Old S&W identity help

[krusty311]

A friend's grandmother passed recently and in the process of cleaning out her house he has found a old s&w.It is nickel plated with a 4in barrel,I think the correct term is "breaktop"action.caliber is .38s&w,along the top of the barrel run five patent dates beggining with Aug.4,96 and ending with Sept.14,09.Serial# is 53xxx,I'm looking for some info on model name,value and some idea of manufacture date.Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.
krusty

 

[Tamara]

Is the hammer enclosed? Is there a grip safety?

 

[krusty311]

After doing a little research last night I discoverd that it is a S&W .38s&w "perfected model".

 

[FPrice]

If this is a .38 Perfected, then ser # 53,xxx places it very close to the end of the production range. According to Supica and Nahas:

Years Ser no.
1909-1920 1-59400

As far as the value it will depend somewhat upon the condition. Is the finish in good shape or worn? What is the mechanical condition? Any accessories such as the box or instruction manual?

I could not even begin to estimate the worth, even with this information, but I'll check the book when I get home tonight for some rough value ranges. There are people on THR who are very knowledgeable of old firearms values, hopefully they will see this thread and join in.

 

[FPrice]

Book Value

Supica and Nahas list the following values for a .38 DA Perfected Model:

NIB 900
Exc 475
Fine 325
VG 250
Good 200
Fair 160
Poor 125

Of course, as they say, no book ever bought a gun. This is just a place to start.

 

[krusty311]

Thanks for the help FPrice.
krusty