Jim is offline at the moment, so I hope he won't mind if I step in with a couple of comments.

The checking field on postwar stocks will have rounded corners. Sharp angled corners to the field point to prewar stocks.

The strain screw in company with a postwar serial number point to an early "unimproved" postwar I frame. Before the J-frames came along, there were several versions of the "improved" I-frame, which was the first small frame S&W to use a coil mainspring instead of the strain-screw tensioned flat spring. Jim is the resident expert on the postwar I-frame varieties, and I won't try to summarize his findings.

__________________
David Wilson

BTW I have S/N 56119 shipped early 50

Del
SWCA#2635

David,
Thanks for the feedback, I never mind that, in fact, it is great we all share this data,I gotcha. I had Roy do a letter on one that confused me. It was small I Frame, but NO strain screw (Had coil spring), but everything about it pointed to I Frame. It was a "Transitional" I Frame to Improved. Hines 57 I guess.

Del
SWCA#2635

wow,the knowledge base here is unreal.glad i found this place to hang out,i did take it out to shoot up the last of my win factory ammo,shoots better than i thought it would,im tickled to death with this one,and as she who must be obeyed said"hey thats cute"

Congratulations on a fine snag!
I acquired a Terrier and an Improved I-frame 32S&W long.
These little guns fit me perfectly, esp. with a BKGRIPS
adaptor.
I wish the ammo was a little hotter, but I like them
just the way they are.
Got both right here on the Forum. Sweet!
TACC1

Dave, Del and Kim,
Thx David for stepping in while I was gone; any help is always appreciated! Been in the shop all day. Couldn't wait to finish a Ruger .22 RF conversion to centerfire .32 H&R Mag. Got it done but too late to get to the range today.

Photo of pre war stocks showing the 18 LPI checkering and sharp cornered borders. These are sq butt stocks but you can see the pre war features:


The I frame guns lasted thru the 1950's until Oct. '60 for the .22/32s and early '61 for the .32s and .38 S&Ws. And as David said with many interesting variations.

I've attempted to encapsulate THE POST WAR I FRAMES EVOLUTION: .22/32 Kit Gun and Target, .32 Hand Ejector, .32 & .38 S&W Reg. Police and .38 S&W Terrier:

1. Transitional: c. 1946, leaf main spring. .22/32s and .32s beginning as low as 5346XX (1st new hammer block at # 536,685); .38 S&W beginning c. 1948 at # 54475 (all reportedly have new hammer block).

a) Pre war/post war: leaf main spring. (includes the non-Model #’d 1957 issue .32 Regulation Police Targets in the low #657XXX range)
b) Pure post war: leaf main spring. (.32s up to #550740 highest # known)

2. Improved I: coil main spring. (.32s beginning at #554536, lowest # known, #610935 highest known)

3. Model of 1953 I Frames: the “Pre-Model #s” 4 screws & 3 screws. (.22/32s beginning in new serial range starting w/#101); (the .32s beginning at about #613XXX)

4. Model #’d guns c.1957: 22/32 I frames Models 34 & 35 (beginning c. #37XXX), replaced by J frames Oct. 1960, -1 added (c. #70,XXX), the .32s and .38s in 1961, -1 added (.32s Models 30 & 31 beginning c. #650XXX to #712954, highest # known, and .38s Models 32 & 33, c. #88XXX)

I have detailed minutia for each of those categories if anyone is interested.

__________________
Jim
S&WCA #819

here is the "prewar" fine (18 lpi, if i remember correctly!) checkering with the "square" corners of the checkered field.


here are the later style, with the rounded corners, and the coarse (i think 16 lpi!) checkering:


i honestly haven't ever seen a terrier with the "earlier" style grips that numbered to it. a 556XX is the earliest lettered terrier i have in my info, and it dated to 8/50. i think dc is probably right., i doubt if any of them actually shipped out before 1950. i have recently changed my mind about this, if you have seen my older posts! i had thought that a few of them probably did leave in '49, but after more research, i just can't find one that definitely did! i further think that the "later" service grips probably started and ended in 1950, and that MAYBE a few 32s are the only thing that had the "prewar" style service grips. any further info is always appreciated!!!

ed

i'm sorry kimporter! i forgot to mention that that is a beauty! i love the little things! man, it is exciting to find one out in the real world. i recently found one just like it (567XX) range) at a TINY gun show. (the one in the pic in the previous post is a 557XX) when i found it, it too was marked "mod 36"! i think a lot of folks just don't know them when they see them. even fairly savvy guntraders.

good job ferreting one out!!!
ed

kimporter, Thunder Pawn has a few boxes of .38 S&W ammo on the shelf if you can not find it locally.

My pre-War Terrier came in with a set of the fine checkered, square cornered stocks and matching numbers. They must be out there; mine can't be unique. The difference is very noticeable when I put the pre-War Terrier next to the 32 HE post-War snub.

Froggie

i'm sorry froggie! i reread my post and realized it was vague. i was referring to the postwar resumption of production/4-line terriers. i am positive that genuine 1-line prewar terriers had the hard rubbers, then the fine/square-corner walnut service style. i should have said, i haven't seen the early 18-lpi/square corner service stocks on any post-war reintroduction terriers. my theory is that postwar production on the terriers started back up at some point in 1950, and that it must have been after the early-style service grips had been exhausted.

again, i apologize for muddying the waters!

ed

No prob, Ed. We amphibians do great in muddy waters... just don't let them get too hot or cold! I do dearly love the look of those pre-War style stocks in your picture. The checkering is so much fresher than it is on mine.

FWIW, by the time my post-War 32 HE snub came along, the coarse checkering was firmly established in production... functional, but nowhere near as classy!

I'd still like to find an affordable post-War Terrier in true I-frame... would you guys PLEASE quit buying them all up so fast!!

Froggie

thanks, i have plenty of brass,