Howdy Again
Now we're getting somewhere with the new photos.
The number 5452 on the frame under the yoke is an assembly number. It will not help us date the revolver.
The caliber marking on the barrel clearly states the revolver is chambered for the 38 Special cartridge. S&W always says 38 S&W SPECIAL CTG because they developed the cartridge in 1899 and they want to make sure you don't forget, but it is the same cartridge. CTG simply stands for cartridge
But the Serial Number of 605131 is very helpful.
Before I say anything more about that, the serial numbers for the 38 Military and Police Model of 1905 4th Change started with 241,704 in 1915 and ended with 1,000,000 in 1942. That is a huge span, 758,296 revolvers were made over that time period. Although the Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson has start and finish dates for many Serial Number series in the index, it does not break down that huge number any further than listing that range of numbers for those years. You could always ask Smith and Wesson for a Factory Letter. You can find the forms for that on the Smith and Wesson website. The last time I checked, the cost is $100 per letter. (I remember when it was $30 each, which was a real bargain because a Colt letter cost $100 then)
You could also go up to the Identity and Date of Manufacture of Smith and Wesson Revolvers thread pinned to the top of this board, but frankly I have never had the patience to wade through all those pages. I have no idea if it is searchable by serial number, never bothered to try.
But take heart, I have a few old Smiths with Serial Numbers very close to yours, and because of my pleasant demeanor and good looks I have been able to find Ship Dates for them.
I am not going to give you the complete serial numbers, I am going to substitute an X for each of the last two digits. It will be close enough.
6212XX shipped February of 1934
6699XX shipped April of 1938
6731XX shipped June of 1939
So your SN of 605131 probably shipped some time before 1934. Not an exact date
The closest earlier SN I have to yours is 3394XX which shipped April of 1920
So that should give you a pretty good ball park estimate, your 605131 probably shipped in the early 1930s.
One caveat: Notice I said Ship Date, not Date of Manufacture. For what ever reason, the official records kept by the S&W historian are all based on Ship Dates, not dates of manufacture. These revolvers were manufactured in batches. There is no public record I am aware of that states when these batches were made. Sometimes a revolver might sit in the store room for a while before it shipped. If you want to find the actual date of manufacture of a particular revolver you have to pay the $100 for it to be researched in company records.
As Roy Jinks, the S&W historian always says, I hope this helps.
