Help me ID an OLD SW wheelgun.

P

PUMC_TomG

New member
Okay, my mom just inherited an old S&W revolver. I have no idea what the model is. It is a 5 shot .32 S&W revolver that was found in the nightstand. It has pearl handled grips. It has a grip safety, on the backstrap. It is double action only, at least I think so...it has no exposed hammer....NONE. The barrel appears to be about 3" long (guesstimate.) The latch is on the top of the barrel assembly, on top of and right behind the cylinder. (If y'all can't guess by now, I know next to nothing about revolvers...I like my autos.) The trigger has a distinct shape. It is almost a half circle, inside the trigger guard.

Distinguishing markings include....
On left side of barrel: 32 S. & W. CTG

On the top of barrel:
SMITH AND WESSON SPRINGFIELD MASS. U.S.A. PAT'D FEBY
20.77. DEC.18.77 MAY11.80. SEPT.11.83. OCT.2.83. TWO AUG.4.(8 or 9)5.

The serial numbers...from the bottom of grip, cylinder, and latch ALL MATCH. It is 1296**

I have not a clue as to what it is, or what it is worth. I am gonna take a closer inspection and clean it up... Get a general % estimate on condition. Thanks in advance.

Oh yeah... It was also loaded with 4 rds of WESTERN .32 S&W. The rds had a red sealant over the primers...and appeared to be copper jacketed lead round nose. If you know anything about the ammo, lemme know about that too. I have no idea if that is significant in any way or not.

Again, thanks in advance.
 
almost forgot

I forgot to mention the case ejector. The rod is totally hidden. It appears to be spring loaded. When the barrel is opened to 90 degrees, the ejector raises to its full height. When it passes that, it retracts again. Thought I would mention this.
 
This one's easy.

The breaktop, caliber, and grip safety make it a .32 Safety Hammerless, also known as a New Departure or Lemon Squeezer.

The serial number pegs it as a .32 Safety Hammerless Second Model, made somewhere between 1902 and 1909. Given the serial on yours, I'd guesstimate that it was made in 1905 or 1906.

With almost 80,000 of this model made, they're relatively common, even in good shape, because they tended to be nightstand guns.

Value on one in absolutely mint shape with all paperwork and box would be $600 or $700, one in decent shape would probably be about $350 with no box.

I'd be very surprised if it is actually copper jacketed ammo instead of copper plated. The .32 S&W, to the best of my knowledge, was never loaded with jacketed rounds by any manufacturer for a number of reasons, including many of the guns for the cartridge were extremely old and couldn't handle jacketed bullets very well, and the fact that around 1890 the bullet diameter was reduced.

To make the rounds usable with older guns, they had a hollow base with a very thin skirt that would blow out and engage the rifling to give it passable accuracy.
 
Cj71210.jpg
 
Dr. Heckel,

Nice chart, but that only applies to revolvers made AFTER 1955 or so.

This gun was made half a century before that, doesn't have a swing-out cylinder, and wasn't marked with any sort of model designation.
 
Thanks!!!

As an auto guy I knew I had seen one before, but didn't know what it was! The ammo WAS copper plate, I shoulda known...but I was in a hurry, and thats what i wrote. Thanks doc for the sketch...I knew that already...but you didn't know that I did, or did you know that the firearm was THAT old.
Thanks for your help.
 
Dr. Heckel,

Certainly no harm in it, and sorry if I came across as demeaning.

Prior to about 1955, when model numbers were assigned to individual guns, the guns had model names.

And, unfortunatly, Smith & Wesson seldom marked the guns with the model name. One of the few exceptions is the Model 28, the Highway Patrolman.

Airweight models, both pre and post model numbers, were so marked, but there was any number of Airweight variations, such as the Military & Police Airweight, the predecessor to the Model 12.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top