Getting my first real Handgun

M

Mosin-Marauder

New member
... but I'm not sure what kind it is. It's my Great Grandpa's old gun, but looks practically new. Hoping you folks could help me ID it. I don't have it in my possession yet so just going off of memory.

* Blued Finish
*Smith And Wesson Made
*5 round cylinder
*top break
* .32 caliber I think
* had smith and wesson written on left side of barrel, some writing was present along the entire top of the barrel
*about 4.5-5.5 inches long though I could be wrong.

Me being stupid I didn't think to look for a model number, or anything, so any help is appreciated.
 
From your description, it's caliber .32 S&W. An early "hide out" gun accurate at "card table" range. If I'm right, your can still buy Magtech ammo for it. These little pistols (I have an H&R model) were popular at the turn of the century (19th to 20th). Not worth a lot of money, no longer a practical defense round, but kinda fun. If you want to load for it, I can share some numbers, but brass is hard to come by.
 
Im not that stupid, it did say Smith And Wesson on the barrel. As well as on the top...

It was made in the 40's-50's I believe, though, I could be wrong. It'a definitely not older than the late 40's though.
 
Does it have an exposed hammer?
S&W quit making top break hammer .32s in 1919 but the Safety Hammerless hung on until 1937.
 
Don't believe it had a hammer, I could be wrong about the caliber, as I said, could have been some kind of .38. If they stopped making .32's in '37 it most likely is a different caliber. As it looks very new.
 
Sounds 100% like a Smith & Wesson Safety Hammerless.

Easiest way to check is for the presence of a grip safety. Production was stopped in 1937 for the .32 S&W version.

ligonierbill is right. If it is .32 S&W, Magtech is one of only companies that makes factory loads (85 gr. LRN). Remington and Winchester might still as well (not sure on the availability however).
 
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Nevermind, it is a safety hammerless.

Now, would this be a good first handgun? I'm not shooting for really really small groups or anything, but would it be good for a max of 25 yards?
 
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Of course, it's a good first one.
It's free ain't it?
It will shoot just fine at 25 yards.
If you have trouble hitting well at that distance, just get a bigger target.
My first firearm was a gift from my grandfather when I was about your age.
Enjoy.
 
Howdy

Does it look like this? This is a 32 caliber S&W Safety Hammerless, 2nd Model. This one was made in 1905. The 3rd Model was produced up until 1937.

32safetyhammerlesswithbox_zps6a26bd76.jpg




These guns were also made in 38 caliber. 38 S&W, not to be confused with 38 Special. This one is a 38 Safety Hammerless 3rd Model, it was made in 1896. The 38 Safety Hammerless guns were made up until 1940.

38SafetyHammerless3rdModel_zps7d257cc9.jpg


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As for your question about it being a good first handgun, in my opinion, no. If you are getting it as a keepsake of your Great Grandfather, that is plenty of good reason to have it. But there are much better guns out there for a first revolver. The Safety Hammerless models, also known as Lemonsqueezers because of the grip safety, were small pocket pistols designed to be hidden in a pocket. They were meant for up close self defense. Being double action only the trigger pulls were very stiff. You may not be interested in shooting small groups, but it is difficult to shoot accurately at all with these guns. Trust me on this.


I always recommend a S&W Model 10 or the earlier version, the 38 Military and Police for anyone's first revolver.

54_zps301988d1.jpg
 
Agree with DJ.
As an heirloom, great.
As a first centerfire handgun to learn to shoot with, no.
Denis
 
Mosin,
You realize that whatever gun you mention will get about the same reply.
There's always something better you need.
If that old revolver is sound and safe to shoot, it will do as well as any other for your first one.
Assuming there's ammo available for it and there is.
If you want something else, too, sure.
But anything that works will do to learn with.
With handguns, especially, it's all you anyway.
Look at all the folks who still use cap and ball revolvers.
 
Howdy Again

Several reasons why I disagree. An old Top Break is far from an ideal weapon to learn on.

First off, as I said the trigger pull on those is terrible. Secondly, you are not able to cock the hammer and fire it single action. Single Action shooting allows finer control and greater accuracy. Third, while it is commercially available, 32 SW ammo is not widely distributed and is expensive. 38 Special ammo is much easier to find and should cost less. Fourth, and I will get some disagreement on this, those old Top Breaks were designed for Black Powder. While the gun in question was made well into the Smokeless era, the little Top Breaks are an inherently weak design. If something happens to be wrong with it, good luck finding somebody who can work on it.

All this from a guy whose first revolver was a brass framed, Black Powder, Cap & Ball revolver, so I do know what I am talking about.

Keep the heirloom, shoot it a little bit only if you can find a gunsmith who can verify it is safe to shoot, then put it away and find a modern revolver.
 
Mo,
We've discussed this before.

You tend to want to handicap yourself in the learning process with handguns.

You wanted to learn on an RG.
Bad choice.

You wanted to learn on a Nagant.
An absolutely horrendous choice.

And now you're talking about trying to learn on a gun with all the negatives that DJ mentions.

This is not a matter of "there'll always be something better you need".
It's a matter of choosing a gun that'll make it as EASY for you to learn on as you can reasonably acquire, not one that'll make it as HARD to learn with as possible.

That Smith has indifferent grips, a tough trigger, mediocre sights, a grip safety to deal with, and if it's a .32 commercial ammunition will be expensive.
Not to mention the parts problem if anything breaks.

Everything DJ told you is absolutely dead on.
And this comes from another guy whose first handgun was also a brass-framed percussion revolver. :)

Best odds of learning to shoot handguns well do not come from stacking the deck against you right up front.

Another addendum to what DJ says is that, while you may hear from people who'll say you don't need to be able to cock a hammer, 'cause real combat only uses DA & all true operators are born knowing it, you do want SA capability for checking accuracy in reloads if you get to that point, and for determining sight regulation.

A single-action trigger is much more useful in both areas, besides the higher degree of accuracy you'll get should you ever need or want to try for longer shots.

DJ gave you an excellent bit of advice in the Model 10, which you've been told before by others.
Listen to him.
Denis
 
Yeah, I might just pass on the revolver and get his Shotgun instead. Could use my H&R Money to buy some manner of .22 revolver or save up for a model 10.

Be like ol' Barney Fife with the latter. :D
 
Has anyone considered the benefit of a grip safety in terms of skill development?
Whether it's on a revolver or a 1911 it is a real good way to develop a trustworthy grip.
If ya' don't do it well, the gun won't shoot.
Not a bad way to instill good technique.
Just a thought on the subject.

Did Mosin ever say if his new revolver actually is a lemon squeezer model?
 
Dealing with an inferior grip on a revolver & making sure the safety's depressed detracts from learning, it doesn't add.
Denis
 
Didja notice the part where I said "on a revolver"? :)

1911's a totally different ballgame, which is not the subject of discussion here.
Denis
 
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