Double struck “Made in U.S.A.” 1905

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KneverKnew

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A fellow is offering this pistol to me for $675. I've been looking for one for a long time that is similar to one my dad had many years ago. This one is exactly the same one with the exception of having wood grips instead of my dad's mother of pearl grips and this one is also In much better condition. The only real question I have is concerning the made in USA stamp. It looks as if it was double struck to me. Would this detract from the value of the gun and does anyone know of similar occurrences happening On other guns and why? What would the actual value of this pistol be?
See attached pictures.
 

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the best way to calculate value in real time is to check out Gunbroker. You'll be able to search for your gun and see what it's currently been selling for.

$675 doesn't sound like a bad price given box and what looks like decent condition.

There are some instances of double stamps and usually they are just mistakes. I've never seen one in that area but I'm sure others are out there. It probably would detract from the value compared to another one in the same condition with a proper stamp, although someone might like it and pay more because its different. Tough to really say for sure.
 
Do you plan on shooting this handgun? Are the grips original
to the gun? For me personally, I wouldn't have a problem
buying that revolver in that condition, with the box, for that
price. The double stamp is unfortunate, but represents the
history of it's journey. It looks like it was well taken of.
I would venture to guess it's worth more than the asking price.
Just my .02 cents.
 
Here is a picture of the bore. It has some pitting but strong rifling. How does this affect things? Looks like it would still shoot pretty good to me. And yes, I will be shooting this gun if I get it.
 

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KneverKnew said:
The only real question I have is concerning the made in USA stamp. It looks as if it was double struck to me. Would this detract from the value of the gun and does anyone know of similar occurrences happening On other guns and why? .
Click to expand...

Hmmm ... That does look peculiar. The font and size do indeed appear identical and correct for both versions. It looks a bit like either the previous one was under the nickel and the second one on top, or the earlier one wasn't struck hard enough. It's still unusual that this would pass quality control in peacetime.
 
KneverKnew said:
Well I can't get them bigger I think unless I host them somewhere. Rather not. I'll try again
Click to expand...

I wasn't aware file size issues for still pictures are still a thing. Both my desktop with Windows 10 and my I-phone automatically downsize any photo to the appropriate size when attaching. The only file size problem occurs with .gif files.
 
Absalom said:
I wasn't aware file size issues for still pictures are still a thing. Both my desktop with Windows 10 and my I-phone automatically downsize any photo to the appropriate size when attaching. The only file size problem occurs with .gif files.
Click to expand...

Well, these are the pictures the seller emailed me. I saved them to my phone and then uploaded them to this forum as attachments. The file sizes are around 22KB. Not sure what the file type is. Once I have the pistol in hand I can get some better quality photos if people here are interested.
 
KneverKnew said:
Well, these are the pictures the seller emailed me. I saved them to my phone and then uploaded them to this forum as attachments. The file sizes are around 22KB. Not sure what the file type is..
Click to expand...

Ah. Sorry, misunderstood your issue. If that's what you got, hosting wouldn't make a difference. You could enlarge them, but we can do that too on our devices and they'll just get fuzzier :)
 
Install Tapatalk and uploading pictures from a smartphone gets easier. Your .38 M&P was designed to shoot a version of .38 Special that was more powerful than standard ammo today. It was akin to +P pressures today. So, use +P for protection if you want, but you'll enjoy shooting standard pressure at the range.
 
Wiregrassguy said:
Install Tapatalk and uploading pictures from a smartphone gets easier. Your .38 M&P was designed to shoot a version of .38 Special that was more powerful than standard ammo today. It was akin to +P pressures today. So, use +P for protection if you want, but you'll enjoy shooting standard pressure at the range.
Click to expand...

Wow! Well that's nice to know. I really wouldn't have thought that such an old gun would have been made for +P. But what you say, about it being designed for military & police (duh!) would make it a stronger design. Don't plan on running high pressure diet through it, but nice to know it can handle it.
 
First, I wonder if the gun has been re-nickeled? Maybe has a star near the serial number or a date under the left stock? Nickel does not look like it is 100 years old and with pitting in the barrel, makes me wonder why the nickel looks factory fresh?? Might also be at least a possibility that the factory repair shop re-stamped the MADE IN USA??? I hope it is not re-nickeled, since that would make the gun worth much less than $675.
 
glowe said:
First, I wonder if the gun has been re-nickeled? Maybe has a star near the serial number or a date under the left stock? Nickel does not look like it is 100 years old and with pitting in the barrel, makes me wonder why the nickel looks factory fresh?? Might also be at least a possibility that the factory repair shop re-stamped the MADE IN USA??? I hope it is not re-nickeled, since that would make the gun worth much less than $675.
Click to expand...

The thought crossed my mind. But I got Him down $100 so not too worried about it.
 
Would the refinish mark be a star on the bottom barrel flat? Or would it be under the grip panel?
One thing I see that makes me think it may be original finish is that the trigger and hammer are not nickel. But again, where would the mark be if it has been refinished?
 
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S&W used stars, diamonds and O's to indicate service department work. Generally, diamonds and O's were stamped on parts and the star was stamped following the serial number on the butt. They also stamped these marks on the left side of the grip frame and stamped a service date on the left forward toe of the grip frame in the format MM.YY. More modern marks include a rectangle with R-B, R-S, R-N inside to indicate refinish in bright blue, standard blue and nickel. And, there're more but I'll recommend getting a copy of the Standard Catalog of S&W, 4th Edition, for more information.
 
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