32 HE indentity

Oscarflytyer

Oscarflytyer

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Finally got this one out of jail. Not perfect, but it pretty good shape.

no model # on yoke
HE
Serial # 351857 (on grip strap and under the bbl/ejector rod. not on butt)
32 LONG CTG
bbl 3 1/4" long
fixed sights

5 screw w/ strain screw
grips are the longer grips, no medallion, and have the PAT. JUNE 5, 1917 on bottom
 

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You have a .32 Long Regulation Police. It probably dates to the early 1920s. On the right side, is it stamped " MADE IN U.S.A."? If so, this revolver was built after mid 1922. The right grip should have a matching serial number on the inside.
 
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Ah a good ole Regulation Police,it got the large extractor knob so I’m thinking made before 1927and that’s about all I got,except it’s a nice one
 
Thanx. Very tight, but some specking and surface rust. Grip frame was rusted under the grips. Wiped it down very good with Eezox and removed surface rust. not really wanting to rub with the sponge wool yet. May a cpl spots. Fun little gun to shoot. They only had it marked as a HE 3rd. I thought it was a regulation police. Saw where a 391xxx gun was in the 1924-1928 range so figuring tad earlier than that maybe
 
Very nice original finish RP! Still has the standard satin finish following WWI.

Muley Gil nailed it, 351990 with MADE IN USA, likely shipped 1923.
 
Serial # 351857

3405xx is a .32 RP which shipped in 1/1924. But it could have been manufactured several months (or several years) earlier. Without the "MADE IN U.S.A." stamping yours was likely manufactured in 1922 or possibly earlier. Grips are correct for the 1920s decade.
 
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assuming you guys have factory letters for the ship dates. This one is just a shooter for me. Worth getting a letter on it?
 
I have 32 RP, s/n 352504 that shipped in April 1921, only 647 numbers later. As you probably know very few guns actually shipped in s/n order. Nice looking gun, are the stocks numbered to the gun?
 
Oscarflytyer said:
assuming you guys have factory letters for the ship dates. This one is just a shooter for me. Worth getting a letter on it?
Click to expand...

What I would do is join the Smith & Wesson Collector's Association. Then you can ask the historian, Mr Roy Jinks, for shipping dates, at no cost. If Roy thinks you have a S&W that is somewhat special, he'll make a comment like, "This is an interesting piece." Then, you spring for a letter.
 
goatsnguns said:
I have 32 RP, s/n 352504 that shipped in April 1921, only 647 numbers later. As you probably know very few guns actually shipped in s/n order. Nice looking gun, are the stocks numbered to the gun?
Click to expand...

I do know (as of late/info here!) that they didn't ship based on serial #. I have Remington Mdl 14 - same thing. 1928 action date/1932 bbl code/Depression gun. They put them together out of barrels and shipped them when sold.

The grips are NOT pencil numbered at all. But they look like the have been on the gun since day one. Any chance a Monday/Friday build, and someone just spaced and didn't pencil the grips and too lazy to take them back off or forgot? Or just simply older replacement grips (back when you COULD get them!)?
 
Muley Gil said:
What I would do is join the Smith & Wesson Collector's Association. Then you can ask the historian, Mr Roy Jinks, for shipping dates, at no cost. If Roy thinks you have a S&W that is somewhat special, he'll make a comment like, "This is an interesting piece." Then, you spring for a letter.
Click to expand...

Priceless info. THANX! I really am not a collector, but a shooter of old(er) stuff! But, when you start getting into ones like this, the history intrigues the heck out of me!
 
32 history:

The .32 Hand Ejector and its cartridge, the 32 S&W Long are both historical milestones. The .32 HE is the first side swing out cylinder produced by S&W, built on the first I size frame, and introduced as the Model 1896 (1st Model) along with its new cartridge. Production of this model extended to serial # 19,712.

