BRING_GUNS
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- Mar 21, 2022
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Over a decade ago the late Jim Hauff had a thread here (and on nearly every other major firearms forum) collecting information on and answering questions about H&R Sportsman revolvers. I won't claim to be anywhere as knowledgeable as him or the also-late Bill Goforth but between Goforth's book on H&R and my own observations while collecting the Sportsman series over the past few years I think I've become knowledgeable enough on the subject that I'd like to restart what Jim started. (Jim's original thread.)
Basic info to remember: the single action version was the 199 Sportsman and the double action version was the 999 Sportsman. Other than the SA/DA mechanism they were pretty much identical. In 1953 the 999 Sportsman was redesigned and given a new frame with two piece wood grips. One or two piece grips are the easy way to tell the first and second model 999s apart. The second model was redesigned and given a transfer bar ignition system in 1974, although visually this "third" model is exactly the same from the outside aside from the hammer. After H&R was purchased by NEF the 999 frame dimensions were slightly changed and non-checkered two piece wood grips were used. Grip checkering or lack of grip checkering is the easy way to tell a 1990s NEF 999 from a 1953-1986 H&R.
Most importantly here's the full and accurate list of H&R date codes. I originally found this list somewhere on the internet but I have expanded it with my own observations and added the list of date codes used by New England Firearms after they restarted production of the Model 999. Some of these letter codes seem to be rare or nonexistant in the Sportsman population. Production of frames may have slowed or stopped in certain years while the company focused on producing other guns and selling the stock they had already accumulated.
POST 1939, H&R SERIAL NUMBER LETTER CODES AND THE YEAR OF THEIR USAGE:
A=1940 B=1941 C=1942 D=1943* E=1944 F=1945 G=1946 H=1947 I=1948 J=1949 K=1950
L=1951 M=1952 N=1953 P=1954 R=1955 S=1956** T=1957 U=1958 V=1959 W=1960 X=1961
Y=1962 Z=1963
AA=1964 AB=1965 AC=1966 AD=1967 AE=1968 AF=1969 AG=1970 AH=1971 AJ=1972
AL=1973 AM=1974 AN=1975 AP=1976 AR=1977 AS=1978 AT=1979 AU=1980 AX=1981
AY=1982 AZ=1983 BA=1984 BB=1985 BC=1986
Codes O, Q, AI, AO, AQ, AV, and AW were not used.
*I have NEVER seen a D prefixed 999 Sportsman with features indicating it was made in 1943. If they exist they are extremely rare. If you have a D prefixed 999 Sportsman it is almost certainly one of the first 30,000 made that were prefixed with D for Double action.
**S prefixed 999s may exist, although if they do it's an uncommon letter code. If you S prefixed Sportsman has a single piece wood grip it is a Model 199 and prefixed S for Single action. If it has two piece wood grip it is a second model (1953 onward) Model 999 produced in 1956.
New England Firearms SERIAL NUMBER LETTER CODES - “SECOND LETTER” OF PREFIX STARTING WITH H OR N:
A=1987 B=1988 C=1989 D=1990 E=1991 F=1992 G=1993 H=1994 J=1995 K=1996
L=1997 M=1998 N=1999 P=2000 R=2001 S=2002 T=2003 U=2004 V=2005 W=2006
X=2007 Y=2008 Z=2009
Codes HO/NO and HQ/NQ were not used. H&R entered bankruptcy and ceased production in early 1986. New England Firearms purchased H&R and restarted production of some H&R guns including the 999 Sportsman. The H&R brand was not used from 1987-1990 so codes HA, HB, HC, HD were never used. Model 999s were produced by NEF only from 1991(?) to 1999 so codes HE through HN will be the only NEF codes found on Model 999s. I have never seen a N[x] prefixed NEF manufactured 999, I assume the N prefix was used only for non-H&R branded guns.
NEF ceased revolver production, including the 999 Sportsman, in 1999. NEF produced H&R guns are marked H&R GARDNER, MA. Original H&R guns produced 1986 and earlier are marked H&R INC. U.S.A. or H&R INC. GARDNER, MASS. U.S.A.
