Dave Nash
Member
- Joined
- Mar 7, 2009
- Messages
- 110
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- 475
I fully admit that my forte is not (with) Pre-War Registered and Non-Registered Magnums but about a year ago, I became acquainted with the Non-Registered, 3½" barreled revolver that is pictured below.
The recently received Factory Letter on this gun states that it left Springfield on March 20th of 1940 with both that shorter tube and the King Ivory Bead Patridge Front Sight that is still attached to it. Note that the rear, adjustable sight blade is now of the White Outline type (often seen with such specialty King front sights) but it is not mentioned in the letter. I am more than willing to believe that it might have been added later (although it appears to be a period blade) but obviously, such a thing might also have just been "understood" at the time it was shipped or perhaps even "missed" or forgotten about by whomever entered the information into the record(s) upon which that Letter is based.
That Letter also indicates that this gun was one of four Non-Registered Magnums sent together on that same day in a single, four gun shipment to Charles A. Bogart Co., in Sandusky Ohio, with the others bearing 5", 6½" and 8⅜ barrels. All four guns were blue (as this one still is) and all four were recorded as having been shipped with checkered walnut Magna Grips. That last feature is obviously no longer to be found on this revolver.
However, what is now attached to the gun, are what have been verified by several people far more knowledgeable than I, as legitimate Smith & Wesson Tuskoid grips. Other than in pictures, I had never seen a pair before. So earlier this year, I took them to two of the bigger shows in the country and spoke to several people from the S&W Collectors Association who I not only respect a great deal but who could also tell me if they were "right" and I was told that they were.
As most of you know, it is believed that there were only 1418 Non-Registered Magnums manufactured (substantially less than the approximately 5500 "Registered" Magnums made by the factory) but I am firmly convinced that there are even fewer of these (Tuskoid) grips floating around than there are Non-Registered revolvers themselves. They are truly a rare find and they are in great shape.
As is the gun.
And that leads me to another interesting aspect of this firearm. In my brief examination of it, the Serial Number matches from the Butt to the Cylinder to the Barrel. I didn't check the Extractor but at this point, I have no reason to doubt that it matches too. As to the rear sight, I am not sure if on this late of a gun, it would be numbered to frame but as it (the revolver) belongs to somebody else (a very close and long time friend), I was a bit leery about addressing those small screws with even a properly sized and hollow ground driver (which is why I left the sideplate alone as well).
However, alongside the Serial Number on the Butt is the typical factory, star-like "work mark" (*) that not only indicates that it probably went through Smith & Wesson's own Customer Service/Repair Shop but also that whatever that work "was", it was significant enough to stamp the gun in this manner to indicate it as such. The first thing that comes to mind is a reblue but the revolver doesn't look refinished to me. In fact, in a number of very detailed pictures I have of the stampings (especially the Logo), things are as crisp as can be.
I realize that at the time this gun probably went back to the factory (it is stamped "11 43" in the manner to be expected on the grip frame under the left stock), they had polishers that could do some pretty amazing things while keeping flat surfaces "flat", curved ones "consistent" and screw holes round and not elongated. But even keeping that in mind, this gun just doesn't appear to be reblued to me and I have been in this business for at least a little while and have at least some ability to judge such things. I could be wrong and it could very well be refinished but at this point, I don't think so.
It should also be noted that the "Star" itself appears to have been stamped through the blue and into bottom of the frame instead of being stamped into frame and blued over, which I am told (again by several people far better at this than me) can (not always) be an indicator of what was done in terms of refinishing/rebluing.
After convincing my friend to get the Factory Letter, I now have him convinced to use it to reach out to the S&W Historical Foundation and see what they might have in their digitized files. While fully realizing that they might have nothing, one would hope that in ordering what appears (on the surface anyway) to possibly be either a multiple-gun "special order" of some sort (doubtful, but like I said, one can hope) or, at least, an attempt to place a "cover-all-the-bases" stocking order (more likely), that some sort of additional information about it might be available. It is certainly worth a shot (a term I guess one shouldn't use lightly when we're talking about products such as these.).
I hope that all of you who collect such guns have found this interesting and I promise to keep you posted.
As you know, this site limits things to five attachments so for now, here are the five that I was sent that I think would be the most helpful.
NR 01) Left Side of the Revolver showing a slight turn ring on the cylinder but no real wear on the bluing overall. This image was lit to show the ivory front sight insert and the Tuskoid stock in some detail.
NR 02) Right Side of the Revolver and probably photographed under a fluorescent light, giving the slight greenish tinge to the Tuskoid grip panel. The gun had been coated with something to protect it during storage and handling; leading to the waviness/haziness in some portions of the frame/bluing under the light.
NR 03) Detail of the sideplate-to-frame fit, undistorted screw hole, sharp Logo, and case coloring on the hammer and trigger. Also see the original definition and toolmarking of the frontstrap serration cuts and cylinder stop (bolt) notches within the cylinder itself.
NR 04) Partially washed out (overly lit) image of Logo to illustrate sharpness of die strike.
