I have a stainless S&W 38 special CTG with 4" barrell, Serial #7D28XXX. It was purchased in the 80s I think. It has checkered grips. Beautiful piece. I would like to know the year of manufacture. The side is stamped MADE IN U.S.A. SPRINGFIELD MASS. Also, this revolver is about 99% and has had less than 50 rounds through it. No box or paperwork. Is there any special value in a piece like this or should I just shoot the snot out of it like the rest of my firearms?
Thanks in advance for any help!
Hello
Having a 7D Prefix before it's serial number tells me that it was made in 1981 and has to be a model 64 as the Model 65 was in .357 magnum caliber not the .38 Special caliber that came in the model 64's known as the stainless Millitary & Police revolver. If you would open up the crane of it and swing out the cylinder it will have the Model number and Perhaps a dash number after it & it may be a Model 64 no dash revolver or may be a Model 64-1, 64-2 or so on and If I knew what one it was for sure, I could tell you a lot more about it... Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
Hello
Having a 7D Prefix before it's serial number tells me that it was made in 1981 and has to be a model 64 as the Model 65 was in .357 magnum caliber not the .38 Special caliber that came in the model 64's known as the stainless Millitary & Police revolver. If you would open up the crane of it and swing out the cylinder it will have the Model number and Perhaps a dash number after it & it may be a Model 64 no dash revolver or may be a Model 64-1, 64-2 or so on and If I knew what one it was for sure, I could tell you a lot more about it... Hammerdown
Many thanks Mr. Hammer, the model # is 63-4. When I drop the wheel there is a # 71401 and two small stamps that I can't make out.
Many thanks Mr. Hammer, the model # is 63-4. When I drop the wheel there is a # 71401 and two small stamps that I can't make out.
Thanks very much!
Hello bmbroker
The correct model number for you gun would be a 64-3. You typed a 63-4 which would be a "stainless steel Kit Gun" revolver built on the J-Frame in .22 LR caliber. The 64-3's came with a heavy barrel and that Dash-3 design change was for placing the heavy barrel on that revolver as prior to that they had a tapered barrel on the Model 64-2's. The 64's are built on a medium sized K-Frame with a square butt grip frame. These were the heavier verson of the model 64 with the barrel yours has making it slightly more accurate on Target than the Tapered barrel models made prior to it. You could safely fire Plus-P .38 Special ammo in it for self Protection or hunting but I would suggest a target load in .38 Special with a 148 Grain Wad cutter style lead bullet to get the most accuracy out of it. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
Thanks for the info Hammerdown. I forgot to ask any problem with putting modern ammo thru it?
Hello Warpath42 Modern .38 Special ammo would be fine to fire in your Early Post-War M&P revolver. it is Built on the Medium sized K-Frame so it will handle it fine. I would not suggest the Hotter Plus-P ammo shot through it due to it's age and short barrel it will have quit a bit of Muzzle flip from the higher velocity Plus-P ammo. If you are going to carry it for self protection a Load of .38 Special with 158 Grain Hollow point bullets will do the trick, but you could place a cylinder full of the Plus-P for a little more Umph, but I wouldn't make a habit of repeated shooting of it with the Hotter ammo. That gun would group best with some 148 Grain lead wad cutter style bullets in it. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
Thanks Hammerdown for the info. I posted else where on the forum about another S&W I have, but got no responses. If you have time I'd love to know more about it. Like I said earlier new to the forum, don't want to wear out my welcome. It's a S&W model 36 I recently bought. Serial # on bottom of grip is 48308X. Swing out cylinder and it says MOD 36 on frame. Left side of barrel Smith & Wesson, Right side .38 S&W SPL. With grips on I see two screws on right side, forward and above cylinder is what looks to be a pin. Also a pin under barrel. Grips have a different Serial # 706XXX Any info would be appreciated. Thanks
Thanks Hammerdown for the info. I posted else where on the forum about another S&W I have, but got no responses. If you have time I'd love to know more about it. Like I said earlier new to the forum, don't want to wear out my welcome. It's a S&W model 36 I recently bought. Serial # on bottom of grip is 48308X. Swing out cylinder and it says MOD 36 on frame. Left side of barrel Smith & Wesson, Right side .38 S&W SPL. With grips on I see two screws on right side, forward and above cylinder is what looks to be a pin. Also a pin under barrel. Grips have a different Serial # 706XXX Any info would be appreciated. Thanks
Hello Warpath
Your Model 36 is a three screw variation having three side plate screws two shown and one under the stocks. it was made in Late 1968 time span...Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
Hi New member here. Looking for information on a 38 Special CTG. 4" barrel low gloss bluing. Serial Number 3K2234 Model 15-3. My Dad gave me this gun. He was a Policeman over 30yrs. Carried it as his off duty weapon. Very accurate. Has had adjustable sight added. I was consistantly putting rounds in the X and 10ring at 25yrds.