S=Single Action Sportsman (199), almost certainly(?) its own independent series, some very early guns have no prefix, prefix went up to approximately S20000 (so approximately 20,000 199s were made pre-WW2.) Small amounts of 199s were also made in 1949-1951 with the J, K, and L prefixes. (215 or 415 total, Goforth book unclear.) No more 199s were made after 1951.
D=Double Action Sportsman (999), some very early guns have no prefix, prefix went up to at least D29551, it is unclear how they reconciled this with the 1943 D date code, it is possible no new frames were manufactured in 1943.
U=Ultra Sportsman 777 - Highest Ultra Sportsman serial observed is U968. May go over 1000? Serial range Probably started at U1 or U01. (I own U25.) There may also be U prefixed 999s from 1958?
R=Reserved on early prototypes or special guns, and there may be R prefixed 999s from 1955 (again these will have two piece grips), and
R=Eureka Sportsman 196 (Jim Hauff believed this was R for Walter F. Roper?) This prefix only seems to appear on later Eurekas (R258 [formerly owned by Jim Hauff], R262) and may just be the "Reserved" prefix. Highest Eureka Sportsman serial observed is R262. An uncompleted frame marked 288 (no prefix) was sold on Amoskeag Auction indicating that they probably did not manufacture more than that. I have never seen a two digit Eureka Sportsman, so they may have started the serial range at 100 or 101 (I own 102, no prefix.) This may just be due to very small sample size, or it may help to explain the small sample size.
Ultra Sportsman 777 (U25)
Eureka Sportsman 196 (102)
X in the middle of or at the end of a serial denotes a prototype or experimental gun. X prefix at the beginning just denotes 1961 production.
Special engraved '1 of 999' Sportsman 999 series was serialized with a 999 prefix (999xxx). It is probably safe to assume they made 999 of these.
CT=Chisholm Trail, special engraved commemorative 999 Sportsman series for the 1967 centennial. 300 made and in their own CTxxx serial range. A prototype of this series in the normal 1967 AD prefix range was sold on Amoskeag Auction.
AK=Abilene, Kansas, special engraved commemorative Model 926 series for the 1969 centennial.
"Silver Sportsman" were factory chrome finished 999s offered from 1964-1966. These had the option of having the owner's name engraved on the side of the barrel. They did not have special serial numbers.
H9994xxx/H9996xxx=Premier Edition guns made in 1994 by H&R 1871(NEF). 100 matched pairs of these guns were sold, each pair having a 4" and a 6" gun numbered, for example: H9994001 (4" barrel) and H9996001 (6" barrel)
I have seen two third model H&R 999s with case hardened frames. Possibly just a factory experiment. Nothing has ever been written about the existence of these guns that I'm aware of so if you know anything or have another one please post!
Serial Number Notes:
1. H&R ceased operations in February of 1986; firearms with the letter codes “BC” are very rare.
2. Sportsman from approximately 30000 to approximately 90000 had no letter prefix. I have seen up to 90447. One seller stated a gun's serial was 95xxx but I could not make out the serial in the pictures.
3. Some Sportsman frames in the 30000 and 40000 serial ranges (no prefix) were manufactured in the mid 30s (35-36?) and stockpiled until final assembly during WWII which explains rarity of 1942-1945 (C/D/E/F) date prefixes. The only way to possibly correctly date these guns is to examine other features closely. WWII production H&R revolvers often had black plastic grips. A few had white plastic grips.. The wartime guns made on stockpiled frames that have been documented with wartime inspection tags seem to mostly have regular wood grips. Multiple 999s just above 30000 (30127[police department gun?], 30288[Goforth]) have been documented with British(?) military(?) markings. C554 has been sold along with a matching inspection tag from 11/11/1948, indicating that Sportsman frames may not have been produced between 1942 and 1948. J marked frames are common so frame production was probably restarted in 1949.
4. 999 Sportsman serials probably started at 1 or 01. I have not visually confirmed a 2 digit serial number but have seen an old forum discussion of one, so presumably 1 and 2 digit serials do exist. Lowest frame I have seen a picture of is 119.
