I need help ID'ing my S&W .38

S

s10deuce

Inactive
Help, i bought a nice S&W .38 special at an estate auction for $100. was told it was a police service gun from the 40's. however, i took it to an antique gun show and was offered much more than i paid for it. i declined, curious i asked a few dealers what i had and was informed that it is a "prewar 38 on a 44 frame", i want to learn as much about this gun as i can, any help at all would be greatly appreciated. btw serial number is fairly low (i think) 62xxx
 

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Doesn't appear to be a .38/44. Looks to be a .38 M&P which is now called a Model 10. The .38/44 was built on what's now called the N frame. The M&P was built on the K frame. However, and I can't tell clearly from the pix, it appears the rear sight is missing. The front blade is not a standard M&P or Model 10 sight. It looks like there is a cut out at the rear of the top strap which would have been for the rear sight. Look along the top strap and if there's a hole above the front of the cylinder then the rear sight has been removed.
You have the picture flipped which shows the left side as the right side. It's no doubt a 5 screw.
 
It seems to be a 38/44 Target. How much over $100.00 were they offering? KEEPER! You got a deal. I believe you gave less than 10% of its actual value.
 
thanx guys, the s&w board helped my greatly. it's a 1902 1st change from around 1904. they called it a target model. and yes, the rear site is gone and i'm looking for one, but oddly nobody stocks hundred year old sights lol.
 
I was 99.9% positive it wasn't a .38/44. It's sometimes hard to tell with pix sent on the internet as the perspective sometimes isn't correct. But your pix appeared to be pretty decent and in perspective. The cylinder and frame just didn't appear large enough to be a .38/44. And the front sight definitely wasn't original .38/44.
Don't know what to tell you about a rear sight. It's been quite a while since I've paid any attention to that model but I believe the rear sight might be a U instead of the square cut blade. It might also be counter-opposing screws to adjust windage. I'm just going from my poor memory so don't take any of that to the bank. Could be a tough time finding an original rear sight. If you haven't tried the following might be worth a call and maybe they could put you in the right direction:
http://www.collectorsfirearms.com/
http://www.natchezss.com/
http://www.dixiegun.com/

Or you might sign on either:
http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/SandW/
or
http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/Smith-n-Wesson/
There are some guys on those lists who have been bending wrenches on S&Ws for a lot of years. Might be an outside chance they'd have an original sight or maybe they could put you in the right direction.

From your pix she looks to be in pretty decent condition and would be fun to get put back to original. She won't take +P rds but it would be fun to bring her back to life with some WC or other low pressure rds.
Good luck with your hunt. And thanks for sharing.
 
Its not a 38/44.

There is now shroud over the ejector rod.

Here is a 38/44 target (outdoorsman)
3844_2.jpg


Notice the shroud over the ejector rod? By the way, 50 shots, 15 yards, first time out with the gun.
 
Anyone who couldn't tell from that photo that this gun is an old M&P Target Model sans its rear sight really shouldn't be answering questions on forums like this!

I hope you find a rear sight. That's a nice old gun, but don't shoot Plus P ammo in it.

Lone Star
P.S.
Peter M. Eick-

I know of your fondness for N-frames, and that's a nice postwar Outdoorsman. Nice shooting, too. Thanks for posting. Maybe now, certain people will have a better idea of how these guns compare.
 
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"Anyone who couldn't tell from that photo that this gun..."

It was a gun?

I thought it was a 57 Nash sedan.

I need new computer glasses.
 
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