Smith & Wesson 32 Long

[sparky482]

My great aunt has 3 Smith and Wesson revolvers that were her husband's and he passed away several years ago. One of them is a S&W 38 revolver with "38 S. & W. Special CTG." on one side of the barrel and "Smith & Wesson" on the other. There isn't anything on the top. The barrel is 3" long. The serial number is 626649. I have several pictures.

What is this gun and what is it worth?

Thanks for your help.

 

[WestKentucky]

The 32 long is a really nice gun. Yours looks a lot like mine which is a 30-1 and I suspect yours is as well. The guns fluctuate a lot in value and right now they seem to be trending higher than normal. Mine was $275 a few years back and now I see them anywhere from 400 to 800 in nice shape as yours seems to be. One thing I would do on this particular gun is to take the grips off by removing the one screw in the grips, be careful not to mess up the screw head or slip off and scrape the grips. Serial numbers on these guns were written on the grips as they were assembled. If your grips match the gun that adds a little value as it indicates that the gun hasn’t been messed with a lot. Realistically I think the guns are worth around 400 but in a wild market it may bring more, but it may bring less. As many original points and details as you can show a buyer the more confident they are in what they are getting, and very clear and well taken photos are easily worth the cost of a cheap digital camera to take them should you choose to do an online auction.

and yours has a flat cylinder latch. Be sure to note that when accounting for details. Rounded latches are a more modern design and shows that this one is an earlier gun.

 

[kscharlie]

Your .32 Hand Ejector was shipped, most likely, in late 1956 or early 1957. It is built on the New I Frame model of 1953. Around the time that your gun was made, S&W issued the order to eliminate the top side plate screw. Yours still has that screw, making it a 5-screw gun. That screw was eliminated at approximately serial number 640980. It is often referred to by collectors as a Pre-Model 30. Your example appears to be very nice, and IMO would easily bring $500. BTW, the barrel is measured from the front of the cylinder to the end of the barrel. Yours would be a 3 1/4" barrel.

 

[eastbank]

the lower S&W revolver is in .32 long, i got it for a killer deal as some one had adjustable sights installed on it, making it easy to sight in with different loads. my wife carries it when out and about. 85 gr jhp at close to 900 fps. top revolver is a ruger in .32 H&R mag.

 

[EMC45]

I really like that .32.