5. Highest NEF 999 serial observed for HM is HM003344, highest for HN is HN001xxx. NEF seems to have manufactured far fewer guns per year than H&R did.
(non-Sportsman) Highest 195 USRA serial observed is 3326. Lowest is 21, though it appears to have been renumbered in the factory.
Requested info for anyone who wants to contribute: pre-1953 199/999 Sportsman (one piece grip).
1. Serial Number (partials are welcome, but entire numbers will help more)?
2. Firing pin on hammer or mounted in frame?
3. Safety rim on cylinder? PATENT APPLIED FOR; one patent number; two patent numbers?
4. Cylinder release: 1" long lever on right side -or- small push button on left side of frame right in front of cylinder.
5. Location of Manufacturer's address - on top of barrel -or- on right side?
6. DA or SA?
7. Adjustable or fixed front sight? If fixed - soldered in slot or pinned in slot?
8. Grip material - wood, black plastic, white plastic, other?
9. Chambering - 7 shot .22 WRF or 9 shot .22 LR? (Guns marked "22 Rim Fire" are .22 LR.)
10. Barrel length - 6", 3", or other?
11. Vertical grip striations on front strap of 199s?
Any further documentation such as inspection tags is extremely useful in dating WW2 era 999s.
Factory 3" barrels and 7 round .22 WRF cylinders are very rare, please post if you have one! I believe other factory barrel lengths may exist but are extremely rare.
1967-1999 999 Sportsman
1. Serial Number
2. Barrel type: ventilated rib, fluted (shallower cuts than ventilated), or slab sided?
3. Barrel length: 6" or 4"?
1979 (AT prefix) 999s may possibly be chambered in .32 S&W Long according to that year's catalog, although no one has ever reported actually seeing one. If you do in fact have a 999 in this caliber you've got the holy grail, please post!
Not much changed with the design from 1953-1966 but you are certainly welcome to post your serial number and pictures if you have a gun from that period, especially if you think there's something unusual about it.
I am also interested in H&R Model 195 USRA single shot target guns, and the Defender 38/Defender Special (.38 S&W Short), as well as the New Defender (.22LR). If you have any of those models please post your serial and barrel length, as well as pictures if possible.
H&R .22 Specials are also welcome, being the somewhat cheaper predecessor to the Sportsman.
Thanks for reading my dissertation
Basic info to remember: the single action version was the 199 Sportsman and the double action version was the 999 Sportsman. Other than the SA/DA mechanism they were pretty much identical. In 1953 the 999 Sportsman was redesigned and given a new frame with two piece wood grips. One or two piece grips are the easy way to tell the first and second model 999s apart. The second model was redesigned and given a transfer bar ignition system in 1974, although visually this "third" model is exactly the same from the outside aside from the hammer. After H&R was purchased by NEF the 999 frame dimensions were slightly changed and non-checkered two piece wood grips were used. Grip checkering or lack of grip checkering is the easy way to tell a 1990s NEF 999 from a 1953-1986 H&R.
Most importantly here's the full and accurate list of H&R date codes. I originally found this list somewhere on the internet but I have expanded it with my own observations and added the list of date codes used by New England Firearms after they restarted production of the Model 999. Some of these letter codes seem to be rare or nonexistant in the Sportsman population. Production of frames may have slowed or stopped in certain years while the company focused on producing other guns and selling the stock they had already accumulated.
POST 1939, H&R SERIAL NUMBER LETTER CODES AND THE YEAR OF THEIR USAGE:
A=1940 B=1941 C=1942 D=1943* E=1944 F=1945 G=1946 H=1947 I=1948 J=1949 K=1950
L=1951 M=1952 N=1953 P=1954 R=1955 S=1956** T=1957 U=1958 V=1959 W=1960 X=1961
Y=1962 Z=1963
AA=1964 AB=1965 AC=1966 AD=1967 AE=1968 AF=1969 AG=1970 AH=1971 AJ=1972
AL=1973 AM=1974 AN=1975 AP=1976 AR=1977 AS=1978 AT=1979 AU=1980 AX=1981
AY=1982 AZ=1983 BA=1984 BB=1985 BC=1986
Codes O, Q, AI, AO, AQ, AV, and AW were not used.