I was just looking for a little more info on this pistol.
Location: a secret lab on the shores of lake titicaca
Posts: 24,165
hammerdown,
i dont need any advice.
i just want to say that your knowledge of smiths is incredible.
you are a great asset to any gun site!
thank you
bill
__________________ "I don't practice what I preach because I'm not the kind of person I'm preaching to."
Hammer Down...let me start by saying what others have already said but I feel has not been said enough.
You are an asset to any board like this. Your knowledge is so vast on S&W products I read a bunch of post that had nothing to do with my problem just to learn from you!
My pistol sounds similar to the many you have already described but mine is still a bit different.
Mine is as follows:
* The right side of the barrel says 38 S & W Special CTG
* The pistol is a .38 six shot.
* The top of the barrel says "Smith & Wesson Springfield Mass USA (first line) and Patented FEB 6. 06 SEPT.14.09 DEC.29.14 (second line)
*On the left side of the gun there is a stamped SW trademard (small) directly below the release for the cylinder.
* On the right side there is no stamped trademark or anything as I have seen on some...just a large empty smooth area there.
* The pistol has the half moon front site and the non_adjustable rear site.
* Right side has 3 screws. One in front of the hammer, one just behind the trigger and one just below the cylinder and right before the M in Made in USA. There is also a screw in front of the trigger guard.
* As I said above the right side only Says :Made in USA"
* The grips are wood with knurling, no diamond on the screw hole, gold emblem on top with the straight cut almost up and down at top of grip.
* Serial on butt is 608XXX ( I was told not to post entire #) This # is also seen on the bottom of the barrel when the cylinder is released.
* On the frame of the gun when the cylinder is released there is the number 18822. This number can also be seen on the hinge apposing the same # on the frame.
* The left side of barrel says "Smith & Wesson"
That's about all I can come up with....
If you could help me it would be so appreciated...I've looked at close to 200 pistols online and read countless pages but each gun is just a little different from this one! And from what I read S&W made a gazillion slightly different guns and it is so very hard to know EXACTLY what you have with out talking to someone like you.
Also...what ammo can it fire? I was going to take it to the range but I don't want it to explode in mine or my wife's face.
Hammer Down...let me start by saying what others have already said but I feel has not been said enough.
You are an asset to any board like this. Your knowledge is so vast on S&W products I read a bunch of post that had nothing to do with my problem just to learn from you!
My pistol sounds similar to the many you have already described but mine is still a bit different.
Mine is as follows:
* The right side of the barrel says 38 S & W Special CTG
* The pistol is a .38 six shot.
* The top of the barrel says "Smith & Wesson Springfield Mass USA (first line) and Patented FEB 6. 06 SEPT.14.09 DEC.29.14 (second line)
*On the left side of the gun there is a stamped SW trademard (small) directly below the release for the cylinder.
* On the right side there is no stamped trademark or anything as I have seen on some...just a large empty smooth area there.
* The pistol has the half moon front site and the non_adjustable rear site.
* Right side has 3 screws. One in front of the hammer, one just behind the trigger and one just below the cylinder and right before the M in Made in USA. There is also a screw in front of the trigger guard.
