Interesting trade for 5904

[Grimjaws]

I have a good relationship with my FFL. He takes a lot of estate sales and will hold onto them in case a relative wants to have them after getting a permit. About 7 years ago he got in a nice set of some good S&Ws. Two years ago I grabbed some. My son ended up with the 66-1 snub and I got a nice 15.

I stopped by today to have him sell my M&P Shield 9mm with some extra mags. I prefer revolvers and carry a 442 or Colt Agent. So he looks at me and says,”Remember that estate sale I got years ago where you got some nice revolvers? I have a pistol that may interest you.”

He goes into the back and brings out a 5904 in great shape. No box or papers and he has to find the magazine as it’s been languishing in the back of his many safes for years. Looks great and shot very little as the usual wear spots are still good. Part of the same lot of guns from
the same estate. He hasn’t heard from anyone in years so wants to sell it to offset his storage fee for so long.

He says,”Make you a deal. I’ll swap this 5904 for your Shield. I value the 5904 at $350. Since you have the extra mags and all the box and paperwork whatever I get above and beyond that for the Shield I’ll give you credit.”

We’ve done this in past when he sells some grips or holsters for me so I have a small pool of money to use for transfers or sales.

“I just want that clunky old dinosaur gone from my safe as I’m tired of moving it.”

Since I could always buy another shield but have never seen a 5904 in this area I agreed.

Can anyone tell me the ship date please?
Serial number is TCE97XX

 

[GaryS]

I had an identical 5904. It was a good shooter, but since I had a 5906 already, I sold it to make room in my safe.

I should have bought a bigger safe.

 

[gunny4053]

A call to S&W will get you the ship date it left the factory. Based on your serial number and mine, mine (TVRxxxx) is from Feb. 1992, and since your gun has the square trigger guard and TCE prefix, I'm going to guess it's from 91. Nice score!

 

[jsbethel]

That is a fairly early pistol from late 88 or early 89. A pistol of that vintage may still retain a pre-recall grip. Be on the lookout for the dimple on the bottom of the grip indicating replacement. If not, S&W owes you the updated grip if they are in stock (and can be found after the move).

 

[snw19_357]

Yup, early 5904. By the very flat/matte look of the grips they likely don't have the dimple. If S&W doesn't have any, I'll trade you some 'new' ones for those.

 

[Sevens]

I’m going to guess it’s very, very early 1989… January or February, so I hope you update this thread when you hear back from S&W so I can see how close I got.

Also, for information’s sake… yes, the original grip was recalled and if you don’t have the melted dimple, you have the “defective” grip, however it’s good to know the what & why.

The early grip was made from a formulation that turned out to be brittle so that if you dropped the pistol, they would crack. This was much more than an inconvenience because the one-piece grip contains the mainspring. Thus a broken grip means no spring on the hammer and pistol no go BANG, obviously a major problem for a duty or defensive handgun.

If you have no intention to go in harm’s way while depending on a 3rd Gen then you need not worry about the grip. It is otherwise safe for use and is not any manner of a safety liability.

I think it’s a good practice not to drop any handguns, but yea, definitely don’t drop an early 3rd Gen with a recalled grip.