Model # of old S&W

N

NINEX19

New member
I have a relative who inherited an old S&W revolver from his grandfather who was a police officer and used it as his duty weapon. We are guessing this is about 50+ years old. He would like to buy a couple of speed clips for it but can not seem to find the model number on it. The only thing printed on the gun is the serial number with "S" quite a few spaces before it (ie. does not look to be part of the serial #) and " 38 S & W Special CTG". Can anyone tell me if the "S" is the model #.

On the S&W website, it is not listed and they have a number model system.
 
If it was made before 1957 it does not have a model number.

A police duty revolver in .38 Special (Six shot, right?) is almost certainly a Military & Police, which was given model no 10 in 1957 and has the same chamber spacing as models 13, 19, 66, etc; it is a "K" frame if the loaders are listed by letter.

Or it might be a Heavy Duty which is an "N" frame gun later model numbered 20 and would take speedloaders listed for models 27 and 28. But that is a considerably bigger gun, same frame size as a .44.

It ought to be easy to tell which it is by looking at current guns, S&W frame sizes have been fixed for many years.

The S on his gun is considered part of the serial number and siginifies that it has the improved hammer block safety designed in 1943 or thereabouts.
 
Thank you Mr. Jim Watson for sharing your knowledge. You have been very helpful.

Yes it is a six shot.

I have no experience with S&W (or even any revolvers in general. I am more of a semi-auto person).

Maybe someone could explain what an "N" frame or "K" frame is?
 
If it has a letter S prefix to the serial number, it is most certainly an N frame revolver as this was the only frame size to use an S prefix. Also, the S means it was made after WW II and before mid-1970 when S&W changed to an N prefix for these guns. The model number was added beginning in 1957. So, S in serial with no model number means it was made between 1946 and 1957. If you want to post the whole number I can tell you the exact date.

There have been several frame sizes used by S&W over the years. They have settled on four during the recent past. The J is the smallest. The K is next. Then the L, and finally the N frame.

If your gun is an N frame .38 Special I would think it is the .38 Heavy Duty (called the Model 20 after 1957). This was a very large, heavy .38 with a shrouded ejector rod and fixed sights. The same gun with adjustable sights was called the Outdoorsman, or Model 23.
 
SaxonPig

Thank for the help. The exact serial number is: S 869XXX.

Is the 38 S&W special a different cartridge than just a 38 special?

Would modern loads be to much for this gun. What about +p ammo?
 
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"Is the 38 S&W special a different cartridge than just a 38 special?"

No, they are the same.

'Would modern loads be to much for this gun. What about +p ammo?"

Not a problem if the gun is in good condition and an N frame. But never say never.
 
here is a S&W N frame and K frame so that you can see the relative size difference. The N frame is on top.



standard.jpg
 
NINEX19...

"The exact serial number is: S 869339."

Okay, this appears to be a .38 Special Military & Police Postwar, probably dating to sometime in late 1947. Basically it is the predecessor to the Model 10.
 
I stand corrected. I did not think any K frames were made with the S prefix but according to Supica they were from 1945-1948.

Your number indicates it is one of these guns. Should be a fixed sight model in .38 S&W Special (the S&W gets dropped when another company, like Colt, stamps the caliber because they don't want to put the competition's name on their product).

Assuming the gun is in good shape it should be safe to use any commerically loaded ammo.
 
SaxonPig,

"The N-frame was the only frame to use the S prefix."

NO! Not the case at all!

The S-prefix was first applied to K-frame guns during WW II production.

It wasn't until 1947 that the S-prefix was used on N-frame revolvers.


Whoops, I see you found that out before I posted. Maybe I should read the entire thread before posting. :o

As for Colt, there are Colt revolvers made that were marked .38 COLT Spl. for the very reason that you note -- company pride.

The .38 Colt New Police and .38 Colt Super Police?

It's the .38 Smith & Wesson cartridge with a different bullet.
 
SaxonPig and Mike Irwin...

"The N-frame was the only frame to use the S prefix."

It's pretty easy to miss this little fact (that the S-prefix was shared). I almost did since S & N have a significant listing in Appendix 2 on "S Serial Prefix: N Frames Postwar" which draws you to that section and could lead you to that conclusion. But the S-prefix K-frames are a very small entry on the previous page under a different heading.

But, this is what this is all about isn't it? Learning and sharing information with friends.

GROUP HUG!!! GROUP HUG!!! :D
 
NINEX

Your guy's .38 will shoot standard current production .38 Special roughly forever. Much use of +P will accelerate wear.

For fun and practice, he should get the standard load, either target wadcutters or 158 grain roundnose or semiwadcutter.

If he means to use it for self defense, the 158 grain lead hollowpoint +P is about the best. Shoot a few for familiarization and load up.
 
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