S&W27 .357 3-1/2"

[Handy Mann]

Hello everyone,
I have acquired a SW 357 Magnum 3-1/2 inch barrel. I have seen in the internet, pictures on gun forums and guns for sale and read their descriptions which are descriptive of the Model 27. I would like to know about the history of this unique gun. May I request for the information that I seek from your experiences, references and records? Like date of manufacture and historical insights?

The unit is N-frame Square butt. Checkered topstrap and barrel rib. The serial stamped is S1569XX. Number under the butt is 547XX. I believe the finish is still original. The color of the frame is black but the cylinder and barrel is brown or brownish-red (This color is evident under the sunlight). There is no model stamped (pre-1957?). There is "S" stamped on the back of the cylinder. Can't tell if this is four or five screws (three on the side plate, one in front of trigger guard and one in front of the lower grip). The ink on the stamped SW insignia and the text is color gold.
Thank you for your help.

 

[fat tom]

Welcome to the forum! Your gun is a five-screw (a screw is hidden by the rubbers) .357 Magnum (pre-27) mfgd in 1956. The lower screw on the grip frame is a strain screw and is not counted when determing whether the gun is a 4 or 5-screw. The finish however is NOT original (hammer,trigger and extractor star have been blued). The "S" on the rear cylinder face is apparently all that remains of the serial number,the remainder having been polished off. The roll marks have been "gold-filled". It can be easily removed with acetone (fingernail polish)
f.t.

 

[squidsix]

If you bought it as a shooter (which I suspect) you have a wonderful revolver. Enjoy it!

 

[Lefkiguy]

Smith & Wesson produced your revolver from 1950 to 1957 as the "357 Magnum", switching in 1957 to model numbers, in this case 27, and most refer to your model as a "pre-27". S&W used to stamp the serial number in three places, in the barrel shroud, on the back of the cylinder face, and on the bottom of the grip frame. At some point, they stopped marking the serial number on the cylinder, it could be that the "s" you see on the cylinder may have been one that the s was stamped before the cylinder was mated to a frame, or the rest of the serial number could have been polished off during refinishing. The hammer, trigger should not be blued, they should be case colored, basically a metallic brown with wavy lines look, so those have been refinished for sure. The plum color comes from incorrect temperature when the items were blued. If the whole gun was re done, the lettering on the frame and barrel would not be as sharp because of the polishing done for refinishing. Look at pictures of other guns here from that era to compare lettering to yours, especially check the albums for what Doc 44 has posted, he takes fantastic photographs. Your gun would also have shipped with wood grips.

 

[DCWilson]

Welcome to the forum. Guns with serial numbers near yours were being shipped in 1955-1956, so that's probably when your gun left the factory. But that's just a reasonable approximation because S&W had no policy that forced them to ship in serial number order. Sometimes a gun could stay in inventory for several months, and occasionally for a year or more.

The .3.5 inch Pre-27 is one of the more in-demand models among S&W fanciers. You have a great shooter. Enjoy it!

 

[David LaPell]

She should shoot just fine, but as was said the gun was refinished at some point in time. The trigger and hammer should have been blued. Still though the bullets should come out the front end just as well.

 

[fat tom]

S&W used to stamp the serial number in three places, in the barrel shroud, on the back of the cylinder face, and on the bottom of the grip frame.

You forgot that they also stamped them on the rear of the ejector star and the bbl flat.
f.t.

 

[Handy Mann]

Thank you for welcoming me to the S&W Forum. I appreciate very much your data contribution. The unit is still in very good shape. My gunsmith said that it's in very good condition considering the age. I was born in 1957 and I have a S&W older than me. Its my priced possession.

 

[Handy Mann]

May I know what kind of wood grips did the pre-27 3-1/2" originally come with?

 

[Camster]

May I know what kind of wood grips did the pre-27 3-1/2" originally come with?

Diamond magnas would be my guess.

 

[weatherby]

May I know what kind of wood grips did the pre-27 3-1/2" originally come with?

as has been said already most likely diamond magnas
they look like the ones on this 28

 

[tom turner]

Welcome to the forum . . . and look for a set of the magnas with the distinctive diamond on each side. The diamond went away in the mid-60s and so you'll see the same "look" in the later version but NO diamond.

I assure you you'll love your pre-Model 27 much more with the correct stocks . . . and a diamond stock will draw a crowd if there are some S&W fans nearby.

Enjoy it!!!

Tom

 

[mbliss57]

Best of both worlds

Welcome to the forum. Although the refinish takes away from your gun's value as a collectors item it is still a fairly rare acquisition that has good intrinsic historical value. And it will be a great shooting gun. You kind of get the best of both worlds. Even with a refinish it's still a pre model 27. And you can shoot the day lights out of it without worrying about decreasing the value. Congrats and happy shooting.

 

[Handy Mann]

Thanks for the info. with the partial serial numbers.
What more info can I get if you have the complete serial numbers?

 

[Handy Mann]

Can anyone tell me what is the meaning of the letter Z stamped on the yoke in picture 4?

 

[Doc44]

Handy Mann...the Z is a stamp put there by someone who performed a step or steps in the manufacture of your ".357". The complete serial number will not result in anymore information than a guess as to when the revolver was shipped (1956 most likely).

Bill