2 classic ol' Colts, dates anyone?

[cmsgt]

For Father's Day, I bought myself a couple nice revolvers. Would like to know dates of manufacture, should anyone have a reference book for Colts:
Colt Lawman 357 #20841v
Colt Detective Special #30746
Both appear in very good shape, and I had been looking for a Colt DS for more than a year. The Detective Specials, I assume were used by police detectives a couploe of decades ago; I know our county detectives carry Glock 23s; wondering if any non uniforms carry them still?
And who carried the Lawman?
cmsgt

 

[Dfariswheel]

From 1927 until the mid 60's just about EVERY cop, Undercover, plain cloths, detectives, and off duty carried the Colt DS. The only reason they started carrying the S&W 5 shot revolvers, was because they were just a little smaller, and lighter, even if they weren't as easy to shoot well.

You still see some of the older cops carrying the Dick Special, especially in cities back East, like New York. Not everybody, even new cops trained on the autos, like to carry them off duty.

When the NYPD began selecting 9mm's, the head of the marksmanship training unit was a Captain who carried a Colt Dick Special.
Since the DS has a lot to offer, you're likely to see it on many cops and citizens belts, or pockets.

The Lawman was for those who wanted a snubby with more "Bang", without the higher price of the Python or S&W magnum snubby's. For a varity of reasons, it wasn't too popular.
Most people went the extra bucks and got a S&W M-66 2 1/2".