Slightly Confused Regarding Dates vs Model Number

[Georgia1911]

I bought this 4 screw 4" 38 early in the pandemic, put it in the safe and forgot about it until recently. I guess eventually that happens when you have bought more than a few firearms.

What confuses me, slightly, is the lack of a model marking. I had thought, based on the serial number list in the 3rd edition of the Standard Catalog, that this S&W would be late enough (circa 1958) to be marked as a Model 10, but you can see it has no such marking. Other aspects of the markings, such as the lack of a serial number on the barrel flat are consistent with an actual Model 10, but I have seen it said they might also have a SN marked in the yoke cut on earlier model 10s and this one lacks that. I realize the barrel may have been replaced at some time, but there are no markings indicating any service work at the factory so if that happened it was done by an independent gunsmith or the owner. The SN does appear on the extractor star, but the number on the stocks does not match the serial number. All of the assembly numbers match each other.

To add further mystery, the 4th edition no longer shows as much detail for serial number dates, and it is possible this is just a late pre-Model 10 that shares more traits of the model marked revolvers.

Can any of you shed some light on this?

 

[Truckman]

I have some K-frames that could go either way...I remember an early C prefixed 2" in my safe now which SCSW4 dated as 1954 that was marked as a Model 10, and what should have been a Model 15-? dated from the 70's that had no model marking......Ben

 

[Retired W4]

Yep, good ol' S&W. It's no wonder the stocks are not numbered to the gun. They are post 68. Hondo 44 put out a detailed dissertation on "Decreasing Serial # Locations" back on 20 Aug, 2023. I printed it out to go in my book.

 

[two-bit cowboy]

One of the .38 M&P folks might share more model-specific information. Here's a generic view.

S&W issued the order to add model numbers on June 12, 1957.

According to Dr. Jinks the company began using model numbers on invoices in April 1958, long before model numbers were stamped on the revolvers.

S&W shipped the first known Chiefs Specials stamped MOD-36 and MOD-37 in September 1958.

 

[JP@AK]

Georgia1911

At C418751, I would not expect it to have a model number. It probably did ship in 1958, but the lowest serial number on an actual Model 10 that I've found was C438236, and it shipped in September, 1958. For comparison, C418744 shipped in February, 1958, and it is not model marked.

There were lots of .38 M&Ps shipped in 1958 that did not yet have model numbers and they have serial numbers well into the C430000 range.

As for not having the serial number on the barrel flat, S&W stopped doing that more than a year before model numbers appeared. As you have illustrated, the serial number could still show up on the extractor star, even among some revolvers that did have model numbers.

The bottom line is that there is nothing at all unusual about your revolver.

As noted by Retired W4, the Magna stocks on your M&P are not original. The diamond on the K frame PC Magna stocks was ordered eliminated on October 11, 1965, so they are from later than that date.

 

[Hondo44]

Other aspects of the markings, such as the lack of a serial number on the barrel flat are consistent with an actual Model 10, but I have seen it said they might also have a SN marked in the yoke cut on earlier model 10s and this one lacks that.

When there were serial numbers on the barrel the serial # was not in the yoke cut. It was on the rear face of the yoke which can only be seen by looking thru a cylinder chamber with a flashlight.
(Note: this is a triple lock cyl/yoke, the # shown in the chamber on the right is the serial on the 3rd lock cam.)

Photo by CptCurl

After model #s were stamped on the frame in the frame yoke cut, the serial # was soon after added in the 'yoke cut' as well, and the assembly # from the yoke cut was moved to the left side of the grip frame parallel to the butt.

 

[Georgia1911]

...
At C418751, I would not expect it to have a model number. It probably did ship in 1958, but the lowest serial number on an actual Model 10 that I've found was C438236, and it shipped in September, 1958. For comparison, C418744 shipped in February, 1958, and it is not model marked.

There were lots of .38 M&Ps shipped in 1958 that did not yet have model numbers and they have serial numbers well into the C430000 range...

This is what I thought, but none of the info I could find had this level of detail. I wasn't looking for anything special or valuable, but had sold my last pre 10 a few years ago and this one was a good deal.