NR 05) Close-up of barrel and front sight to show edges, contours and stampings; all appear original and not redone.
The recently received Factory Letter on this gun states that it left Springfield on March 20th of 1940 with both that shorter tube and the King Ivory Bead Patridge Front Sight that is still attached to it. Note that the rear, adjustable sight blade is now of the White Outline type (often seen with such specialty King front sights) but it is not mentioned in the letter. I am more than willing to believe that it might have been added later (although it appears to be a period blade) but obviously, such a thing might also have just been "understood" at the time it was shipped or perhaps even "missed" or forgotten about by whomever entered the information into the record(s) upon which that Letter is based.
That Letter also indicates that this gun was one of four Non-Registered Magnums sent together on that same day in a single, four gun shipment to Charles A. Bogart Co., in Sandusky Ohio, with the others bearing 5", 6½" and 8⅜ barrels. All four guns were blue (as this one still is) and all four were recorded as having been shipped with checkered walnut Magna Grips. That last feature is obviously no longer to be found on this revolver.
However, what is now attached to the gun, are what have been verified by several people far more knowledgeable than I, as legitimate Smith & Wesson Tuskoid grips. Other than in pictures, I had never seen a pair before. So earlier this year, I took them to two of the bigger shows in the country and spoke to several people from the S&W Collectors Association who I not only respect a great deal but who could also tell me if they were "right" and I was told that they were.
As most of you know, it is believed that there were only 1418 Non-Registered Magnums manufactured (substantially less than the approximately 5500 "Registered" Magnums made by the factory) but I am firmly convinced that there are even fewer of these (Tuskoid) grips floating around than there are Non-Registered revolvers themselves. They are truly a rare find and they are in great shape.
As is the gun.
And that leads me to another interesting aspect of this firearm. In my brief examination of it, the Serial Number matches from the Butt to the Cylinder to the Barrel. I didn't check the Extractor but at this point, I have no reason to doubt that it matches too. As to the rear sight, I am not sure if on this late of a gun, it would be numbered to frame but as it (the revolver) belongs to somebody else (a very close and long time friend), I was a bit leery about addressing those small screws with even a properly sized and hollow ground driver (which is why I left the sideplate alone as well).
However, alongside the Serial Number on the Butt is the typical factory, star-like "work mark" (*) that not only indicates that it probably went through Smith & Wesson's own Customer Service/Repair Shop but also that whatever that work "was", it was significant enough to stamp the gun in this manner to indicate it as such. The first thing that comes to mind is a reblue but the revolver doesn't look refinished to me. In fact, in a number of very detailed pictures I have of the stampings (especially the Logo), things are as crisp as can be.
I realize that at the time this gun probably went back to the factory (it is stamped "11 43" in the manner to be expected on the grip frame under the left stock), they had polishers that could do some pretty amazing things while keeping flat surfaces "flat", curved ones "consistent" and screw holes round and not elongated. But even keeping that in mind, this gun just doesn't appear to be reblued to me and I have been in this business for at least a little while and have at least some ability to judge such things. I could be wrong and it could very well be refinished but at this point, I don't think so.
It should also be noted that the "Star" itself appears to have been stamped through the blue and into bottom of the frame instead of being stamped into frame and blued over, which I am told (again by several people far better at this than me) can (not always) be an indicator of what was done in terms of refinishing/rebluing.
After convincing my friend to get the Factory Letter, I now have him convinced to use it to reach out to the S&W Historical Foundation and see what they might have in their digitized files. While fully realizing that they might have nothing, one would hope that in ordering what appears (on the surface anyway) to possibly be either a multiple-gun "special order" of some sort (doubtful, but like I said, one can hope) or, at least, an attempt to place a "cover-all-the-bases" stocking order (more likely), that some sort of additional information about it might be available. It is certainly worth a shot (a term I guess one shouldn't use lightly when we're talking about products such as these.).
I hope that all of you who collect such guns have found this interesting and I promise to keep you posted.
As you know, this site limits things to five attachments so for now, here are the five that I was sent that I think would be the most helpful.
NR 01) Left Side of the Revolver showing a slight turn ring on the cylinder but no real wear on the bluing overall. This image was lit to show the ivory front sight insert and the Tuskoid stock in some detail.
NR 02) Right Side of the Revolver and probably photographed under a fluorescent light, giving the slight greenish tinge to the Tuskoid grip panel. The gun had been coated with something to protect it during storage and handling; leading to the waviness/haziness in some portions of the frame/bluing under the light.
NR 03) Detail of the sideplate-to-frame fit, undistorted screw hole, sharp Logo, and case coloring on the hammer and trigger. Also see the original definition and toolmarking of the frontstrap serration cuts and cylinder stop (bolt) notches within the cylinder itself.
NR 04) Partially washed out (overly lit) image of Logo to illustrate sharpness of die strike.
NR 05) Close-up of barrel and front sight to show edges, contours and stampings; all appear original and not redone.
