trying to find info about S&W revolver

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theresa0801

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I just inherited a smith and wesson from my deceased father and would like to find out some info about it. This is what I know:

38 ctg
bbl- 5 inch
grip- round?
6 shot
serial # 224438 with a C way over to the left of it not sure if that's part of it, on the registration papers they did not put it as part of the serial #.
model #10 or 30598 (# on barrel under crane)
not sure how to post pics from my computer into this message ,I do not have a url
__________________
 
The Model 10 was the meat and potatoes S&W revolver. Lots of the made and all of very good quality. Most M10s were chambered for the 38 Special cartridge. Barrels were from 2 to 6" and maybe longer.

More info can be found on one of the S&W forums,
 
The 'C' is part of the serial number. I'm sure someone will be able to give you an idea of shipping date.
 
You have a Smith & Wesson .38 Military & Police revolver, which after 1957 was assigned a model number 10 in addition to the name. Serial number C 224438 should have been made during 1952, so I would not expect it to be marked with a model number. At the time this revolver was a standard sidearm of most U.S. police departments.

Additional information can be obtained from the Smith & Wesson Company. See below.

Information concerning historical letters of authentication from Smith & Wesson’s historian, Roy G. Jinks can be obtained from the link listed below.

In exchange for a $50.00 research fee (make any check out to Smith & Wesson, not Mr. Jinks) he will search through the company’s original records until he finds your particular revolver. He will then send you an official letter which usually includes:

A short history of the revolver model’s background.

What the barrel length, caliber/cartridge, finish and stocks were, as well as the exact date it was shipped from the factory – and to what distributor, dealer or individual – as whatever the case may be.

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/...4_750001_750051_757825_-1_757814_757812_image
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Like Old Fuff said, you have a 1952 S&W M&P.
I have one that was shipped in 1948 that should look exactly like yours.
I'm posting a picture below so you can match it up with your revolver.

MP_1s.jpg
 
Oh that life was so easy, but there is a fly in the soup... :uhoh:

The serial number seems to say 1952, but apparently it's stamped "MOD 10", and that didn't come about until 1957. How is this possible?

Well because Smith & Wesson made it a practice to serial number frames before they were made into completed revolvers, occasionally a revolver will have (or not have) features that it should or shouldn't because for whatever reason the frame didn't go through final assembly until later - sometimes much later - then the serial number would suggest.

Also the O.P may not have the correct number. Missing just one digit can make a big difference.

So we will have to wait and see...
 
And, CTG is just part of the caliber stamping, it means "Cartridge".
Denis
 
theresa0801, I think you missed part of the serial number, Is the letter "K" the first thing you see? If so your M & P revolver was produced in 1954. As S&W did not start to assign model numbers until 1958, your revolver will be Referred to as an M & P or a pre M-10.
 
Yeah I did it. now If you need more pics let me know.
its a little dirty due to the fact that I haven't cleaned it up yet. I think im getting lazy as I age lol.
oh and im sry , its not stamped model # 10 my 17 yr old genious son told me thst


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E-mail me your pics and I'll post them for you.

[email protected]


(You might be seeing them when you look because they are on your computer, but the rest of us are just getting the white box with the red X)
 
OK lets try these. I went to tinypic and it took me to photobucket so hopefully you can see these

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This time the pictures have came out fine, and they resolve the various questions.

Your revolver is a .38 Smith & Wesson Military & Police model that collectors classify as a "pre-model 10." Serial number C 224438 was most likely made during 1952. The barrel length (measured from the front face of the cylinder to the end of the muzzle) appears to be 6-inches. The butt is square (front to back).

I believe the walnut stocks are from a later production gun, but this is of no serious importance. You can tell if you carefully remove them because the serial number, in whole or in part, should be penciled or stamped on the inside of one or both panels. I suspect if you look you will find a different number.

As I said in Post#4, you can obtain additional information from S&W if you want to.
 
In case you want to shoot it, 38 S&W should not be confused with 38 Special. The 38 S&W is a much shorter cartridge. My grandfather had one of those guns (pre-1941) for the "gang wars" of his era. I'm glad it never erupted because he was no fighter.
 
In case you want to shoot it, 38 S&W should not be confused with 38 Special. The 38 S&W is a much shorter cartridge. My grandfather had one of those guns (pre-1941) for the "gang wars" of his era. I'm glad it never erupted because he was no fighter.
Click to expand...

Howdy

If a S&W revolver is chambered for the 38 Special cartridge it will almost always say 38 S&W SPECIAL CTG on the barrel. Like this:



38SWSpecialCartridge.jpg


S&W is very proud of the fact that they developed the 38 Special cartridge in 1899 and always puts the letters S&W in the caliber designation. It is the same cartridge that we usually simply call the 38 Special.

However some M&P revolvers were chambered for the earlier 38 S&W cartridge. This cartridge is not the same as the 38 Special. It is shorter, and the bullet is a few thousandths larger in diameter.

Bottom line is, if the revolver does not have the word SPECIAL on the barrel, you cannot fire 38 Special ammo in it.

Now to make matters worse, some 38 S&W revolvers have been rechambered so they will accept 38 Special ammo. This was often done with Victory Model revolvers that had been sent to England during WWII. This does not usually work out very well, the rear of the chamber is still the larger diameter of the 38 S&W shell, and the slightly narrower 38 Special shells will often split if fired in one of these reworked revolvers.
 
Following World War Two, Smith & Wesson continued to make K-frame revolvers in .38 S&W. However they were sold into foreign markets and exported. They never cataloged these revolvers (Pre-Model 11) or sold them in the United States. The excellent photographs that have now been posted show that it is not a World War Two era Victory Model or .38-200. It is without question chambered in .38 Special.
 
theresa0801

The number 22438 stamped on the butt of your revolver is the correct serial number, so your revolver was produced in 1954.
 
The number 22438 stamped on the butt of your revolver is the correct serial number, ---

The number, clearly seen in the photographs is C 224,438 (two fours, not one) which would date in the 1952 range.
 
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