S&W 38 special CGT
- Thread starter jclark
- Start date
Mike Irwin
Staff
A lot of people here can tell you when it was made, too.
I'm away from my books right now, but your's a model of 1905 Hand Ejector, either third or fourth change, and made likely sometime in the 1920s through the 1930s.
The 5909 is an asssembly number, and has nothing to do with the serial number. They were used during the manufacturing process to keep major components together.
I'm away from my books right now, but your's a model of 1905 Hand Ejector, either third or fourth change, and made likely sometime in the 1920s through the 1930s.
The 5909 is an asssembly number, and has nothing to do with the serial number. They were used during the manufacturing process to keep major components together.
As a side note, the SN indicates that it predated the cylinder heat treatment that began at SN 316648 in September 1919. You should probably avoid the "hotter" modern loads...
(the above info came from a reply from XavierBreath on THR when I was researching info on my M&P 1905 Fourth Change).
Roy Jinks, the historian at Smith & Wesson, can research the SN and give you a letter providing the gun's pedigree (production date, configuration at shipment, and original receiving location). They used to do this for $35, but it is up to $50 now. Heres a link to their application form in PDF format:
S&W Letter Of Authenticity Request Form
I believe in 2006, values ran from $250 (VG) to $450 (Ex Plus). Like new in-box was >$1k.
Nick
(the above info came from a reply from XavierBreath on THR when I was researching info on my M&P 1905 Fourth Change).
Roy Jinks, the historian at Smith & Wesson, can research the SN and give you a letter providing the gun's pedigree (production date, configuration at shipment, and original receiving location). They used to do this for $35, but it is up to $50 now. Heres a link to their application form in PDF format:
S&W Letter Of Authenticity Request Form
I believe in 2006, values ran from $250 (VG) to $450 (Ex Plus). Like new in-box was >$1k.
Nick
Last edited:
carguychris
New member
Please post pictures so we can evaluate its originality. The bluing on S&Ws from this era was beautiful when it was new, but it seems to have been more fragile than the bluing used on postwar guns. Most prewar S&W .38 M&Ps I've seen with decent-looking bluing have been refinished at some point, which ruins the collector value of the gun.
Hallmarks of a refinish include:
- Bluing on the hammer and trigger. These parts should have color case finish (this looks like silvery grey swirls with splashes of iridescent purple and green).
- Bluing on the cylinder pawls. These should be natural metal.
- Shallow lettering and S&W logo.
- Rounded edges around the lettering and screw holes. This gives the screw holes a "dished" look, indicating overdone, heavy-handed polishing.
- A matte finish or a slightly plum to purple color. Original prewar S&W bluing was a deep black and highly polished, and it generally seems to turn dark grey rather than plum as it ages.
carguychris
New member
It's hard to evaluate the finish because the pics are blurry, but it looks original, so I'm going to say ~$275-$325 on the value.
The bad news: Those stocks are not original to the gun; the oversize so-called "Target" stocks are a postwar-only item. This gun probably originally had checkered walnut stocks that were tapered at the top, like the gun pictured below. However, the original stocks might have had metal inlaid S&W medallions at the top, depending on exactly when the gun was made.
The good news: The Target stocks on your gun are a rare early 1950s version with diamond screw escutcheons and no cutout on the LH panel for cartridge rim clearance. These are commonly called "non-relieved" Targets because S&W later added a "reverse football"-shaped cutout to the LH panel, then a larger C-shaped cutout to clear a speedloader. Assuming original finish and good condition, these may be worth well over $100 by themselves. If they have a slight palm swell "coke bottle" profile that you can see from the rear, you may be looking at $200-$300, perhaps more.
The bad news: Those stocks are not original to the gun; the oversize so-called "Target" stocks are a postwar-only item. This gun probably originally had checkered walnut stocks that were tapered at the top, like the gun pictured below. However, the original stocks might have had metal inlaid S&W medallions at the top, depending on exactly when the gun was made.
The good news: The Target stocks on your gun are a rare early 1950s version with diamond screw escutcheons and no cutout on the LH panel for cartridge rim clearance. These are commonly called "non-relieved" Targets because S&W later added a "reverse football"-shaped cutout to the LH panel, then a larger C-shaped cutout to clear a speedloader. Assuming original finish and good condition, these may be worth well over $100 by themselves. If they have a slight palm swell "coke bottle" profile that you can see from the rear, you may be looking at $200-$300, perhaps more.