*I have NEVER seen a D prefixed 999 Sportsman with features indicating it was made in 1943. If they exist they are extremely rare. If you have a D prefixed 999 Sportsman it is almost certainly one of the first 30,000 made that were prefixed with D for Double action.
**S prefixed 999s may exist, although if they do it's an uncommon letter code. If you S prefixed Sportsman has a single piece wood grip it is a Model 199 and prefixed S for Single action. If it has two piece wood grip it is a second model (1953 onward) Model 999 produced in 1956.
New England Firearms SERIAL NUMBER LETTER CODES - “SECOND LETTER” OF PREFIX STARTING WITH H OR N:
A=1987 B=1988 C=1989 D=1990 E=1991 F=1992 G=1993 H=1994 J=1995 K=1996
L=1997 M=1998 N=1999 P=2000 R=2001 S=2002 T=2003 U=2004 V=2005 W=2006
X=2007 Y=2008 Z=2009
Codes HO/NO and HQ/NQ were not used. H&R entered bankruptcy and ceased production in early 1986. New England Firearms purchased H&R and restarted production of some H&R guns including the 999 Sportsman. The H&R brand was not used from 1987-1990 so codes HA, HB, HC, HD were never used. Model 999s were produced by NEF only from 1991(?) to 1999 so codes HE through HN will be the only NEF codes found on Model 999s. I have never seen a N[x] prefixed NEF manufactured 999, I assume the N prefix was used only for non-H&R branded guns.
NEF ceased revolver production, including the 999 Sportsman, in 1999. NEF produced H&R guns are marked H&R GARDNER, MA. Original H&R guns produced 1986 and earlier are marked H&R INC. U.S.A. or H&R INC. GARDNER, MASS. U.S.A.
S=Single Action Sportsman (199), almost certainly(?) its own independent series, some very early guns have no prefix, prefix went up to approximately S20000 (so approximately 20,000 199s were made pre-WW2.) Small amounts of 199s were also made in 1949-1951 with the J, K, and L prefixes. (215 or 415 total, Goforth book unclear.) No more 199s were made after 1951.
D=Double Action Sportsman (999), some very early guns have no prefix, prefix went up to at least D29551, it is unclear how they reconciled this with the 1943 D date code, it is possible no new frames were manufactured in 1943.
U=Ultra Sportsman 777 - Highest Ultra Sportsman serial observed is U968. May go over 1000? Serial range Probably started at U1 or U01. (I own U25.) There may also be U prefixed 999s from 1958?
R=Reserved on early prototypes or special guns, and there may be R prefixed 999s from 1955 (again these will have two piece grips), and
R=Eureka Sportsman 196 (Jim Hauff believed this was R for Walter F. Roper?) This prefix only seems to appear on later Eurekas (R258 [formerly owned by Jim Hauff], R262) and may just be the "Reserved" prefix. Highest Eureka Sportsman serial observed is R262. An uncompleted frame marked 288 (no prefix) was sold on Amoskeag Auction indicating that they probably did not manufacture more than that. I have never seen a two digit Eureka Sportsman, so they may have started the serial range at 100 or 101 (I own 102, no prefix.) This may just be due to very small sample size, or it may help to explain the small sample size.
Ultra Sportsman 777 (U25)
Eureka Sportsman 196 (102)
X in the middle of or at the end of a serial denotes a prototype or experimental gun. X prefix at the beginning just denotes 1961 production.
Special engraved '1 of 999' Sportsman 999 series was serialized with a 999 prefix (999xxx). It is probably safe to assume they made 999 of these.
CT=Chisholm Trail, special engraved commemorative 999 Sportsman series for the 1967 centennial. 300 made and in their own CTxxx serial range. A prototype of this series in the normal 1967 AD prefix range was sold on Amoskeag Auction.
AK=Abilene, Kansas, special engraved commemorative Model 926 series for the 1969 centennial.
"Silver Sportsman" were factory chrome finished 999s offered from 1964-1966. These had the option of having the owner's name engraved on the side of the barrel. They did not have special serial numbers.
