A little help identifying my father's gun?

[TallGrassShort]

So dad's health is not too good, and mom asked me to help get rid of all his guns so she doesn't have to. Other than grandpa's Remington Model 31 12 GA shotgun (which I plan to keep) I'm looking to find the value his other guns would be worth if sold to a dealer, so I can help mom move them out of the house. As such, I'd appreciate any help in understanding their worth.

Specifically for here, I have a 38 special with a 6" barrel. Hand ejector. Adjustable sight. 5 screw?? With markings on the butt "K 220917." Markings on the frame behind the yoke "Z 38742" and markings on the yoke "38742."

I'd appreciate any insight that could be given.

Dan

 

[Muley Gil]

Welcome to the Forum.

You have a K-38 from around 1954.

 

[Seaburry]

Keep it, shoot it and enjoy it for years to come…. Wk

 

[stansdds]

K-38 Masterpiece. They are usually quite fine revolvers, excellent fit and finish, nice trigger action, and accurate.

 

[steelslaver]

That is a top shelf 38 special. It looks to be in nice well cared for condition though the ejector rod shoe it has had some use

I would say it should sell for around $700 give or take depending on actual condition. More if you have the original box

But a dealer will probably only give you 1/3 to 1/2 of that. It isn't that he is trying to rob you, but he has to pay the rent, his employees, taxes etc.

You could take some good pictures of it and post it here in the for sale section. An FFL can ship it for you for a fee. You can use the FFL look up on Midway USA to find FFLs

 

[rct269]

My only insight is you will receive approximately half of its value if you sell it to a dealer-----the reason being they gotta eat too!

A painless and worthwhile alternative would be to list it for sale here on the forum.

As to values, all I can provide is what mine sold for during the liquidation of my collection during the three years ending about a year ago.

That goes like this:

#K76068, shipped May 16, 1949, fetched $912.

#K78822 shipped November 18, 1949 went for $955.

#3K62552, shipped November 6, 1972 brought $912----again.

Ralph Tremaine

As an aside, from what I can tell from the pictures, yours is in excellent condition (as respects the percentage of original finish remaining)---as were mine.

And now, having been properly chastised for failure to properly identify these three items, they are: #1, a narrow rib example--#2, a wide rib example--#3, a SAO (Single Action Only) example----all the same, only different.

 

[JP@AK]

As Gil stated, it is a K-38 Masterpiece from about 1954. For comparison, K-38 Masterpiece, serial number K220943, shipped in March, 1954.

If sold here on the Forum, it should easily bring between $800 and $900. You'd get 40% to maybe 50% of that if you sold it outright to a dealing. Even with FFL fees, you would do a lot better to sell it and ship it to a collector among us here.

 

[TallGrassShort]

Thanks for the quick input guys. He's got about 4 or 5 long guns and 3 or 4 other pistols, so the convenience of selling all to a local dealer is appealing. But I will look over the economics of it all and decide if I want to sell them individually.

As for keeping them, the only one I want to keep in the family is grandpa's shotgun.

 

[sceva]

Look for the box in case he kept it. It will be gold and look like this except it will say K-38 Masterpiece; even better if you have the cleaning rod and black Sight Adjusting Tool.

 

[toad67]

Do everyone a favor and sell it here, as I'm sure that it would go fast since you already figured out how to post pictures. If you need help find an FFL, local to you for shipping, go to GunBroker.com and go to the bottom of the page and look under the "Buyers" tab, there is a listing titled "Find an FFL", click on that and enter your zip code, it will list FFL's in your area. Call a few of them to see how much they would charge you to ship a gun and that's all there is to it.

 

[mtgianni]

Thanks for the quick input guys. He's got about 4 or 5 long guns and 3 or 4 other pistols, so the convenience of selling all to a local dealer is appealing. But I will look over the economics of it all and decide if I want to sell them individually.

As for keeping them, the only one I want to keep in the family is grandpa's shotgun.

No problem to list all the guns here and sell to a dealer what doesn't move here.

 

[rct269]

As near as I can tell with a quick look, we haven't translated "FFL" for the benefit of our new member. It translates to Federal Firearms License. That, in turn translates to the holder thereof-----and that translates to a dealer (in this case)----and they (also in this case) are those blessed with the ability to "transport, ship and receive" firearms---which most all will do in exchange for a small fee------and the goodwill of a potential new customer.

Ralph Tremaine

 

[Doug M.]

I am pretty sure that if you post these in the sales forum, you will get more. It might take a little longer, but I don't see any signs of urgency. A nice revolver like that K38 will sell to aficionados for far more than you would get from a dealer. I have one, and although it is not as practical as some of my other firearms, I like it.

There are complexities and restrictions to shipping firearms, especially interstate, so collect info on doing so before taking action. This forum and your favorite search engine are your friends.

 

[steelslaver]

How it works

While it is possible for individuals to ship a firearm, they can only ship to a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL). A private individuals options of shipping methods are limited. A license holder has way more shipping options which are usually cheaper and makeup for his fee.

So, lets say your list the gun here. Bob Gunbuyer says I'll take it. Then he will need to send you payment and his preferred FFL. You take the gun to the FFL you have selected on your end pay him a fee to ship and he will contact Bob's FFL and ship the gun to him. When the gun arrives at Bob's FFL, Bob will have to go down and fill out the paperwork, pass the background check and pay his FFL a fee. Usually $20-$40

While the FFL fees and shipping may suck up to $60 to $100 it is far less than the value loss of selling directly to a dealer.

 

[stansdds]

How it works

While it is possible for individuals to ship a firearm, they can only ship to a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL). A private individuals options of shipping methods are limited. A license holder has way more shipping options which are usually cheaper and makeup for his fee.

So, lets say your list the gun here. Bob Gunbuyer says I'll take it. Then he will need to send you payment and his preferred FFL. You take the gun to the FFL you have selected on your end pay him a fee to ship and he will contact Bob's FFL and ship the gun to him. When the gun arrives at Bob's FFL, Bob will have to go down and fill out the paperwork, pass the background check and pay his FFL a fee. Usually $20-$40

While the FFL fees and shipping may suck up to $60 to $100 it is far less than the value loss of selling directly to a dealer.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Words of wisdom have been posted. Selling to a dealer is quick and easy, but will result in obtaining a small fraction of what your inheritance is worth. Selling privately, as in posting them for sale in the classified ads, and shipping FFL to FFL will net a much higher amount of money.

 

[glenwolde]

Once you identify the guns, you can go to gunbroker and use the advance search function to find completed auctions with their selling prices to use as a guide.

If it's legal to sell them person-to-person in your location try that first. No FFL's to deal with. If there are some local gun shows, get a table. Price your stuff realistically and it will sell.

But you should be able to find an FFL that will ship them for you as already detailed.

 

[Baxter6551]

I would second all of the above and suggest you list all the guns in classifieds here first - members here have varied interests and not just S&W.