Iver Johnson Revolver Help

[rosewood151]

Hello. My friend found this in his grandfathers house. It is an Iver Johnson .38 S/W top break. Its unusual in hat the rear of the receiver is pinned in place not solid, also the cylinder does not lock. As you can see from the photos, there are no locking points on the cylinder. My father has an Iver Johnson similar to this, but his has a one piece rear and the cylinder locks. I did some research, but could use some help. Thank you

 

[Fleet]

If you could put your photos in as links rather than attachments, it may be helpful. That way, we can blow them up. As they are, it's difficult to see much due to size.

 

[Jim K]

All concealed hammer IJ revolvers had that type of top cover. It would have been nearly impossible to machine that frame if it had a solid top. (S&W made revolvers with a solid top, but they machined the frame from the side and covered the hole with a sideplate.)

I don't know what you mean by the cylinder not having "locking points". The last picture clearly shows the normal cylinder stop notches.

Jim

 

[rosewood151]

When you pull the trigger, the cylinder rotates, lines up with the barrel, and a block rises from the frame above the cylinder, which locks the cylinder (the oval notches) and the gun fires. Once the trigger is released though, there is nothing to stop you from rotating the cylinder by hand either left or right. On my dads model, there are rectangular notches machined with the oval, which lock the cylinder.
I will post better photos.

 

[Jim K]

"block rises from the frame above the cylinder"

Are you sure you don't mean below the cylinder? What you describe is normal for that model of IJ. Later models did have a cylinder stop that stops the cylinder rotation when the hammer and trigger are at rest.

JIm

 

[Ron James]

If you pull the grips and list the serial number found under the left grip along with any letter pre fix, also the wording on top of the barrel, one line or two, we might be able to date it for you.

 

[Oyeboten]

Looks like a 3rd Model, which were redesigned for 'Smokeless' Cartridges and stronger and more rugged internals than previous Models.


Shrouded Hammer is a nice feature.

 

[rosewood151]

Yes, below cylinder.