H9994xxx/H9996xxx=Premier Edition guns made in 1994 by H&R 1871(NEF). 100 matched pairs of these guns were sold, each pair having a 4" and a 6" gun numbered, for example: H9994001 (4" barrel) and H9996001 (6" barrel)
I have seen two third model H&R 999s with case hardened frames. Possibly just a factory experiment. Nothing has ever been written about the existence of these guns that I'm aware of so if you know anything or have another one please post!
Serial Number Notes:
1. H&R ceased operations in February of 1986; firearms with the letter codes “BC” are very rare.
2. Sportsman from approximately 30000 to approximately 90000 had no letter prefix. I have seen up to 90447. One seller stated a gun's serial was 95xxx but I could not make out the serial in the pictures.
3. Some Sportsman frames in the 30000 and 40000 serial ranges (no prefix) were manufactured in the mid 30s (35-36?) and stockpiled until final assembly during WWII which explains rarity of 1942-1945 (C/D/E/F) date prefixes. The only way to possibly correctly date these guns is to examine other features closely. WWII production H&R revolvers often had black plastic grips. A few had white plastic grips.. The wartime guns made on stockpiled frames that have been documented with wartime inspection tags seem to mostly have regular wood grips. Multiple 999s just above 30000 (30127[police department gun?], 30288[Goforth]) have been documented with British(?) military(?) markings. C554 has been sold along with a matching inspection tag from 11/11/1948, indicating that Sportsman frames may not have been produced between 1942 and 1948. J marked frames are common so frame production was probably restarted in 1949.
4. 999 Sportsman serials probably started at 1 or 01. I have not visually confirmed a 2 digit serial number but have seen an old forum discussion of one, so presumably 1 and 2 digit serials do exist. Lowest frame I have seen a picture of is 119.
5. Highest NEF 999 serial observed for HM is HM003344, highest for HN is HN001xxx. NEF seems to have manufactured far fewer guns per year than H&R did.
(non-Sportsman) Highest 195 USRA serial observed is 3326. Lowest is 21, though it appears to have been renumbered in the factory.
Requested info for anyone who wants to contribute: pre-1953 199/999 Sportsman (one piece grip).
1. Serial Number (partials are welcome, but entire numbers will help more)?
2. Firing pin on hammer or mounted in frame?
3. Safety rim on cylinder? PATENT APPLIED FOR; one patent number; two patent numbers?
4. Cylinder release: 1" long lever on right side -or- small push button on left side of frame right in front of cylinder.
5. Location of Manufacturer's address - on top of barrel -or- on right side?
6. DA or SA?
7. Adjustable or fixed front sight? If fixed - soldered in slot or pinned in slot?
8. Grip material - wood, black plastic, white plastic, other?
9. Chambering - 7 shot .22 WRF or 9 shot .22 LR? (Guns marked "22 Rim Fire" are .22 LR.)
10. Barrel length - 6", 3", or other?
11. Vertical grip striations on front strap of 199s?
Any further documentation such as inspection tags is extremely useful in dating WW2 era 999s.
Factory 3" barrels and 7 round .22 WRF cylinders are very rare, please post if you have one! I believe other factory barrel lengths may exist but are extremely rare.
1967-1999 999 Sportsman
1. Serial Number
2. Barrel type: ventilated rib, fluted (shallower cuts than ventilated), or slab sided?
3. Barrel length: 6" or 4"?
1979 (AT prefix) 999s may possibly be chambered in .32 S&W Long according to that year's catalog, although no one has ever reported actually seeing one. If you do in fact have a 999 in this caliber you've got the holy grail, please post!
Not much changed with the design from 1953-1966 but you are certainly welcome to post your serial number and pictures if you have a gun from that period, especially if you think there's something unusual about it.
I am also interested in H&R Model 195 USRA single shot target guns, and the Defender 38/Defender Special (.38 S&W Short), as well as the New Defender (.22LR). If you have any of those models please post your serial and barrel length, as well as pictures if possible.
H&R .22 Specials are also welcome, being the somewhat cheaper predecessor to the Sportsman.
Thanks for reading my dissertation