Available barrel lengths were 3 ¼”, 4 ¼” and 6”. It went thru several evolutionary changes until it became the 32 HE 3rd model in 1917 when a sq butt version was introduced as the 32 Regulation Police beginning at ~ #258000 in the same serial range as the 32 HE. The more common barrel length for the RP is the 4 1/4".

Target models with adjustable sights were available with 6" barrels as well as very rare 4 1/4" barrels, and with 2 screw extended target stocks.

The 3rd Model had a hammer safety block added around 1919 used thru WW II. About ½ million were roduced before WW II.

By 1920 the cyls received a heat treatment for additional strength as did all S&W revolvers.

Both were reintroduced after WW II in identical form except for the change to the much more fool proof post war sliding bar safety. They went thru more evolution in the 1950s, and in 1957 became the Model 30 w/round butt and the Model 31 w/square butt, and finally in 1961 were upgraded to the slightly longer J size frame with added -1 to the model #s.

Eventually both versions were combined as just the Model 31-1 in 1976, until discontinued in 1991. Various iterations were later introduced using the 32 H&R Mag and/or the 327 Fed Mag, both of which still use the 32 Long as well.

Any currently available 32 Long ammo in standard loadings is perfectly safe to shoot in your 32. You’ll be happy with its accuracy and light recoil.
 
Oscarflytyer said:
assuming you guys have factory letters for the ship dates. This one is just a shooter for me. Worth getting a letter on it?
Click to expand...

There are polarized opinions on getting a letter for a somewhat ordinary model. It probably will tell you little more than its exact shipment date, and that it was shipped to some S&W distributor or possibly a retailer. There is a (very) slim chance that it might have some more interesting history associated with it. If that is worth the $75 expense of the letter to you, and you feel lucky, have at it.
 
DWalt said:
There are polarized opinions on getting a letter for a somewhat ordinary model. It probably will tell you little more than its exact shipment date, and that it was shipped to some S&W distributor or possibly a retailer. There is a (very) slim chance that it might have some more interesting history associated with it. If that is worth the $75 expense of the letter to you, and you feel lucky, have at it.
Click to expand...

Luck?!?! what thehe!!isTHAT?!?! lol. will skip the letter and put the $$ in ammo! shooter to me. THANX!
 
and as always, you guys are Priceless! I am not a collector, just a shooter. seems lately I am trending towards Smiths... Not a bad thing. just don't really know a whole lot. I greatly appreciate all the info/feedback etc everyone freely shares! Hopefully one day I can reciprocate. In the meantime, I am really enjoying killing lottsa defenseless paper with my shooter Smiths!
 
Old post, but... Since have 2 more RP examples. The 38 S&W example is 4 digit serial #/lettered/all matching - so I know what that one is.

Then the 32 RP I picked up today. Basically same as the one in the original post, with differences. It has a serial # of 478162. Matches on the inside grip strap and also cylinder. Inside frame and crane build #s match. However, the underside of the bbl serial # does not match. Barrel is 4 1/4" long, It has the B (same as other original 32), but the serial # is 261253. And, the cylinder release is not the 'acorn' design, but a straight cylinder (knurled) design. THe bbl is cut for the acorn type.

So... Factory bbl replacement (it looks perfect), or later gun with factory mismatched frame/bbl as original? And, frame DOM? (and bbl DOM?).

Thanx for input.
 
Congrats.

Barrel replaced but not by the factory, they would have stamped the gun’s serial number on it. Also there would be a factory rework date and stamps on the left side grip frame.

The B on the barrel indicate the gun is originally a blue finish.

The gun is from the 1930s but the extractor rod is from after WWII.
 
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Thanx Jim. Kinda along the lines I was thinking. Haven't checked the grip frame/will. Whoever did the barrel replacement, they did a great job.
 
Let us know how it shoots.

It’s not that difficult to find the correct extractor rod with the mushroom knob to fit the two step cut under the barrel. That will look better and be more comfortable to extract the cases.

Your gun came with the barrel shaped knob used from 1929 to just after WWII, but the original barrel had a single step cut for it.
 
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