One of the last .32 Regulation Police Target Revolvers

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In 1957 S&W personnel found a small stash of prewar I-frame parts that had never been made up as firearms. Matching them with pieces of more modern design (thumb releases and knobless ejector rods, for example), they were able to make up a total of 196 .32 caliber revolvers with four-inch barrels and adjustable sights. These were marketed as Regulation Police Target revolvers, which was a bit of a misnomer (or at least a redefinition) because the prewar RP target revolvers all had six-inch barrels. (I acknowledge that special order prewar guns with shorter barrels may exist, but I don't know about them.) Serial numbers all lie in the bottom half of the 657xxx range. Roy Jinks says that four inch barrels were used because the supply of six-inch barrels had been exhausted. Roy also reports that the serial number range for these guns is 657174 to 657369. Known ship dates range from 1957 to late 1959.

With the assistance of our Dear Leader Handejector, who has been known to sell a gun from time to time when he is not managing this forum so the rest of us can brag about the guns we have bought from each other, I now own one of these uncommon revolvers.

This is 657356. It shipped in April, 1959.

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These guns have flat mainsprings rather than the postwar coil springs, so they are definitely design throwbacks. They have RP stocks that match a rebated frame, though the checking is in the coarser postwar style, and the checked field has round corners.

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These guns employed the old style small rear adjustable sight.

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This gun and at least a couple of others that I know about came in the uncommon "Sun Ray" box.

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There are at least a couple of varieties of this box. This one obviously has a solid thick border with ornamental corners. Another variety has dark diamonds within the silver band.


The box was numbered in the familiar way in grease marker.

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I would call this one about 98%, but you have to look past the dust motes to see that in these photos. The ejector rod is a little worn, and there is a light turn ring. I suppose the gun was fired some, but not a lot.

Most of the specimens of this model that I have heard about seem to be in pretty good shape. I haven't heard of or seen a single one that is worn enough to have been a working gun. I think they may have been purchased mostly as collectible "retro" revolvers, though collectors would not have used that term half a century ago. This design was definitely out of step with what the company was turning out in its improved I-frames and J-frames at the time.

Many of you may know of my fondness for prewar .22/32 Kit Guns, some of which came with Regulation Police stocks on them. This is like one of those, but in .32 S&W Long caliber instead of .22 LR. In the 1990s S&W again briefly made a four inch .32 with adjustable sights -- the model 631 -- but it was not wildly successful.

I-frame .32 target models were always scarce in S&W production. Only a few hundred, or perhaps just over a thousand, were produced in the .32 Hand Ejector First and Second Model lines. Adjustable sight .32s in the .32 HE Third Model series were given square butts mounted on the rebated frame, and were called the .32 Regulation Police Target Revolver. Probably only a few hundred of those were produced over the next 23 years, and then after WWII no adjustable-sight small-frame .32s were produced until these 196 guns were made up from the newly discovered prewar parts.

An interesting little model. I am delighted to have one in my collection at long last.
 
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It is beautiful. I am afraid I would make it a shooter. I may need to make my rp a set of grips. How far so those extend below the frame?
 
It is beautiful. I am afraid I would make it a shooter. I may need to make my rp a set of grips. How far so those extend below the frame?

I will be firing a few shots with this one myself, so I understand the temptation. :D

The wood of the RP stocks drops about 3/8" inch below the revolver frame. If you look at the first two photos above, you can see the full extent of the forestrap. That's the lowest extent of the steel.
 
I like that one very much. If I ever read or heard about the stash of I-Frames later made up into .32 Targets I don't recall it. Thanks for posting.
 
Dadgummit David, now I have to replace another keyboard. :( Every time you get a new showpiece like that and post pictures, I short out another keyboard on my computer from drooling while I'm looking at it. I'm gonna have to quit looking at your posts altogether or have you warn me when you're going to show another treasure. :p

Congratulations on finding one of the all time great hard to find pieces of S&W history as well as one of the neatest guns in creation. I'm looking forward to hearing shooting reports, but will probably wear a bib as I read them! :rolleyes:

Best Regards,
Froggie
 
Congratulations, David! That's a very neat little gun. I couldn't figure out it's heritage until you explained it. I like the old style rear sight and rounded top strap. Thank you very much for the tutorial - shining a bit more light into the ingenuity of S&W at not wasting a thing if they can help it!

Jerry
 
Range Report

I don't expect to shoot this one a lot -- I have other .32 Target revolvers that are a little less well preserved and better candidates for adventures at the range -- but I wanted to shoot it a little just to establish a working relationship with it. A couple of cylinders full let me adjust the sights slightly, and then I fired 13 shots at a target 25 feet away.

