old smith question

[leadeye]

With the help of a friend today I fixed an old Smith that I have had for 25 years. The gun is in very good shape but I don't know much about it and it was suggested that I find out if it was possible to use modern 38 special ammunition. The serial number is 614XX

[leftiye]

Is it a .38 special chambering (and marked on the barrel)?

[leadeye]

Is it a .38 special chambering (and marked on the barrel)?

Yes, It is marked 38 S&W special US service cartridge on teh side of the barrel. There are a number of patent dates on the top the latest being Dec 17 ,01.

[No_1]

I wonder if it is one of the ones they use to issue to the armed forces fly boys as part of their flight gear?

Robert

[Meatco1]

If it is a .38 S & W, it is not a .38 Special. Be darn sure you know the difference before loading.

Richard

[leadeye]

If it is a .38 S & W, it is not a .38 Special. Be darn sure you know the difference before loading.

Richard

I have checked the chambering and feel sure it is 38 special. I have seen this design of pistol before but not one with the high squared front sight and adjustable rear.

[floodgate]

leadeye:

If the target sights are original, that's the distant ancestor of the K-38. I have the remains of one that a friend's father blew up back in the '40's - his buddy drank and reloaded, both at the same time. It is now a three-shooter, with no top strap.

Fg

[9.3X62AL]

Very early K-frame in 38 Special, I don't have a guidebook but the serial number may be prior to WWI and certainly prior to WWII. Someone with a Jinks or other literature might lend a hand here. The stocks are a later version than the gun's likely vintage would indicate--those are "Magna" type stocks, and with the diamond design surrounding the screw socket they are pre-1968 and post-WWII. K-frame 38s of this vintage with factory adjustable sights are not common at all.

I wouldn't hesitate to fire standard velocity ammunition in such a revolver if the revolver is mechanically and structurally sound. I would not fire +P ammunition in any K-frame S&W revolver made prior to 1957.

[HeavyMetal]

This is a 5 screw K frame 38 special with target sights.

Need a better picture to determine if the sights are add on's or original.

The "humped" Hammer, large ejector rod Knob and the 5 screw pattern all suggest a pre 1910 construction date. BY the way if it is a pre 1910 K frame the internal action parts will be slightly different than today guns, as well as much smoother feeling. The ejector knob will also loosen as it is fired, they did not reverse the threads on this piece until they went to the small head ejector.

I had a fixed sight version made 1909 re set the barrel and faced off the cylinder recrowned the muzzle. Looked ugly as all get out but it shot great!

If yours is tight, or was tightened up, good standard 38 special loads won't hurt it.

I'd suggest setting it up for a good wadcutter load and leave it be! With 2.6 Bullseye and a 148 boolit this gun will outlast us all.

Good score! I like to see guns like this restored to shooting status.

[ebner glocken]

Yours has adjustable sights, other than that it looks like a 1905 hand ejector.

Ebner

[leadeye]

Here is another picture of the sights I am just now learning how to do this with my old Mavica. The adjustable rear sight looks perfectly fitted to the rounded top of the gun. It is even rounded itself perpendicular to the long axis of the sight. The insides of the gun looked different from Smiths that I have seen. It had two leaf springs and different looking parts. The mechanical problem with the gun when I bought it at an auction years ago was the cylinder stop which refused to rise. Now that I am retired I am tinkering with all of the old junk I picked up over the years. A friend sent me a picture that looked like the insides I was seeing. I noticed a small pin protruding from the cylinder stop that was engaged by the trigger that looked missing in my gun. In reality the pin was just gunked up and after a lot of cleaning, soaking, and tapping it came back out. Now it works perfectly, the timing and sing are excellent.

[9.3X62AL]

That looks to me just like the factory-contoured adjustable sights I've seen on several K-frame and one Bekeart small-framed S&W example.

What a find.

[leadeye]

The gun has a hole in the grip frame on the bottom that looks like it was made for a lanyard ring. I don't know if this would have been a factory part but if it was I would appreciate any info on where to obtain an origional ring. I guess my $50 was well spent 25 years ago.

[9.3X62AL]

Your presumption is very likely correct that the hole was made for mounting a lanyard ring. The lanyard isn't given much thought these days, but when we traveled by horseback more frequently 100 years ago, such an option was a popular add-on or factory item.

I think this revolver is worth the cost of a S&W factory letter to verify its history. S&W is doing limited production runs of many classic revolvers, and the proper stocks and a proper lanyard ring may be obtainable at reasonable cost right from the factory.

That revolver is a GEM.

[Kraschenbirn]

Lovely piece!! According to Roy Jinks "History of Smith and Wesson", your gun is a ".38 Hand Ejector Military & Police - Second Model, First Change" manufactured between 1903 and 1905. Also according to Jinks, "Hand Ejector Target Models" were first introduced in 1899 and by 1913 (27) of the (40) U.S. Revolver Ass'n records were held by K-frame target models.

I agree that it's work the cost of obtaining a provenance letter from S&W. There were less than 30,000 guns produced in that series and, if it's truly, a factory target model it's something of a collectors piece.

Sidebar: Not too long ago, a friend got in touch with S&W about the history of his Model 41. He acquired the gun about 15 years ago from Gil Hebard Guns and old Gil, himself, claimed that it had been originally built for an S&W executive. The exec, supposedly, had given the gun to friend who, later, passed away and Hebard had acquired the piece from the estate.

Well, a few weeks ago, my buddy received a personal reply Roy Jinks. Seems the gun was originally built by the S&W Custom Shop for Mr. Jinks, himself, who was, at that time, a project manager for S&W and had ordered the gun built with all the bells & whistles...7 3/8" barrel with brake + 5" regular barrel + fitted case for frame and both barrels, etc. As I read the letter, I wanted to beat my head against a wall...my buddy had offered to sell me the gun 3 or 4 four years ago...shortly after he gave up bullseye competition...for $600!!

Bill