Old S&W 32 Long Revolver

It doesn't HAVE a model number. S&W did not assign model numbers until 1957 and your .32 Hand Ejector is much older than that.
According to Flayderman's book, it is a third model, which makes tying its age down difficult because they made the little suckers from 1911 until 1942.
But your serial number is pretty low for a third model so it was made fairly soon after the 1914 patent was issued. Maybe even before we got in WW I. I hope somebody with the right book will in it down for you.

If it is a S$W gun it is likely the Model 1903 . More info and a photo would help a lot. This would be a hand ejector model with swing out cylinder .

The serial nimber of the cylinder and the butt as well as under the ejector rod on the barrel should all be the same. Yours might have a replacement cylinder.

If the gun has a round butt, you have a .32 Hand Ejector 3rd Model manufactured between 1917 & 1920 in the serial range 263001 to 321000. If a square butt, with the grips stamped with a 1917 patent date, then you have a .32 Regulation Police manufactured in the same serial range and time frame. Either way the gun predates heat treatment of cylinders, so dont try to shoot hot handloads in it. It also predates the modern hammer block safety. If dropped it could fire, so leave the chamber under the hammer empty.
Your gun predates model numbers, which were introduced in 1957 with the .32 Regulation Police becoming the Model 31 & the .32 Hand Ejector becoming the Model 30.
The numbers under the cylinder yoke are assembly numbers, used to track parts in the factory. They were not recorded and had no meaning after the gun was completed.
The patent date is correct for the changes introduced in 1917.
If a Regulation Police there is a 'step' in the back strap that allows fitting of special round to square butt conversion grips.
The gun is built on S&Ws I frame.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the pic. Definitely a .32 Hand Ejector 3rd Model. Hard to tell if the hammer and trigger are chromed, if they are then it has been refinished in the past. the factory finish was color case hardening, a mottled straw color.

Looks like a .32 hand Ejector Model of 1903 5th Change built around 1918.


This one is about one year older.

Serial number is 20,000 past the 5th change serial range, so its definitely a 3rd model. They were identical externally.

Consider yourself lucky here, most boards would delete one, some would remove both.
Duplicate posts are unnecessary if you post in the right section. And they just lead to confusion and lack of coordination in answers.

Radagast said:

Serial number is 20,000 past the 5th change serial range, so its definitely a 3rd model. They were identical externally.

Click to expand...

Correct, I missed the serial number being past 263001. Mine is a 2500XX.

Not alot, it looks refinished and has some wear.
To you and your son, it should be priceless

Merged threads.

About $200 to $250. It's well worn and may be refinished. .32 Hand Ejectors aren't particularly rare, ammo is expensive and low powered compared to rounds such as the .38 Special. This all adds up to limited demand and low prices.

Is it chromed? I can't really tell by the picture but it looks like someone has buffed all the bluing off down to bare metal.

It's nickel, not chrome. Don't use a copper solvent as that may disolve the treatment on the steel that helps the nicklel adhere. 000 steel wool and gun oil is about the best you can use. You won't be able to improve it a lot and a quality refinish would cost more than the gun is worth.

Don't use Flitz on guns that show peeling nickel finish.

This one had a goodly amount of peeling and the Flitz didn't make it look any better.

The Flitz seemed to increase the contrast between the areas where the peeling had come off and the surrounding areas where the finish was still present.