Identity and Date of Manufacture of S&W Revolvers

Crazybuldr said:
Sorry I will not bother you folks again
I could not figure how to post the first time
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You aren't bothering anyone, I just found it strange you work post pictures of a box but more so you would buy revolvers and not want to inspect them and touch them, that's all.

Welcome to the forum, hopefully you will stick around and contribute to the discussions.
 
Carlos Henrique said:
index.php

I go to the forum to try to identify this S & W 38 MEP
, 6 fires,
bbl length 4"
it has a number if series 672xxx in the square butt, the cilinder and the Drum but it does not have letter before 6 digits.
The ID of the internal part is 10774
as recorded made in usa on the side.
nickel model,
but what surprised me most was this apparently gold and ruby cord grip. I did not find anything similar and I do not know if it is a special series or if it was made to order by a gunsmith. Can anyone help me with this. follow the photos to understand what I'm talking about. Thank you in advance.
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and there personal, some other information that I need to go beyond the photos? I would very much like to identify the same to know if it is rare or not, I am really curious because of the gold grip. help me there thanks
 
Daved63 said:
View attachment 814464

a) 45 Auto Rim or 45 ACP
b) 5.5 inch BBL
c) Square Grips
d) 6 Shot
e) Fixed Sights
f) 1811XX
g) 45 Hand Ejector

No US Government markings.
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I just received my letter from Roy Jinks at Smith & Wesson. He stated that my revolver is a .45 Hand Ejector Model of 1917, Pre-World War II Commercial Variation. It was shipped from the factory on August 1, 1928
 
ArchAngelCD said:
@Carlos Henrique, is there a letter before the serial number? Sometimes it can be far to the left of the numbers. It is a .38 Special, correct?

I highly doubt those grips are from the factory but I could be wrong.
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@ArchAngelCD following his tip I found hidden under the cylinder well away from the serial number what seems to me to be the letter B, does it help? follows the photo
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OK, the B is not part of the serial #.
If that number is actually the serial # then the below may be correct.
Did you check the bottom of the grip frame for a serial number? The spot you show in the picture is unusual for a serial number. If the grips cover the butt of the grip you will have to remove them to see the serial number, look at post # 7040 in this thread.

My best estimate is, this is a .38 Special Hand Ejector M&P. Unfortunately the listing for this serial number set is very wide. It's listed as 1915 - 1942 -- #241704 - #700000. The number of revolvers made yearly are not linear but your gun just might be from 1941/1942 but sorry, that's just a guess.

As for the grips I think they are aftermarket and not from the factory but like I said in another post, it's just a guess.
 
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I have a 2 inch barrel, .22 cal, mod 34-1 ser # 102xxx, no letter prefix. I bought it around 1972 or 73. I'm pretty sure it was used when I bought it but that was too far back and too many guns back to remember. I haven't shot it in years and now I'm thinking of selling it. I'd sure like to know when it was made more precisely than pre 73. Anyone here have an idea? I really love my old S&W revolvers and I've owned an awful lot of them through the years but some of them have gotta go.
 
ArchAngelCD said:
It looks like 1972, nice catch.
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Indeed it is a 1972. Which is extra cool as that is my birth year. I followed the suggestion in another thread I started and called S&W c.s. and she was very helpful. She said it's not plus P rated but is fine to use them for defensive use. Recommended using standard loads for practice, which is what I expected to hear. I'm really happy with this one.
 
Pudge said:
Kind of late for a no dash isn't it?
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Yes it is but unless the serial number is incorrect that's when it was shipped.

The M10 was marked as so in 1957 and ran to 1958.
The M10-1 was 1959 and 1960 where they introduced the 4" heavy barrel.
the M10-2 was 1961 as was the M10-3 and in 1962 they introduced the M10-4, M10-5 and M10-6.

The "C" serial numbers run this way:
1957-1959 -- C402924 - C429740
1960 -- C429741 - C474148
1961-1962 -- C474149 - C622199

I'm not sure why but the dash number doesn't match the serial number data but I would go with the serial number first.

Any further information will have to come from S&W or someone else because that's all I have.
 
First, you already know this, but you should know that I do as well: what you do is great, and you respond very quickly. Thank you.
Second, just am curious, are these discrepancies between dash dates and serial number dates particularly uncommon?
 
It's not common but not unheard of. From what I'm told sometimes the model number is stamped on the frame but for some reason it's set aside. When they finally get around to completing the gun and stamp the serial number sometimes they don't completely agree. This is why we say "left the manufacturer" instead of saying when it was made.

Thank you for the complement even though it's not necessary. I enjoy helping out and learning about the revolvers.
 
Thanks. My question actually should have been: do they stamp model and serial numbers at different times? And your response answered that nicely. I never understood how cool the M10 snubbie was until I held one in my hand. Sweet revolver, and a nice reflection of the manufacturing standards of the time.
 
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