.38 S&W Special US Service CTG's

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luv2surf

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I have been given my grandfather's old pistol and was hoping that someone could help me identify it's age, etc. It is a .38 S&W Special, U.S. Service CTG's, nickel finish is in excellent condition, pearl handle, serial number 47619, 4" barrel, hammer and trigger has different finish than the rest of the pistol. On top of the barrel there is an inscription...

Smith Wesson Springfield Mass USA
Patd April 9 89. March 27 94. May 21.95. July 16.95 Aug 4.96 Dec 22. 96. Oct 6.01 Dec 17.01

If anyone can give me some information/history...I would greatly appreciate it.
 
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I have been given my grandfather's old pistol and was hoping that someone could help me identify it's age, etc. It is a .38 S&W Special, U.S. Service CTG's, nickel finish is in excellent condition, pearl handle, serial number 47619, 4" barrel, hammer and trigger has different finish than the rest of the pistol. On top of the barrel there is an inscription...

Smith Wesson Springfield Mass USA
Patd April 9 89. March 27 94. May 21.95. July 16.95 Aug 4.96 Dec 22. 96. Oct 6.01 Dec 17.01

If anyone can give me some information/history...I would greatly appreciate it.
 
Welcome to the forum. This is a pretty nice way to start. (Pictures)....You have a (pictures) 38 Military Model (pictures) of 1902 1st change (if my memory is working). Should be a round butt (pictures) and the grips, if they are factory, (pictures) would have a logo medallion.

Did I mention we'd love to see some pictures?
icon_biggrin.gif
 
Would gladly post pics but I do not have permission to do this. Who do I contact to get permission to upload pics?
 
Mike

Bet'cha it's not a 1st change, but just a 1902.

Reason is that, for a 4 " barrel, the patent date roll markings are still on the
top of the barrel. If it were a 1st change, they would be on the side of the
barrel.

If we get some pictures, I bet there is no shoulder on the barrel, where it meets
the frame. If there is a shoulder, and with top roll markings, then we have an
example of the very earliest of the 1st change models. In that case, it would be
very interesting to see a picture of the roll markings. I've never seen, nor heard,
of one where the roll markings might have gone up the shoulder.

Regards, Mike Priwer
 
Couple of notes...

1) Grips are aftermarket pearls
2) I still believe its a 1st change
3) I also believe its a 5 inch barrel. Measure the barrel from the front of the cylinder face to the end of the barrel.

Pics are a little to fuzzy to be sure of overall condition. Cool gun though.
 
Originally posted by mikepriwer:
Mike

All bets are off ! As you note, its not a 4", and there is clearly a shoulder on
the barrel. So - 1902 1st change.

Regards, Mike Priwer
Click to expand...

Sure...just when I can finally win one, you cancel the bet.
icon_biggrin.gif
 
I have taken some additional pics that seem to be less blurry.

1) How can you tell if the grips are an aftermarket grip vs. factory?
2)What is the difference!bewtween the 1st and 2nd change? Did S&W modify the handgun?
3) I measured the barrel as instructed and it appears to measure 5"

What would something like this be worth? How much would the aftermarket grips devalue the handgun? Thanks for all your help!

http://picasaweb.google.com/luvsurf2/38SpecialPics#
 
This is a model of 1902, because it has the lug under the barrel , to retain the extractor
rod. Its a 1st change because it has the beefed-up barrel and receiver, which is
indicated by the shoulder on the barrel, right where it meets the frame face. This was
a factory engineering change, and not a modification to the gun.

Round-butt pearls almost always, in this period of time, have gold medallions in their
upper part. From the pictures, the area where the medallions would be, is too large.
And, they don't fit the gun quite right . You can see misfit where the ears on the grips
meet the frame. The ears hang over a bit.

Effectively, the gun has non-factory grips. Had those grips been gold-medallion pearls,
the gun would be worth several hundred dollars more, than it is now. These grips do have
some value. As it is, the gun is probably $300 to $350 , maybe as much as $400 to
some buyer.

Later, Mike Priwer
 
luv2surf,

Here is what Mike was talking about. Gold Medallion factory Mother-of-Pearl stocks. The medallions are cropped from the larger picture.
 

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