S&W Victory .38 Special Navy Revolver Manufacture Date

[winchester66]

Hi,
I just purchased a really nice victory model .38 special 4 inch barrel all numbers matching handgun that has the older style diamond in the middle wood grips from a older gentleman yesterday. Was curious on the date it was produced as it has a serial number of V65XXX and says "U.S. NAVY" on the left hand top strap. The finish is in a parkinized finish and has a few areas of spotting as the gentleman keep it in a cardboard box in his climate controlled closet for near 40 years. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated and you can reply to this post or email me at [email protected] thanks in advance Ken

 

[opoefc]

Ken, Welcome to the Forum. V65XXX would be Feb. 1942. If the box the older gentleman had the gun stored in is the original Victory Model box, be sure to ge it also. An original tan Kraft style Victory Model box is worth more than the gun. See my email to you regarding the grips & lanyard swivel you need. Ed

 

[LWCmdr45]

Ken,

Based on the database maintained by my friend, ordnanceguy, and me, your revolver dates to approximately August, 1942.

It sounds like you got a *great* deal for your $250. BTW, if the diamond checkered stocks you mentioned are the prewar type, they're worth a bit by themselves.

Steve

 

[opoefc]

Steve ( and Charlie), Your data base is usually pretty close to mine in estimating manufacturing dates for Victory Models, but I see we are 6 months apart in estimating Ken's gun, # V65XXX. I based my estimate on a factory letter for V67346, shipped March 6, 1942. ( V57908 was shipped August 11, 1942, and V77307 shipped Aug.31, 1942, a twenty thousand serial number spread in one month, again illustrating S&Ws ship dates can be far apart vs. manufacturing dates.)
As we know, these guns were manufactured in serial number sequence, but not shipped in that sequence. However, if V67346 was a March 1942 shipped gun, it had to have been made before that, and it follows that V65XXX was made before V67346.
What factors did you use to conclude that V65XXX was an August 1942 gun? Thanks, Ed.

 

[Art Doc]

I have V77,000 that letters as 8/19/42. I would think that V65,000 would be much closer than March unless they were producing them very slowly or they were shipping WAY out of numerical order.

 

[opoefc]

After further investigation, I've come to the conclusion that there is something wrong with the March 6, 1942, ship date for V67346. My reference to a factory letter ship date for V67346 of March 6, 1942, is based on what was reported to the Forum as being given in Roy's letter, however as we know, sometimes Roy's computer slips a notch and there's a typo appearing in the subsequent letter. ??? In fact, the more I think about it, Feb. - Mar. 1942 is much too early a date for a gun having a V60,000 serial number range. Other early 1942 Victory Models in the data base or in my collection are, V16 shipped June 16, 1942, V114 shipped Aug. 11, 1942, V369 shipped June 18, 1942, V2150 shipped July 28, 1942. Steve's estimate of Aug. 1942 for Ken's gun seems to be more likely, than my estimate of Feb. 1942. Anybody else have any lettered Victory Models shipped before Sept. 1942? Ed.

 

[Art Doc]

Estimating ship date by serial is, as we know, quicksand. I would imagine that wartime production would be even more tenuous and any particular serial could have been sent at any time.

 

[winchester66]

Thanks for all the information help guys I appreciate it!!!

 

[PistolPackinDaDa]

Victory Mfg dates...

Some months ago I purchased a Victory Serial V12116X and was told by the Historian at S&W it was mfg abt July/Aug of 1942 and shipped to Oakland CA late/Oct 1942. This was given verbally and I have no letter yet. Also am remiss on getting pics on the forum. Mine has the chekered numbered grips wi/silver medallion also. I wondered if in the early prod. of the Victory's, they used checkered grips if they were short on the smooth grips ??? Underneath the left grip just hidden at the top were the letters "PC/CD". There have been at least 2 others with the same "PC/CD" on the forum. Still am unable to find what these markings mean. Some have suggested the "CD" portion stands for Civilian Defense however all those I have seen that were Civilian Defense were crudely electro-penciled on the left side...

Hope this helps.

 

[LWCmdr45]

Ed,

Charlie and I have seven guns listed in the database that shipped in August, 1942, with SNs running from V53413 to V77420. As I think we can all agree, for anyone but Roy to pin down a date to a specific month can be a futile exercise, but if it prompts dialogues like this, it can't all be bad!

PistolPackinDaDa
<<I wondered if in the early prod. of the Victory's, they used checkered grips if they were short on the smooth grips ??? >>

I believe it's the consensus that the prewar checkered stocks were all gone by about February of '42, well before the use of the "V" prefix was initiated. If you check the inside of the right stock panel, you may find a serial number. It was not at all uncommon for stocks to be swapped out during armorer's servicing.

Steve

 

[PistolPackinDaDa]

Under right panel/grip is "424/410" probably same as 424410 and no marks on left panel/grip. They are very nice grips with the silver SW medallion in them and measure about 3/8" in dia. They look like walnut and are a medium chocolet brown. Tried to get a provenance for the revolver but none available as the individual was selling it for an estate. U.S. Navy on topstrap. All markings match except cylinder which has Vxxxxxx on it. Will try to get pics soon !! Already gave data to Charlie....

 

[29aholic]

Navy Victory

Since the OP is on Navy guns, maybe someone can answer a question for me. I saw one last weekend at the gun show that had some odd anchor markings on it. They were fairly large and more of an outline of an anchor versus what I would normally associate with an anchor. Kinda like a rounded top cross with a bow on the bottom. It was stamped on the bottom of both grip panels (in opposite directions) and on the left side of the frame below the front of the cylinder. It was too much for me to speculate on, but was wondering if anyone knows of the markings I have described.