H&R Topbreak -- Price Check

[Dain Bramage]

My local shop has a cute little H&R Topbreak revolver in .32 S&W. The barrel looks to be about two inches long. It seems to be in really good shape. Bluing is probably 95%+ with only a light dragline across the cylinder. There was no mechanical slop anywhere. It looks like someone fired a few rounds and put it away for good.

The trigger pull is a bit stiff, with the single-action possibly worse than the double-action, if you can imagine such a thing. It might just be perception based on my expectations. The serial number is 4993XX. The shop is asking $210 and is throwing in a holster and one box of ammo. What do you guys think? Does anybody know the year of manufacture?

 

[Old Fuff]

They were made from the mid-1890's to just before World War Two. In general the quality was so-so, and those made before 1910 probably shouldn't be fired with smokeless powder ammunition. .32 S&W cartridges are available, but often hard to find. They made two sizes, a 6-shot on a .38 frame, and a 5-shot on a smaller one. Also both were made in conventional hammer and hammerless styles. I presume the one you are looking at is a 5-shooter. At $210 I'd say the price is a bit stiff, but there is some collector interest in examples that are in the condition you describe. For about $50.00 more you can find similar Smith & Wesson's that are much better quality.

 

[Dain Bramage]

Thanks for the update! I know nothing about these revolvers, but the nice condition caught my eye.

It was the five-shot version, and it was a bitty little thing. I consider myself a Smith man, so I'll keep looking. Are the I-frame Smiths comparable in size?

 

[Old Fuff]

No, the I-frame was the same as a shortened J-frame. The cylinder was only 1.750" long and the frame was about 1/4" shorter.

Smith & Wesson .32 top-break revolvers were the same size as the H&R you have under consideration.

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