Model 10-8 in FOIDland

[il.bill]

Greetings from Southern Illinois (home of the Firearm Owner's Identification (FOID) card, the 72 hour wait period after receiving clearance from Big Brother before taking possession of any handgun purchase, and the only state in the USA with no provision for legal concealed carry by citizens).
I have lurked and learned a lot from the members of this forum. Now is the time for my post. After unsuccessfully searching locally for a good, used Model 10 revolver, I decided to buy a police trade in over the internet.

I just received my used square butt Model 10-8, S/N: AAY51xx. The bluing is quite worn in several places and the stocks look pretty rough, but I found no rust nor pitting. 'Full lock up' is tight with no endshake, the DA trigger feels so sweet (the first Model 10 I have held in hand), and the barrel and cylinder bores look very good to me.
I may have found the 'shooter' I wanted. It will be a week or two before I get to try it out, but working the action and dry firing with snap caps is making me smile.

I do not have access to S/N information, and a phone call to S&W customer service is a day or two away - can anyone tell me the year of manufacture?

Thank you!

 

[Ranger30-06]

Very nice! The only thing I would do is try to get some nice grips for it! If the bluing bothers you, you could always use a quick cold blue on the gun... It's not that hard... Nice gun though!

 

[Walkalong]

I have a 10-6 HB, and it is a favorite shooter of mine. Congrats.

 

[waidmann]

Around November-December 1982. Good choice.

 

[armoredman]

Good solid wheelgun sir, it will serve you well for many years.

 

[sidheshooter]

The Honda accord of wheelies; nothing fancy, but rock-solid, proven, versatile, no-frills fun. What can I say? if you don't own a K in 10/13/19/64/65/66 guise, you're just selling yourself short.