* As I said above the right side only Says :Made in USA"
* The grips are wood with knurling, no diamond on the screw hole, gold emblem on top with the straight cut almost up and down at top of grip.
* Serial on butt is 608XXX ( I was told not to post entire #) This # is also seen on the bottom of the barrel when the cylinder is released.
* On the frame of the gun when the cylinder is released there is the number 18822. This number can also be seen on the hinge apposing the same # on the frame.
* The left side of barrel says "Smith & Wesson"
That's about all I can come up with....
If you could help me it would be so appreciated...I've looked at close to 200 pistols online and read countless pages but each gun is just a little different from this one! And from what I read S&W made a gazillion slightly different guns and it is so very hard to know EXACTLY what you have with out talking to someone like you.
Also...what ammo can it fire? I was going to take it to the range but I don't want it to explode in mine or my wife's face.
Thank you !!
StuntPuppy
Hello Stunt Puppy
What you have is a M&P Model of 1905 Forth Change that was made in the mid 1930's. In the late 1930's they started stamping the S&W patent on the side of the frames and prior to this it was not there like yours is. The M&P Models were very common in S&W revolvers they are good shooters and were the staple Cop carry gun. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
Hello Stunt Puppy
What you have is a M&P Model of 1905 Forth Change that was made in the mid 1930's. In the late 1930's they started stamping the S&W patent on the side of the frames and prior to this it was not there like yours is. The M&P Models were very common in S&W revolvers they are good shooters and were the staple Cop carry gun. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
Hammer Down,
Thank you so much! I drove myself crazy trying to confirm what I had. Now, it says "Special" on the barrel. Does this mean I can shoot "Special" ammo? or being this old should I shoot something else out of it?
The gun is in very good cond. Looks only a few years old!
It will fire any brand of ".38 Special ammunition" in your revolver. I would not recommend .38 Plus-P as it is a little too hot for a gun of that age. Regards, Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
It will fire any brand of ".38 Special ammunition" in your revolver. I would not recommend .38 Plus-P as it is a little too hot for a gun of that age. Regards, Hammerdown
I will definitely follow your advice on this! Thank you for your time and your wisdom....
HamerDown.. Thanks for your assistance.
Yes it's a 4" Barrel mine looks simular to the one you pictured but mine is a dull blue not as hamsome as yours. So then I assuming that I have a Model 15, is this the same as what is called a K Frame because the S/N # begins with a K? I want to get some larger grips what should I search for.
The current small checkered wood grips are too small to fit my hand, so I would like to find a set of larger Handgrips that fits my hand better simular to those pictured they don't have to be new just larger for it but not sure what to look for what their called or where to try to find them. Also what is safe ammo to use in this piece.
I need help. I have one that looks like the S&W pictured it only has 3 screws on right side and 1 in front of trigger guard. Adjustable sights.
4" Barrel nickel plating
No model # on frame...just
B
75960
7
The grips are not Diamond.
I need help. I have one that looks like the S&W pictured it only has 3 screws on right side and 1 in front of trigger guard. Adjustable sights.
4" Barrel nickel plating
No model # on frame...just
B
75960
7
The grips are not Diamond.
serial # k 287720
Hello cox37087
You made no mention of cailiber ? It could be a .22, .32 .38 or .357 Magnum as all Four calibers fall under the K-Prefix. From the guns serial number it would be a 1956 as it fall into this rnage of serial numbers.-K-266165--K--288988. The B-Prefix may mane it was originally blued Being that it was made in 1956 it should be a 5 screw gun menaing Four side plate screws One under the stocks and one in front of the trigger guard. Take the right stock off and look for that Forth side plate screw, it may or may not be there as this was a time span when they dropped the upper side plate screw making it a four screw version if that upper side plate screw is not present. The stocks for that gun would have had a diamond center so the ones on it are wrong or have been replaced. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
HamerDown.. Thanks for your assistance.
