Heirloom help!

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1911luvr

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I received a very special Christmas present from my father tonight, and I'd like to share my joy while also asking for a little assistance. When my grandfather passed away 21 years ago my uncle took the revolver I liked as a kid, and hung onto it as a reminder of him. Three years ago I got my dad back into shooting, and from time to time we'd talk about grandpa's old revolver, especially how I wished my dad had kept it since my uncle doesn't shoot. Well after all these years my Dad got it back from my uncle, and for Christmas today he gave me my grandfather's S&W K38 Masterpiece! It is a 5-screw pre-model 14 with a K 89XXX serial number, and in the box with it is the price tag showing the $10.95 my grandfather originally paid for it.
27f0d0a35a2806d4a3cb8cc62c40ac77.jpg

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So here's where I need some help. Can anyone tell me what year this revolver was made, and anything special about it that you can educate me on? Although I'll never part with it until I can hand it down to my son (who's going to be born in less than a month), I'd love to get an idea of its value.

Oh, and it came with this too:
65730e7daa6328af219bdea9a611b537.jpg


This K22 is serial K 102XXX and was my grandfather's go-to varmint gun. I'd also like to know approximately when this one was built too.

Thanks and Merry Christmas everyone!
 
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Very nice. Both are probably 1950 guns, but the K-22 may have shipped in early 1951. Both appear to be the heavy barrel variety/wide rib variety, but the shadow leaves me a little uncertain on the K-22.

I can't make out the words on the price tag, but $10.95 is an impossibly low price for a Masterpiece of that era. That would be a terrific transaction.
 
K 89xxx K-38
K84,150 – K104,047.....1950 (manufacture). It probably left the factory around Sept-Oct 1950
K 102xxx K-22
Same 1950 production range, but it probably shipped in early 1951.

Both look to be in excellent and original condition. With the boxes, I'd say you'd see each of them priced at $800-$1000 at a typical gun show. Do you happen to have the tools and paperwork originally packed in the boxes? That would add somewhat more to the value.
 
Merry Christmas. Great gifts. It's impossible to tell when they were shipped without the complete serial numbers. All anyone can do is guess, even then you can be off years. The only way to tell is to get a history letter.
 
Obviously you had a great Christmas. Wonderful.

I agree with David Wilson about the dates and the price.

When I blew up the picture of the K-22, it looked like the tapered barrel to me. The K-38 looks like it has the heavy barrel. What does the end label say on the K-38 box? Can you post a picture of it?

And yes. The tools would be a nice plus.
 
A couple of tips.

First, NEVER EVER dry fire a 22 caliber revolver. Just one time can result in a dimple in the cylinder from the firing pin strike that cannot be repaired. If you really just have to try out that trigger then save your fired cases and use them to take the firing pin strike. BTW, rotate the cases between strikes and remove them after about 4 hits. Because if you hit them too many times the dimples will jam in the recess and you'll need to use a dowel pin to drive the cases free from the cylinder. BTW, I will give you just one guess on how I learned that bit of wisdom.

Second, 22LR ammunition uses a fairly slow burning powder and as a result it's one of the dirtiest shooting calibers in a handgun you can find. Sooner or later you'll find it difficult to get fresh cartridges fully seated into the chambers in the cylinder. When that happens you'll get some misfires so don't get freaked out by that. Just take a dry bronze bore brush and give each chamber 5 or 10 strokes, blow out the remnants, and resume shooting. Note, this does mean you'll have to remember to take a bore brush to the range with you every time you go to shoot. I'll also note the cheap Remington 22LR is about the worst ammo for this particular problem I've encountered, so when I can find it I prefer the Federal 22LR because it is much cleaner shooting.

Finally, the condition of your revolver and it's box are simply fantastic for the age. I would suggest that you place that box in a large Ziplock bag to preserve it and get yourself a basic silicone treated Gun Sock to keep that K22 looking good. For cleaning I like the M-Pro 7 Cleaning kit. While it's rather expensive the cleaning solvent is excellent and completely safe for a Blued Finish and the oil is also very very good. Note on oil, just an occasional (once a year) drop on the cylinder stop and each side of the hammer is all you need. Less oil means less "attractant" for powder debris and less "sludge" in the innards of your revolver.
 
Quite possible the "1" after the "$" sign on the price tag was a "7".
Long ago S&W model M&P retail was $65.00 with nickel at $70.00.
Model Combat Masterpiece was $76.95 with nickel at $81.95
Combat Magnum-$110.00 with nickel at $115.00
.357 (M27) at $120.00
.44 Magnum (M29) at $140.00
Highway Patrolman at $85.00
 
JP@AK said:
Obviously you had a great Christmas. Wonderful.



I agree with David Wilson about the dates and the price.



When I blew up the picture of the K-22, it looked like the tapered barrel to me. The K-38 looks like it has the heavy barrel. What does the end label say on the K-38 box? Can you post a picture of it?



And yes. The tools would be a nice plus.
Click to expand...



Yes, I will go take some better pics of the box and the revolvers.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Thank you everyone for the great info, I will be taking more pics today to share.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
You've obviously been a good boy this year. My heirloom guns are my favorites. Merry Christmas!
 
VERY nice. Print out or write down everything Scooter123 said. He is spot on.
 
I TRIED to explain all those allegations to Santa, but he must have believed his C.I.s . So, I got sox, and you got 2 of the best revolvers in the world.
 
JP@AK said:
Obviously you had a great Christmas. Wonderful.



I agree with David Wilson about the dates and the price.



When I blew up the picture of the K-22, it looked like the tapered barrel to me. The K-38 looks like it has the heavy barrel. What does the end label say on the K-38 box? Can you post a picture of it?



And yes. The tools would be a nice plus.
Click to expand...



Here's the boxes and more of the K38:

b7d5a82e04a2cb38d024aab09f18ed95.jpg


9516fe6b61bbea664b7c9719fb2fb480.jpg


e7a3bc2890409f22a48a89588c90bcc7.jpg


b6f45b8ebf17ca891b3c85304b70a97d.jpg


3dd14702e0836b4f9641cf38a7f504cc.jpg




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
jimmyj said:
Quite possible the "1" after the "$" sign on the price tag was a "7".
Long ago S&W model M&P retail was $65.00 with nickel at $70.00.
Model Combat Masterpiece was $76.95 with nickel at $81.95
Combat Magnum-$110.00 with nickel at $115.00
.357 (M27) at $120.00
.44 Magnum (M29) at $140.00
Highway Patrolman at $85.00
Click to expand...


You are correct. I googled all the terms on the tag below and it seems this tag was for a C A Hoffman & Son clamshell swivel style holster. It makes much more sense for the holster to be $10.95!

0c0599f97a1668717578c0df9392b0bc.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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