A gift I know nothing about

Smith and Wesson Victory model made during WW2. Many marked US Navy. Safe to shoot with standard velocity .38 special ammo. Issued primarily to Navy aviators as well as security guards in factories making supplies for US military. Yours made in 1942-1943.

It's a Smith & Wesson revolver chambered for the .38 Special cartridge and if in good condition is safe to fire with any factory-made ammunition not marked "Plus P". There are many threads here and several videos on Youtube (the one by Midway is recommended) explaining how to inspect a used revolver for safety.

The victory models started production in the 40's, prior to that the cavalry carried a SSA with a 7.5 inch barrel.

An interesting piece of history, complete with authentic holster and ammo.
Congrats.
Shooting it wont hurt.

I'd be very happy if that fell into my possession.

Great looking revolver, i'm suprised it looks so good after years(?) In a leather holster. I would have it inspected and if all is well, by all means shoot and enjoy it. Value is irrelevant if you never intend to part with it.

You are fortunate the pistol is not rusty--being stored in that old holster. I hope you enjoy it for many years!

Derek Zeanah

That's an incredibly nice gift to receive from one of your Dad's friends! It looks to be in great shape though the holster could use some TLC.

My Dad's best friend was a Navy aviator in the Pacific during WWII. Supposedly they preferred the S&W Victory revolver over the M1911A1 because some pilots believed that a revolver would still work after being submerged in water for a long period of time (they could manually rotate the cylinder if need be), versus the semi-auto becoming inoperable.

The U.S. Army cavalry prior to WWII would have been issued the M1911A1. Many troopers were transferred over to armored units when the Army transitioned over from the horse cavalry to tracked vehicles (tanks, half-tracks, self-propelled artillery). The platoon sergeant in my Dad's armored division outfit had been in the horse cavalry before the war.

This is one of the non-S&W Victory model revolvers that RON in PA mentioned in his post. No V prefix with the serial number and no government acceptance markings on it. There was a government agency during the war which requisitioned guns for security guards at Defense plants, banks, and government installations. My particular S&W M&P revolver has the letters "GE Co" electro-pencilled on the right side of the frame (possibly used by security guards at a General Electric plant).

What a nice gift!

Fine rig!
Q1 - Safe to shoot - Unless there is an obvious mechanical fault (doubtful) , yes. Moderate pressure 158 gr lrn is a good bet. Can't go wrong with cowboy type wadcutters.
Q3 - It would be a shame to not shoot that old Victory.

You are extremely fortunate. First , because someone of your acquaintance wanted to part with such a treasure , with you being in the right place at the right time ; second - It amazes me that your revolver was holstered for such a long time without coming out green and corroded. I consider that to be a minor miracle of chemistry , just look at that holster. (holster is quite salvageable , btw.)

You must be living right. Enjoy.

Yep, mark us down as all jealous...

WoW!! What a treasure! I'd shoot the snot out of it with standard pressure .38 Special loads.

Pinch yourself too....for being thought enough of by someone to bequeath you such a gift.

That is very cool. Enjoy that revolver!

That is a super cool item to inherit!

bikerdoc said:

The victory models started production in the 40's, prior to that the cavalry carried a SSA with a 7.5 inch barrel.

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You skipped a few things friend. First, the Victory Model S&W was never standard issue. Some air crewman had them and they were popular for Lend Lease shipments. During WWII the standard issue side arm was the 1911 and 1911A1 Colt semi auto. During WWI there weren't enough 1911s to go around and S&W, along with Colt, produce their 1917 models which were adapted to shoot the 45 ACP cartridge. During the Philippine Insurrection the issue 38 Colts were deemed less than ideal and cut down (5-1/2") Cavalry Single Action Armys saw service there, referred to by collectors as Artillery Models. (Note: the shortened designation for that gun is SAA, not SSA.) The last issue of 7-1/2" SAA 45s was around 1890 or 1892. Memory fails for the exact year and the books are too far away (LOL).

Dave

That is a very nice gift. Green with envy.

Here are some links that will give you a little info on your Victory model.

http://www.coolgunsite.com/navy/sidearms/navy_side_arms_1851_to_1945.htm

https://www.gunsamerica.com/digest/the-smith-and-wesson-victory-38/

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2016/10/6/america-s-military-revolvers/

Awesome gift. You deserve it. Thanks for all you do. Now you are going to have to start hanging out here on the revolver forum.

The Victory Model was a version of Smith & Wesson's "Military & Police" model revolver, which was introduced in 1899 and is still made today (although with many, many changes over those 120 years). In Smith & Wesson's internal model designation system, it is what is called a "K-frame square butt". Those have been produced in enormous numbers, so a wide array of replacement grips are available for them, which can make firing the gun accurately easier and more pleasant. The original Victory grips are actually fairly valuable today, though. Holsters and speedloaders are widely available as well.

In the 1950's, Smith & Wesson adopted model numbers for all their revolvers. The 38 Special Military and Police became the Model 10, and is still called that. You may find many accessories that can be used with this gun listed that way.

BTW, Derek Zaniah, your photograph is terrific.

(Edited to remove a lot of chatter about 38 Special +P that I realized was pointless. If anyone read it before I deleted it, I apologize.)

Shoot it. Give it a thorough cleaning and oiling first, of course.
Clean the holster with Fiebing's liquid glycerine saddle soap from a leather craft store or a saddlery.

Wow! You did good getting that gun. Give it a good cleaning and go shoot it. And don't worry about the silly +P ammo. Its a gimmick and in most cses doesn't match the real 38 Special ammo your gun was designed to shoot. +P is just better than the watered down "38 Special" they sell now that is no better than the 38 long Colt it was supposed to replace. Here is a good read on 38+p ammo.

http://shootingwithhobie.blogspot.com/2009/01/p-phenomenon-by-saxonpig.html

Very nice for the pistol to land with someone who has respect for it's history, so I'm happy for you.

Monac said:

BTW, Derek Zaniah, your photograph is terrific.

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That sort of ability just ^^^ makes me envious. It's an NRA 'Rifleman' worthy photo.

JT

Count me in re GREAT images.

Regarding grips - I fear that if you ever put a different set of shooting grips on that Victory the spell will be broken and your fine rig will disintegrate into dust before your eyes.

Please go back to your dad's friend and ask him to explain the
history of the gun. Take a video and have his words transcribed. Ask him to sign and have it notarized.
Now with that knowledge there is provenance with the gun.
That provenance makes it so much valuable. The big plus is you can prove the story about it.