A S&W Model 28 question...

A

ATW525

New member
I picked up a Model 28 with a 6" tube a little while back, and I was curious as to approximately how old it is. It's been refinished (horribly so, too) so it's no looker, but it's mechanically sound and has a beautiful single-action trigger. It's my first wheelgun and I'm no expert on the subject... I did however find what appears to be the serial number on the frame which reads 24400. There's no model number anywhere on the gun, just the ".357 CTG. HIGHWAY PATROLMAN" on the right side of the tube. So, are there any Smith experts that might be able to give a ballpark estimation as to the age of this piece?
 
Look on the butt(Very bottom)and report back here what the serial number reads in that location?
 
Where are you getting the "serial number" from?

S&W serial numbers are normally stamped on the bottom of the grip frame. You may have to remove the grips to read it.

5 digit numbers in a gun of this age are normally not the serial number, but the assembly floor number, which is used during manufacturing and has nothing to do with the serial number.

You may find the model number by opening the cylinder and looking in the flat area under the barrel. There's also a chance that the only number that's going to be there will be the assembly number.

If only the assembly number is there, then you have a gun that was made prior to about 1957, so it's a pretty early Highway Patrolman.
 
okay, it appears what I thought was the serial number is really the assembly number. The serial numbwer is 1040XX with an S prefix. Below the assembly number I see a mark that could be an 8? There's also a number "1" above the assembly number and below the barrel, on the curved part of the frame along the line where the ejector rod would lay.
 
The serial number given of S1040xx, is shown as being made in 1954-1955, before the S&W model numbers were stamped! This would mean that you would have a pre-model 28, Highway Patrolman!
 
"I think you have a M28-1. I am not sure of the build date, I guess early 1980."

Uhm... approximately 30 years wrong. :)

ATW,

You do have an early Highway Patrolman.

You want the real kicker, though?

Highway Patrolman production started at serial number S103500, and 8,427 were made in 1954, the first year of production.

Guess where that puts yours? Apparently it was one of the first 600 or so Highway Patrolman models to leave the Smith assembly line.

Not bad.

I know a collector who has the 19th one off the assembly line.
 
Awesome. Like I said, it's not even remotely in collector condition, but knowing it's such an early model I might just have to save up and see about getting it restored.
 
I goofed! I saw the S, I just didn't read it. LOL The others are correct. The only area of concern is the crane. Keep am eye on it for alignment or becoming bent. I would also watch the extractor for signs of tight spots and watch for binding. You do have a nice S&W. Congratulations.
 
Depending on how much money you have into it you might want to send it back to S&W for a factory reblue. It's a shame to let an older gun like that stay in that condition.
 
It's a shame that a first year gun has been poorly refinished.
Forget sending it back to the factory for refinishing. They won't work on anything made before 1957. I have checked and it's on their website. The reasoning is if a part needs replacing they just don't have them in stock.
 
Yeah, I saw the limitation on S&W's site, too, so a complete restore is most likely out of the question. It does seem mechanically sound, though, so hopefully I'll still get plenty of use out of it. I picked up a 4" barrel that I'm thinking about swapping in place of the 6" tube, and it needs a new rear site blade which I can get from midwayusa... after that I'm thinking about getting it refinished in black chrome by Accurate Plating and Weaponry and maybe using it as a winter time carry piece or a glove box gun.
 
I got a 28 no dash last year for not much money. It looked like it had been skated across the pavement. Really abraded in several places. And the cylinder would hang in some positions instead of opening easily. I sent it off to S&W for the $50 revolver tune-up. (It's still there but soon....) Then they are going to send it to APW in FL for a brushed chrome finish. The customer service guy said they usually have to redo the S&W logo after that so I'll paying for that as well. (They have the fancy equipment to make it look factory.)

I think I will end up with a very nice "using" M28. They told me it will basically look like stainless steel. So a 628! I plan to carry it out in the woods and just enjoy it. It didn't have any collector value the way it was so that gave me the green light to try out APW. I'll try to remember to post a photo or two when it comes back.

Gregg
 
Restoration

With such an early Highway Patrolman I'd suggest not refinishing unless it is in really bad shape.

S&W will restore it to as new finish for $160. A "tune up" which will restore the gun to as new mechanical condition (unless major parts are needed then that is added...but never had that happen personally.)

Basically, for $210 you have an as new gun. Keep in mind a factory refinish does not reduce the value... an non-factory refinish will ruin the value.

FIW

Chuck



Awesome. Like I said, it's not even remotely in collector condition, but knowing it's such an early model I might just have to save up and see about getting it restored.
 
Somewhere along the line somebody got the bright idea to parkerize it, so it's already been ruined on that account. I don't know enough about finishes to know if they can simply re-blue it. Thier restoration package is only for 1958 and newer revolvers, so they not be able to tune it up, either.
 
CXM, I don't know who told you a factory refinish doesn't reduce value. You can count at least a 25%-50% reduction for a factory refinish unless the gun in question is so rare and hard to find that a desperate collector will pay top dollar for an example... any example. Since this gun has already been refinished there is nothing to lose by further work. I would caution against getting too much into it, though. Say $160 for refinish, $40 for tune-up, $100 for barrel swap, how much is this gun worth? A 28 in good condition can be bought for $300-$350 without much effort. I wouldn't put $300 into this one. I would shoot it as is or sell it and get what I wanted.

Just my 2 cents.
 
You can count at least a 25%-50% reduction for a factory refinish unless the gun in question is so rare and hard to find that a desperate collector will pay top dollar for an example... any example.
Click to expand...

Glad you said it! And the situation is even worse with an M28. It had a utilitarian finish. Some parts were blue and some were more of a flat gray. If S&W refinishes it, they will just polish and blue the whole thing. You could well end up with a nice looking gun but it won't look "original" by any stretch of the imagination.

I agonized over refinishing mine. I was well aware of the economic argument posted above. It really doesn't make sense to end up with a refinished $500 M28! But I only paid $265 for the gun. Then sold the grips for $175. So I only had $90 in the gun. It was ugly and there was something wrong with the cylinder. But I figured I was willing to spend the $44 to send it FedEx to S&W and the $50 for a tune up. So I would have ended up with a decent deal at that point. But it nagged at my mind how abused it was still going to look. And shipping a handgun as a non-dealer is so expensive now that I try to get everything done in one trip if possible. Since I was going to put this M28 in a holster and use it for some open carry, it needed to be tough. So I decided to throw the cost/benefit analysis out the window and get it brush chromed for $170. Smith mailed it to Florida. APW called me just yesterday to talk about what I wanted. So I think I will end up with a nice M28 that was made the same year I was born (1961).

I wouldn't have done it for a gun that was just "holster worn" though. My gun was seriously abraded. It must have skidded on concrete somewhere. Honest wear has a personality to it. My M28 just looked damaged.

Gregg
 
I like my highway patrolman overall, and I can do things to it that I wouldn't want to do to a better conditioned piece, such as having it black chromed. Spending the money isn't a big deal, at least not in my opinion.
 
In the case of the Model 28, I really think that saying you'll lose 25 to 50 percent of the value is a stretch for one reason, and one reason alone -- most people who buy 28s buy them as shooters, not collectors. If you have a good, tight, shooter with a good (but non-original) finish, you're going to get more for it than if you have one that has an original, but crappy, finish.

I'd say the same would be true of the Model 19, Model 10, or any of the other, fairly common revolvers that don't have the collector cachet that, say, the Model 57 or Model 29 has.

That's the nature of shooter guns as opposed to collector guns.
 
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