Yes it's a 4" Barrel mine looks simular to the one you pictured but mine is a dull blue not as hamsome as yours. So then I assuming that I have a Model 15, is this the same as what is called a* K Frame because the S/N # begins with a K*? I want to get some larger grips what should I search for.
The current small checkered wood grips are too small to fit my hand, so I would like to find a set of larger Handgrips that fits my hand better simular to those pictured they don't have to be new just larger for it but not sure what to look for what their called or where to try to find them. Also what is safe ammo to use in this piece.
Hello
Your Gun is considered a Pre-15. It as made before 1957 so that is why it does not have a model number stamped in it's crane area, as it has assembly number's Placed there. With it having a Soft glow bluing of the less gloss style It has to be period correct as in 1946 when S&W started civilian gun production they used that style of less gloss finish to speed up production on guns for a gun hungry buying public as S&W had closed it doors to Public sales of Guns in the Mid 1940 time span to concentrate all of their effort on war time Pieces of World War II time span. The K-Before the prefix tells us that it is a Post War gun. Starting in 1946 S&W stamped all of the K-Frame revolver's with a K-Prefix and the first year of 1946 they only produced 615 K-Frames in the caliber's of .22, .32 & .38 Special caliber. The .357 Magnum caliber guns came back into production in 1948 but in the larger -N-Frame size not the K-Frame as they had not made the famous Model 19 at that time frame, it came into play in the mid 1960's time frame. I still feel as though you may have a Five screw variation revolver here and if you pull the right stock panel you should see a flat headed screw under it making a total of Four side plate screws and one more in front of the trigger guard which makes it "a Five screw variation". In or around Late 1956 to Early 1957 time span S&W dropped the Upper side plate screw and used a tongue & Groove style set up to hold the side plate in place. We have to remember that even though they dropped that upper side plate screw, that guns were still made and sent out in five screw form until all existing frames of Five screw design were used up as S&W never wasted anything they could use. This is the reason we see Guns shipped after specific date design changes. The next series were called a Four screw variation and in around 1963 or so, they dropped the front trigger guard screw so all guns made after that are called a Three screw variation. In late 1958 S&W reverted back to their High Polish bluing finish and made all guns after that standard with the Famous Carbonna High Polished bluing that they used prior to World War II time frame. This High Gloss bluing finish was brought back by Customer demand, and we saw the matte style Low gloss finish disappear forever. Any large style K-Frame Square butt Target stock will fit your gun. They had Four different Variations that they used through the years. The earliest style would have been Non-Relieved meaning lacking the Oval relief area on the left grip panel on the cylinder opening side, and these were made from 1950-1953 time span &This style will have a Diamond center. The next style would have been a relieved style with a Foot ball shaped oval relief in the cylinder opening side of the gun also with diamond center, and these were made from 1954-1968 time span. The Third style will still have the Oval but will Not have the diamond center & These were made Post-1968 time frame up to the late 1970's period time frame. In The very late Seventies we saw the final style used which had a half moon crescent cut out on the cylinder opening side of the gun. stock This style was prompted by Law enforcement officials who wanted to have a stock that they could use a " speed loader" with that did not interfere with loading the gun in that fashion. Any current .38 Speicl ammunition is safe to fire in your gun, I would refrain from using the Hotter Plus-P ammo in it as it stresses the Older guns, and the slight velocity gain is not worth the slight gain in Velocity. If you desire the velocity & Power of a .357 Magnum then buy a gun that chambers that round...I hope this Information is helpful to you... Hammerdown
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Yeah though I Walk Through The Valley of Death, I shall fear no evil as I carry with me my S&W
Hello cox37087
You made no mention of cailiber ? It could be a .22, .32 .38 or .357 Magnum as all Four calibers fall under the K-Prefix. From the guns serial number it would be a 1956 as it fall into this rnage of serial numbers.-K-266165--K--288988. The B-Prefix may mane it was originally blued Being that it was made in 1956 it should be a 5 screw gun menaing Four side plate screws One under the stocks and one in front of the trigger guard. Take the right stock off and look for that Forth side plate screw, it may or may not be there as this was a time span when they dropped the upper side plate screw making it a four screw version if that upper side plate screw is not present. The stocks for that gun would have had a diamond center so the ones on it are wrong or have been replaced. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
You're a big help...It is a 38cal. There are only 3 screws on side and one in front of trigger.
