S&W model 10-8 unknown caliber

[Family Firearms]

We have owned a company that specializes in C&R guns for nearly 20 years now and hand picked all our guns. I had a distributor I would see every Tuesday to search through the new inventory looking for Gems and also see the damaged or return guns for crazy deals. For the longest time he had this model 10-8 on the return shelf as they sent it out but nobody could figure out what caliber it was. .38 special would stick out of the cylinder and would obviously not close. After about 10 tries, I got him to sell it to me for $50. It sat here for a year or so as I thought about having it converted or find another cylinder but would be more expensive than gun might be worth. I had a niebor come over and he started playing with it and grabbed a punch off my bench and popped out these spring steel inserts out of the cylinder. The gun was just dirty enough you couldn’t see them in there. Wallah .38 spl would fit in as it should but I have tried to see what ammo they may have shot out of it. It was part of a large import buy but that is all I know. Here are pics of proof marks, the gun and inserts.

 

[1Celticfozzie]

38 S&W ??

Just a guess.

 

[JRD]

That gun likely spent time in foreign law enforcement. Those spring formed pieces are pushed into the chambers and prevent a round from chambering. This is done deliberately for a gun that was used in training and not meant to be fired. It prevented a gun from being mistakenly loaded in some sort of non-shooting exercise that required a prop gun, such as role playing with an “armed” bad guy.

The extra proof marks also say it was exported and proofed in a foreign country. I’m sure a proof expert will be along shortly.
If it was reimported post 1968, it should have the importers name and city stamped somewhere.

 

[JRD]

The script L in a flaming circle is a definitive proof for foreign made arms proofed in Liege, Belgium after 1968.
Thus your gun must have been imported into Europe through Liege.

 

[Family Firearms]

I guess I should have added the inserts are .249 to .251 long (6.33mm to 6.38 for the metric fans). They are about as thin as the actual cases themselves.

 

[65Whelen]

Interesting, never know what's going to come along.

 

[jbtrucker]

I always learn something new S&W forum

 

[stykshooter]

That has been a training revolver for police usage. Those are safety rings for firing FTX simunition rounds... basically, paint ball marking rounds from the revolver. We used them all of the time in the academy until all agencies switched to semi autos and we bought dedicated training guns built for FTX rounds. When you got a box of marking rounds it had a set of safety rings in the box, Just start them into the cylinder and then seat a marking round and pushed until seated. They slide out pretty easily using a brass rod from the front of the cylinder. The safety rings prevented you from chambering actual .38 ammunition. If you check the barrel you will probably find that it is filthy. Those rounds are nasty dirty and training guns didn't get a lot of attention.

BTW... those rounds Hurt!

 

[1Celticfozzie]

That has been a training revolver for police usage. Those are safety rings for firing FTX simunition rounds... basically, paint ball marking rounds from the revolver. We used them all of the time in the academy until all agencies switched to semi autos and we bought dedicated training guns built for FTX rounds. When you got a box of marking rounds it had a set of safety rings in the box, Just start them into the cylinder and then seat a marking round and pushed until seated. They slide out pretty easily using a brass rod from the front of the cylinder. The safety rings prevented you from chambering actual .38 ammunition. If you check the barrel you will probably find that it is filthy. Those rounds are nasty dirty and training guns didn't get a lot of attention.

BTW... those rounds Hurt!

Did not know that. Have used sim rounds in the past but only in glocks and ARs.

 

[Family Firearms]

The gun is surprisingly nice. The bore is excellent and internals are excellent as well. It came in with a large shipment from overseas and it confused several people but at least I know now and with finding grips for it ( it had Pacmyer rubber grips on it) I’m only out 75 bucks.

 

[xtrtsqrt11]

Great example of how it pays to pay attention!!
You certainly got a great deal!!

 

[otis24]

View attachment 779241We have owned a company that specializes in C&R guns for nearly 20 years now and hand picked all our guns. I had a distributor I would see every Tuesday to search through the new inventory looking for Gems and also see the damaged or return guns for crazy deals. For the longest time he had this model 10-8 on the return shelf as they sent it out but nobody could figure out what caliber it was. .38 special would stick out of the cylinder and would obviously not close. After about 10 tries, I got him to sell it to me for $50. It sat here for a year or so as I thought about having it converted or find another cylinder but would be more expensive than gun might be worth. I had a niebor come over and he started playing with it and grabbed a punch off my bench and popped out these spring steel inserts out of the cylinder. The gun was just dirty enough you couldn’t see them in there. Wallah .38 spl would fit in as it should but I have tried to see what ammo they may have shot out of it. It was part of a large import buy but that is all I know. Here are pics of proof marks, the gun and inserts.

I wonder if a foreign government owned it and put inserts in it to prevent firing .38 Special? Maybe the inserts allowed it to fire .38 S&W?

 

[GerSan69]

No, 38 S&W rounds are too fat for 38 spl chambers. The Simunition answer is the correct one.

 

[s&wchad]

We've had discussion about these before:

Post in thread '"Length Limiters" in Model 10-5 Chambers?'

Oct 27, 2022

Sounds like the inserts for "Simunition" ammo, to prevent chambering live ammo. Simunition is a round that works like real ammo but the projectile is a wax or plastic, like a paintball. We used them in training scenarios in the academy and in-service training.

Okay. That makes sense. I had asked the owner of the LGS about them and he said that he had seen them in some other PD turn-ins over the years. Thanks!

• Hurryin' Hoosier

 

[Riposte1]

No, 38 S&W rounds are too fat for 38 spl chambers. The Simunition answer is the correct one.

This!

Seen them used a bunch in training.

Riposte

 

[SSGRock]

If they didn’t want it to fire why didn’t they remove the firing pin from hammer?

 

[H Richard]

It quite resembles guns re-imported from Jordan. Mostly not well cared for. Do they have a stamp under the barrel of the re-importer?

 

[Bailagent100]

That has been a training revolver for police usage. Those are safety rings for firing FTX simunition rounds... basically, paint ball marking rounds from the revolver. We used them all of the time in the academy until all agencies switched to semi autos and we bought dedicated training guns built for FTX rounds. When you got a box of marking rounds it had a set of safety rings in the box, Just start them into the cylinder and then seat a marking round and pushed until seated. They slide out pretty easily using a brass rod from the front of the cylinder. The safety rings prevented you from chambering actual .38 ammunition. If you check the barrel you will probably find that it is filthy. Those rounds are nasty dirty and training guns didn't get a lot of attention.

BTW... those rounds Hurt!

Bingo! We used simunitions in several Model 10's for force-on-force training during my time as instructor/trainer for an armored car company in Denver, some 20 years ago. The pictured chamber inserts were instantly recognized and brought back memories of some interesting and fun times in my life.

 

[Lt.Donn]

That has been a training revolver for police usage. Those are safety rings for firing FTX simunition rounds... basically, paint ball marking rounds from the revolver. We used them all of the time in the academy until all agencies switched to semi autos and we bought dedicated training guns built for FTX rounds. When you got a box of marking rounds it had a set of safety rings in the box, Just start them into the cylinder and then seat a marking round and pushed until seated. They slide out pretty easily using a brass rod from the front of the cylinder. The safety rings prevented you from chambering actual .38 ammunition. If you check the barrel you will probably find that it is filthy. Those rounds are nasty dirty and training guns didn't get a lot of attention.

BTW... those rounds Hurt!

Yes they hurt!

 

[desi2358]

If they didn’t want it to fire why didn’t they remove the firing pin from hammer?

Because they were using the simmunition training rounds in it. What they didn't want was for it to be able to chamber and fire regular ammunition.