Hi all,

Was searching through the forums to find an answer to this question but, with little luck. If this has been posted before, please accept my apologies.

I am looking to purchase a S&W .38 Special CTG. But, I would like a little info on it. I have a serial number but can't find any information using that data. Does anyone know a place where I can research a S&W CTG by the serial number?

Thanks for any help!

.38 Special CTG refers to the cartridge that firearm is designed to fire. That said, the .38 spl dates from 1899 to today. The S/N may help us ID the pistol. Can you post a pictrure? Welcome to the forum.

The S&W .38 special cartridge is just a 38 special.
NOW, the .38 S&W cartridge is something different, 38/200 or there abouts,
So I dont know how to answer your question.
38 special,,, Model 10,12,14,15,19 ECT.
38 S&W,,, Some victories, The Terrier and a couple others.
Welcome to the forum!!
Peter

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Need 1/2 moon Chiefs special

Thanks for the replies and the welcome. I can't supply any pictures because I don't have the gun... yet. But the serial no. is E454321 if that can help narrow things down. The bluing looks good and the cylinder is tight in lock-up. It doesn't look very worn at all.

So, am I understanding correctly that this particular revolver won't fire standard .38 Special rounds but takes a "special" round made just for this type of gun?

I would say there is a 90% or better chance that
the revolver you have will shoot a 38 SPL. cartridge.
Are you sure you don't have the model #?.
As others have stated it could be A model 10,12,14,15
etc. It could also be a smaller gun like a model 36, 37
or a stainless model 60. Don

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"Don't worry be happy"

Is the gun you will be getting made by S&W? The serial number is not within the Smith & Wesson manufactured range, that I can tell.
Perhaps you have some other manufacture gun that fires the S&W .38 Special cartridge.

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

I viewed the gun at an estate sale preview. It was rather dark in the room and there were others waiting to look at it so my time was limited for inspection. I didn't see a model # stamped anywhere... just the S&W .38 Special CTG on the barrel along with the logo by the handle. The barrel appeared to be 5" lg. and the frame was "mid-size", unlike the S&W 44 Mag next to it (that's one big gun!). I was able to hold it to a light to view the cylinder gap and it appeared to be between .005 to .01 so that seemed ok. The grips appeared to be a walnut wood that was "checkered" I can't offer many other details except that it isn't stainless.

Thanks for your replies in helping me try to make a decision to jump on this. My Ruger SP 101 .357 needs a playmate!

Hi ! As we say in french, "seen from my window" you don't seem to know much about guns... Don't you know that your Ruger SP01 can shoot .38 spl cartridges as well ? Nothing special in that .38 special caliber...

As Mickey D said, the #E454321 doesn't sound like a S&W serial number. Did you see any S&W medallions on the stocks ? Sorry if you didn't, though your eye is sharp enough to measure a 0.005 or 0.01 gap...

But most of the time, a S&W gun has got the name Smih & Wesson engraved on the barrel...Try to go back to where you saw the gun and have a better look at it And maybe the seller will answer your questions about it...

The abbreviation "CTG" merely stands for "cartridge." You are looking for the ammo or the S&W revolver which chambers it?

If you are looking for ammo, anything marked 38 Special is what you need. The 38 Special has had many names over the years, 38 Special, 38 S&W Special, 38 S&W Special High Speed, 38/44 S&W Special, 38 Special +P or 38 Special +P+ come to mind.

If you are looking for the revolver, anything S&W makes that is chambered in 38 Special is what you are looking for.

The abbreviation CTG on the caliber marking on the barrel has changed over the years, and I do not believe it is presently used.

This sounds like it might be a Spanish clone of the Smith and Wesson revolver. Several were marked the way the OP said.

I wouldn't pay a pile of money for it, but it should be a fun shooter.

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uhlawpup
Gentle Soul

Hi,

I'm currently looking to purchase the revolver itself at an estate auction. The only markings I found on the gun were S&W .38 Special CTG on the barrel, the serial number and the S&W logo by the handle. I didn't see a model number on the frame, but I didn't have a very long time to look at it.

I guess the bottom line would be is: Given the description I've given about this gun, does this revolver sound like it would be worth up to a $400 bid at auction?

Thanks to everyone for your input!

Thanks for your input.

That's interesting! A clone? Is this something that S&W sanctioned or is it bogus? This is the info I need to make a decision on this. Thanks!

Just a wild guess, as I do not have enough info, but you might be looking at a pre war M&P model. I doubt it is worth $400, but it depends on all sorts of things, and other info, such as serial number, frame size, barrel length, finish and condition would be helpful.

Hi Shawn,

The serial # E4 54321 that I found (which seems like an odd number) doesn't appear to be legit according to posts above. The frame size I can't be definitive about ("N", etc) because I don't know the S&W nomenclature. All I can say is that it is "mid-sized" as compared to the S&W .44 that was next to it. The barrel length looked to be in the 5" range and it was blued steel. The bluing was in good condition with little to no wear. The cylinder lock-up felt good in all positions. The gun was clean with no noticible fouling (low light though) and the single/double action was smooth. The grip hatchings were still pretty sharp and the wood had no visible cracks or gouges. It really appeared the gun wasn't used that much. But, I am not that familiar with the S&W product and that is why I came here... to see if I could get some background to this gun. It felt really nice in my hand and it's an attractive piece. But, I don't want to buy this for a premium and later find I got a rube.

Thanks for your help. I really appreciate it.

Where did you get that serial number from? The best place to see the number is on the bottom of the frame between the grips. Some grips cover this area and you have to remove them to see the number.

Hi,

I found the number on the bottom of the frame (between the grips) but I'm now really suspect about it. A number in that succession (54321) doesn't seem legit... Unless I copied it down wrong. Now I'm starting to second guess myself!

I've been looking around and found this closed online auction for an advertised S&W .38 Special CTG. This looks just like the one I'm looking at for tomorrow's auction. Given the description in this online auction, does this seem to be a reasonable price? AA Auction 8522988 (Ended 03/24/2008, 21:00:00 PST) .38 S&W Special CTG

The gun in the auction link is a S&W Model 10 with 4" heavy barrel. The term S&W .38 Special CTG (.38 Special Cartridge) is the chambering or ammunition designation for this revolver, not the type or model of the revolver.
If this is indeed the gun you are lookling at, $400 is the max I would offer.



Model 10 with standard or tapered barrel.

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

I was wondering I'd anyone could tell me about a 38 smith & wesson special ctg. That is what it sais on The barrel and there is a number 9 13 24 on it and the s.n. r 296xxxm? Any info would be nice when it was shipped what the mod. Number is ? It has a 4" barrel. Can email pics having a hard time uploading them on here.


**edit** looks a lot like pictured above.

zumkatze;
Strictly speaking, the caliber marking should read, ".38 S&W Special CTG.", with possible variations in decimal points, capitalization, etc. It is the official designated name for this cartridge. Any other arrangement of the language could be a dodge around patent or copyright laws.
Hope this helps.

Larry

It's really not a good idea to tag an unrelated question onto a 6 year old thread. Why don't you start a new thread? The information you provided makes very little sense regarding making a positive ID, except it could be an S&W K-frame. Or maybe not..