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First time I have ever had more than six shots from a .32 end up in the red or on the ring. At least a few of these would have put a squirrel in the stewpot, and any one of them would have caused great distress to a coiled rattlesnake.
 
David,

I guess it's a good thing that such a well preserved and historically significant piece is in your hands rather than mine. If I had something that looked that good and shot that well, I would be out at the range WEARING IT OUT! :cool:

Seeing that group is like bringing home a movie star and finding out she can cook too. Congrat... dadgummit, my keyboard is getting soaked again! :o

Froggie
 
Excellent piece for your collection David. Makes me wonder what other goodies you have in your collection. I know you have some really nice N frames...
 
In 1957 S&W personnel found a small stash of prewar I-frame parts........ they were able to make up a total of 196 .32 caliber revolvers with four-inch barrels and adjustable sights. These were marketed as Regulation Police Target revolvers

You guys are some serious collectors

Very interesting read and we thank you kindly for posting.

Please continue practicing your affliction.
 
I am a new member hoping to get some info about a Police Regulation 38 5 shot not sure if serial number found in three place , 10067 on grip, same on cylinders, on the barrel B 10067. I got the gun when my mother in law passed. Trying to find out age and value.
southern63
 
I am a new member hoping to get some info about a Police Regulation 38 5 shot not sure if serial number found in three place , 10067 on grip, same on cylinders, on the barrel B 10067. I got the gun when my mother in law passed. Trying to find out age and value.
southern63

Southern63, welcome to the forum.

The .38 Regulation Police is a sister model to the .32 Regulation Police. The guns are basically the same, except for the difference in caliber and the fact that the .38 was a five-shooter instead of a six-shooter. Also, the .38 RP had only a four-inch barrel, while the .32 RP came in 3.25, 4.25 and 6 inch barrel lengths.

The Regulation Police models were introduced in 1917. Production was suspended in late 1917 and through 1918 so the company could produce large frame revolvers for the US Military effort. Production resumed in1919, and with that serial number your gun is probably of late 1919 or early 1920 production. But S&W did not have a policy of shipping in serial number order, so the gun may not have left the factory until a year or so after it was made.

The .38 RP was given its own serial number sequence, and the numbers in that run got to about 55,000 before production was shut down again for WWII. Production of the 38 RP was begun again about 1950, and within a couple of years a slightly redesigned version was introduced. But the .38 S&W chambering was not as popular as the .38 Special chambering available in the Chiefs Special family of small-frame revolvers, and the 38 RP, renamed the Model 31 in 1957, eventually faded from the company's catalog.

Regulation Police revolvers are distinguished by the rebated frame, which has a step in the backstrap to mate securely with the oversize square butt wooden stocks seen on both the .32 and .38 RPs. There is another .38 caliber model called the .38/32 Terrier which was introduced in 1936 and is kind of a descendant of the RP; it was numbered in the .38 RP series. It has a round butt on an unrebated frame, and a two-inch barrel.

Value depends on condition. Shooter grade guns (very worn finish, but still functional if a little loose) are probably $200-250 guns; a high condition gun in its original box would be close to a thousand dollars. Most guns that are mechanically sound and have 80% or more of their finish left are probably in the $300-350 range. The guns are not rare and don't have a lot of collector charisma, so prices are not extravagant.

Can you post a couple of pictures? We could give you better info on value if we could see what the gun looks like. And don't be afraid to start a new thread in the 1896-1961 section to discuss your gun.
 
WoW D.C. I like that one a lot. Adjectives don't exist to describe my admiration.
Stunning and cool begin to.

Congratulations on this one.

Now, we need a group shot of all your I and J 32s together. Please.

Su Amigo,
Allen Frame
 
WoW D.C. I like that one a lot. Adjectives don't exist to describe my admiration.
Stunning and cool begin to.

Congratulations on this one.

Now, we need a group shot of all your I and J 32s together. Please.

Su Amigo,
Allen Frame

They don't make a wide-enough angle lens to get them all in. :confused: All that earthquake action Kalifornia gets is due to the excess loading on the continental plate there at David's gun room. :eek: Haven't you wondered why the rest of us have a hard time finding I-frames? :rolleyes:


Just kidding (but only a little.) I'd like to see such a family picture my ownself. From comments made both publicly and privately, I know David has some real heart stoppers there. He has a few on my "Bucket List" and a couple on my "Holy Grail" list!

Regards,
Froggie
 
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