Victory Revolver SV-serial rarity

[Arisaka99]

Happy Wednesday folks! I was wondering if anyone else has noticed an apparent rarity of SV serial numbered guns in the open market? I have been following auctions and other sales pretty regularly for the past couple of years and anecdotally about 1 in 50 Victories I see (or fewer) are SV numbered. The same is true with Google and various forum postings. I am assuming without documentary evidence that maybe, as the last and "safest" model produced, the SVs were kept in service and represent a high percentage of the guns carried by aircrews into the 1990s, and as a result, never hit the surplus marketplace of the 50s to 80s in high numbers? As a percentage of total production of pre-victory and victory configuration wartime guns, the SVs should appear more often? What is their prevalence in the databases? Can folks post pics of any they have in this thread? Here is my one.

 

[JP@AK]

Arisaka99

In 15 years of research, I have located and recorded 180 SV prefix units.

40 of them were originally shipped to the Navy.
The lowest serial number is SV732261, and it shipped in June 1945.
The highest serial number is SV802722, and it shipped in August 1945.

I have also found and recorded 5 units with much lower serial numbers that were among those that the Navy sent back to S&W for upgrade to the new safety mechanism. Those are in addition to the 40 mentioned above.

In my database are 140 SV units that were shipped to civilian locations after the war. Many of them went to the NYPD. Of the civilian shipments:
The lowest number is SV767962, and it shipped in March 1946.
The highest number is SV813132, and it shipped in April 1946.

The majority of the units listed in my database were located by perusing various auction sites, but quite a few were reported to me by individual collectors. Several members of this Forum have assisted my research by reporting units in their own collections. Including both SV and S units, I have recorded more than 15,000 individual revolvers.

Robert has been particularly helpful by supplying the known SV units that went to the NYPD. However, due to the way the NYPD units are recorded in the records, I suspect there are more of them than have been reported to me (the guy recording serial numbers at the department often did not record the prefix, but many of the numbers look suspiciously like SV units).

There are 25 S and SV units safely tucked into one of my safes. Most of them were purchased from auction houses. So, they have been on the market. I stopped buying them a couple years ago, so they might be less commonly listed now. I just don't know.

 

[Inkgardener]

Here is my one.

 

[Arisaka99]

JP@AK; thanks for your research, expertise, and time to write that post! DM sent on some finish details I'm curious about if you have time. Much appreciated again!

 

[Arisaka99]

Inkgardener; yours appears to show the same finish pattern as mine. While the ejector rod, lanyard ring, and frame screws still appear to be polished as part of parts production (no sign of bead blast), their finish appears to be the dip phosphate or black magic as compared to blued for screws and rod and case hardened on the lanyard ring on the pre-SV production. Distinct difference in color and surface. Interesting!

 

[65-2x2]

That is a very nice piece. I have been wanting a G.I. Victory for some time, and have not found one, in .38 Spl., priced at a price I will accept. They are thin on the ground around here and go for North of $800.00.

I posted this piece a few weeks ago, when I found it in a local gun shop. It is a commercial version, blued, with no government markings, prewar grips and plugged lanyard hole. Certainly an early Post-war unit. Serial (S V) 810491. The S on mine looks like an afterthought, it is a different font, and lightly struck and out of square. (Shown with another recent purchase, a 3" J-Frame.)

 

[DWalt]

My theory has been that most, if not all, SVs sold into the commercial civilian market during the postwar era were probably assembled from components remaining in S&W inventory on VJ Day. I do not have a good idea what number that might be.

 

[Goony]

In 15 years of research, I have located and recorded 180 SV prefix units.

40 of them were originally shipped to the Navy.
The lowest serial number is SV732261, and it shipped in June 1945.
The highest serial number is SV802722, and it shipped in August 1945.

I have also found and recorded 5 units with much lower serial numbers that were among those that the Navy sent back to S&W for upgrade to the new safety mechanism. Those are in addition to the 40 mentioned above.

This is one of those 5, an example of the existing Victory revolvers that were returned by the Navy to S&W in 1945 to be overhauled, with the express purpose of conversion to the updated hammer block, hence the "S" prefix added to the serial number. Surviving documentation establishes that 39, 678 were so modified and refurbished pursuant to this program. It remains a mystery as to why so few of this rather large quantity seem to be extant.

 

[Inkgardener]

This is one of those 5, an example of the existing Victory revolvers that were returned by the Navy to S&W in 1945 to be overhauled, with the express purpose of conversion to the updated hammer block, hence the "S" prefix added to the serial number. Surviving documentation establishes that 39, 678 were so modified and refurbished pursuant to this program. It remains a mystery as to why so few of this rather large quantity seem to be extant.

Interesting. Mine is I believe one of the 5 early SN's as well. The finish on mine looks like yours as well as it is not the black magic but, what appears to me, to be refinished parkerized.

 

[Inkgardener]

My US Navy SV and BSR Victory together…

 

[Inkgardener]

Inkgardener; yours appears to show the same finish pattern as mine. While the ejector rod, lanyard ring, and frame screws still appear to be polished as part of parts production (no sign of bead blast), their finish appears to be the dip phosphate or black magic as compared to blued for screws and rod and case hardened on the lanyard ring on the pre-SV production. Distinct difference in color and surface. Interesting!

My US Navy Victory finish appears very different from my BSR. It does kind of look like yours. I do believe mine to be refinished though. I have wondered if the heavily worn ones were refinished again and maybe differently when they went in for the modification. Hence the difference in appearance. At least from looking at digital photos.