My inheritance - Lend-Lease .38-200 S&W Victory

trikster said:
Yes, it says U.S. PROPERTY G.H.D... Not sure what that exactly means.

If I were to try and sell, where would be a good place? I am not really a collector, mainly was going to use it for home defense. My main issue with it is the cost of the rounds. $35 (on average) for a box of 50 isn't cheap. .357 and .38 special are a lot cheaper (considering I got 200 rounds of .38 special when I picked up the Victory) and a lot more plentiful.

All the other relatives said that she had a .357, no one knew about this one. I was hoping for the .357 as it would make a far more effective HD/SD gun and I wouldn't feel guilty firing it.
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If it's primarily for home defense as you say,hopefully one box of that $35 stuff should hold you for a while,unless the zombies come out in force.;-P
 
Just a little food for thought here seeing as this was your Grandma's gun.
Don't sell it.
You'll regret it in the long run.
 
MOONDAWG said:
I may be mistaken, but that red ring around the firing pin bushing on the recoil shield looks more like red lacquer from the primers of mil surp ammo than rust.
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Never would have thought of that. Will look at it closer tonight.
 
I think the good colonel's name was Guy H Drewry. He was the chief of the Ordnance Corrps district that included Springfield, MA, where Smith & Wesson was located. His counterpart to the south was Col. Waldemar Broberg, who had the district that included Hartford CT, where Colt is located. His initials. WB, are found on some Colt weapons.
 
In your opinion, how badly would I kill the value if I turned this into a shooter? I have had a couple of folks interested in buying it, but if this is new and not a huge collectable, I could keep it as a shooter and HD gun. I know the .38 S&W isn't the most powerful round, but an intruder won't feel so great getting shot with one.

Thoughts? If I sold it, was going to ask $400+shipping.
 
I would shoot it a little and definitely keep it. You'll probably have trouble selling it for what you want, and you're unlikely to come across another for the price.

Does this year have the hammer block? I read somewhere they were added in the course of WWII. Might make a difference to you; might not.
 
No, this one doesn't have the updated hammer block. I meant to ask about that. Other than dropping the gun, is there any other way the gun could accidentally discharge?
 
trikster said:
No, this one doesn't have the updated hammer block. I meant to ask about that. Other than dropping the gun, is there any other way the gun could accidentally discharge?
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Not that I know of, but out of an abundance of suspicion I would never say never.

Remember that the predecessor safety block wasn't a worthless design. Lots of guns with the old safety block must have been dropped without going off. But if a gun was dirty inside, it was possible for the old safety block to get stuck in its recess, leaving the hammer unblocked.
 
Cyrano said:
I think the good colonel's name was Guy H Drewry. He was the chief of the Ordnance Corrps district that included Springfield, MA, where Smith & Wesson was located. His counterpart to the south was Col. Waldemar Broberg, who had the district that included Hartford CT, where Colt is located. His initials. WB, are found on some Colt weapons.
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I'm almost sure that some Colts were also inspected by Drewry.
 
Had the gun looked at by a gunsmith / shop. He compared it to two others on hand (mine was far nicer) and pulled out the bluebook. He and another employee placed the value between $400-500 range. Between the employees and the 5 old-timers (customers) that looked at it all thought the gun was in supurb mechanical condition.

Now I get to determine if I keep or sell. I am not a collector, these are tools to me. I wish this was a simple model 10, would not have any qualms keeping it. If anyone is interested in buying, shoot me a PM and we can talk.
 
Finally got the nerve to pull the sideplate off and take a look inside. I was surprised when I looked at my pile of screwdrivers that I had a perfect bit for the job. Fit like a glove in the slot. Pulled the grips off and was pleased to see that they are serial number matched to the gun. Unless they were stained, I would almost believe that they are mahogany wood. The color on the inside is a rich redish color. Next was removing the three screws on the sideplate (I did not touch the one by the hammer, I remeber reading that I shouldn't). I did the one over the trigger first and pulled out the cylinder. I noticed that there was some congealed oil there and on the crane. I removed the other two... One thing I noticed is that all the screws appeared the same. I didn't take a real close look though. I have seen many techniques on removing the sideplate but when looking at mine, I just lifted from the main spring area and with a little wiggle, it came off without any fuss. It was snug to be sure, but not tight. Inside is a sticky mess. I will need to get some brake cleaner and give it a bath. I also looked at the timing. Nothing looks worn, but it is a degree or two short of locking up. I think it's the cogs on the extractor that are disengaging before the hand finishes pushing up. Is this a fix I can do or will it need to go to a smith? How much to fix? It only is out of time if I do a slow pull either in SA or DA. If I do anything remotely fast, it locks up fine.
 
Oh, and she is for sale. I am not a collector, I would rather this go to someone who is and will take care of it properly. PM if interested. I have two pistols that I am looking at that I think will fill my needs a lot more closely. (looking at a 10-5 and a 36-2)
 
Texas Star: You're right; I did some digging and found that Col Guy H. Drewry did inspect some Colt 1911A1s. I don't know how that happened, and would be glad for some more information on just how it happened. He was promoted to Brigadier General in 1942 and presumably went to a post somewhere else in accordance with his rank.

I found very limited biographical information on Broberg. He was an MIT graduate, class of 1925. In 1928 he was a 1st Lieutenant, an instructor in the Ordnance Department at West Point. There was a Waldemar Broberg in the Canal Zone during the 1920s. He had a son who was born there (from the son's obituary).
 
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