Grandfather's Revolver - Help ID

[SOS24]

I inherited my Grandfather's 38 special revolver but do not know a lot about it. My Mom thinks it may have been from when he was in the Army, because she found a picture of him with it and the Army pistol team. I'd appreciate any information anyone can provide.
Based off sticky thread to help identify guns, this is the information I have:
- There is no model number, The serial # is K200xxx
- It is a hand ejector with post war adjustable sights
- it has a 4in barrel, 38 special
- only 4 screws are visible but I think 1 might be hidden by the grips, it does have a strain screw

 

[Muley Gil]

Welcome to the Forum.

That is a .38 Combat Masterpiece from about 1953. Model numbers weren't assigned until 1957.

 

[SOS24]

Thanks for the quick info.

 

[cgt4570]

Exactly what Muley said. It eventually became the Model 15 in 1957-58. Yes, it is a 5-screw. One screw is covered by the top of the diamond-center magna grip. The gun has an added trigger shoe. While fine for target shooting, I have a scar on the outside of my right leg from holstering a gun with an added trigger shoe years ago. Be warned!

 

[DWalt]

The closest SN on my list to yours is K1990xx which shipped from the factory in November 1953. It could be a personally-owned revolver. A factory letter would indicate if it was originally shipped to a military destination. In the days before wide target triggers were offered by the factory, many competitive target shooters attached trigger shoes to their standard factory triggers. That was true for both handguns and rifles.

 

[Art Doc]

BTW- It appears your CM has the wide Target hammer. May have been special ordered but more likely added later. I agree that the trigger shoe can be a hazard and I would remove it.

Was your grandfather an MP by any chance? This model was sometimes used by the military police but if it has no government markings he likely bought it for himself. Maybe because he carried one like it in the Army?

 

[DWalt]

My earlier statement about it being his personal property is that I do not believe that any CMs (or Model 15s) were in official military use by any of the U. S. service branches except the USAF, and those were purchased much later than 1953. The USAF used them until the early 1990s, and a few may still be in use in several limited roles.

 

[SOS24]

BTW- It appears your CM has the wide Target hammer. May have been special ordered but more likely added later. I agree that the trigger shoe can be a hazard and I would remove it.

Was your grandfather an MP by any chance? This model was sometimes used by the military police but if it has no government markings he likely bought it for himself. Maybe because he carried one like it in the Army?

He was in the Army Office for Strategic Service (predecessor to CIA).

My Uncle actually inherited the gun with 3 others. He kept the modern ones, but gave me this one and a High Standard Citation.

I will definately look at removing the wide target trigger based on advise. I also have his custom wood grips for it but they are right-handed and I'm left-handed.

 

[DWalt]

There are differing opinions about the trigger shoe. If you are not going to carry it in a holster, but rather in a pistol rug or case, and plan to use it mainly for target shooting, I would leave it alone, as it is part of the gun's history. Otherwise, remove it and keep it safely stored. Some shoes are held on by small Allen-head setscrews, and some early ones have small slot-head setscrews. A factory letter might be worthwhile to see where it was first sent. If you do attach another set of grips, also keep the originals safely stored. They are important to the gun's value if they are original. Check the SN on the rear of the right grip panel.

 

[SOS24]

There are differing opinions about the trigger shoe. If you are not going to carry it in a holster, but rather in a pistol rug or case, and plan to use it mainly for target shooting, I would leave it alone, as it is part of the gun's history. Otherwise, remove it and keep it safely stored. Some shoes are held on by small Allen-head setscrews, and some early ones have small slot-head setscrews. A factory letter might be worthwhile to see where it was first sent.

Thanks for the idea.

 

[Muley Gil]

Your granddaddy must have been in the Army during WW II as well, as the OSS was abolished by Harry Truman in September 1945.

 

[SOS24]

Your granddaddy must have been in the Army during WW II as well, as the OSS was abolished by Harry Truman in September 1945.

He started out during WWII, was in during Korean War then retired before I was born. I don't know a lot about his Army career because all my Mom said she knew he was in some special branch of Army Intelligence but he never would say anything specific. She finally got him to talk about all sorts of different things shortly before he died and the OSS was one thing she remembered him mentioning.

 

[19leben]

Wow.... OSS. Cool history for your granddad. And a super nice inheritance in the Combat Masterpiece. One of my favorites.

 

[SOS24]

Wow.... OSS. Cool history for your granddad. And a super nice inheritance in the Combat Masterpiece. One of my favorites.

My mother was surprised by a lot that day when he finally was willing to answer some questions.

As for the gun, I was excited when my Uncle asked if I wanted one of my Grandfather's guns, but then became even more excited when I realized how old it was and happy to know a little more about it.

 

[BUFF]

Not only is your grandfather's gun "old," (funny to us of a certain age to refer to 1950 guns as 'old'), it is still an excellent handgun. Excellent, clear adjustable sights, a very smooth ignition system that can be tuned to allow a great trigger pull, physical dimensions to allow most anyone to shoot it and chambered in the most common American police and target shooters' cartridge, the .38 Special.

It is as good a general purpose handgun as there is. Add family heirloom and there you are.