If it were originally blued would it have been nickel plated by the factory before shipping or later? The nickel is near perfect..shiny and no scratches! Thanks, you are a big help.
You're a big help...It is a 38cal. There are only 3 screws on side and one in front of trigger.
If it were originally blued would it have been nickel plated by the factory before shipping or later? The nickel is near perfect..shiny and no scratches! Thanks, you are a big help.
Hello
A couple of things in your response are confusing here. You say it is a .38 Caliber. S&W made a shorter bullet and called it the .38 S&W. They used that caliber prior to coming out with the Longer version called the .38 Special. They are very different. The .38 S&W caliber bullet is much shorter and the bullet it self is Larger in diameter than the later produced .38 Special round. The .38 S&W cartridge is much weaker than the later .38 Special round as comparing the .22 Short to the Later made .22 Long rifle cartridge. I do not know what caliber your revolver is, as they did produce both for a long time but if yours is a .38 Special caliber it is more desireable as it has more power than the Older version .38 S&W round. It will have a caliber stamp on the side of the barrel that will read .38 S&W or .38 Special. so which is yours ?
You say that it has Three side plate screws. Is there an Upper side plate screw towards the top left hand side of the side plate ? If not, then you have a Four screw version counting the Three side plate screws and one in front of the trigger guard. They made the Four screw guns from around late 1956-1962 time frame, but these dates are not conclusive as S&W used up all existing supplied of extra frames they had on hand so we cannot nail down an exact date on this.
Depending on the age of your gun, they may have stamped the frame, cylinder or barrel flat that is located above the cylinder extractor cut out with a B-Prefix or a N-Prefix. That told the finishers if the gun was intended for a Blued finish or was to be Nickel finished. There was a difference in the amount of final polishing of the weapon before it got it's finish as Nickel finished weapons have a much smoother or finer polishing process as any scratches in the metal would show up much more if not polished enough. Blued guns got a much less Polished finish applied to them. So look your gun over carefully and se if you can find an N-Prefix stamps or if the prefix stamps are with the B-Prefix, meaning the gun left the factory as a Blued example
I have seen guns that got returned to the factory for a refinish and early ones will have a Five sided star indicating that the gun has been back for service in some point of it's life. The Five sided star can be on the Butt of the gun, The side of the guns grip frame, the barrel flat above the cylinder extractor rod, or the face of the cylinder.
In later examples they stamped the N-Prefix on the face of the cylinder, The side of the grip frame or up under the barrel flat location above the cylinder extractor rod area. Blued ones usually got a B-Prefix on the barrel flat location above the cylinder extractor rod area as well. Most that I have seen that have been refinished by an out side source will show to have the Trigger and Hammer Nickel Plated. These are sure signs of the gun having been refinished as it should have a color case hardened trigger and hammer it it has not been refinished as that is how it left the factory and many out side refinishing shop's can not do case color hardening so they Nickel plate these features of the gun instead. I hope this helps, Hammerdown
HD: Thanks for at least trying to get some of the history of the .38,s out.It would take at least one decent size book to cover the history of this caliber starting with the original .36cal being converted to a cartridge called .38 (short Colt) which was dismal but bullet dia was .375 so Colt designed the .38LC which wasn't much improvement mainly because they went to .357dia and fired it in the same barrel made for the .375 thinking it would "swage",but never considered that it was loose in the chamber so it wasn't straight when it entered the barrel.The history on the .36/.38 and throwing the 9mm european in really covers transitions in firearms in general and altho it still doesn't come close to explaining why some cartridges are called what they are,still,you get a general idea.Of all the "calibers" out there I have found the .36/.38/9mm the most intriging and intresting.If someone is a nut for firearm history the .38 covers a lot.
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Samuel
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