Smith and Wesson serial number search

That is extremely cool!
The 3rd post in that thread you linked by James K has all the answer that my book has. You'd need a S&W factory letter from Roy Jinks to glean more.

The factory letter will cost you $50 and will take 6-8 weeks to get. It'll give you a brief history on the model, it will tell you where it was originally shipped for sale and it'll tell you how the revolver left the factory, including the engraving.

Nice revolver!

Not a "Model 4" but rather a ".32 Double Action 4th Model"
 
That's not enough information for me to be sure of what you have, and that you describe it as a "round butt" muddys the water even more.

That serial number could fit in at least two different .38 cal models...
It could be a .38 Safety Hammerless 5th Model, the number putting it's manufacture somewhere in the 1910-1920 range. That would be a top-break revolver.

A picture or more information would help.
 
model 57 no dash

I just purchased a used model 57 blued 6 shot six inch .41 magnum revolver. The serial is n477xxx. Wondering when it was made and possible value. The bluing is probably 95+ percent and has a few handling marks.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 

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Thank you for taking the time to research my S&W revolver.
I'm not sure what model, year, or frame type it is. I've included
two photos along with what's stamped on it. Any help would be appreciated.

Under the grips on the base of the butt serial#227057
On the cylinder serial#227057
Under the barrel serial#B 227057
On the crane Serial#5696

Stamped on the barrel, Smith&Wesson Springfield Mass USA
Patd March 22,96.May.21.95.
Aug 4.96 Dec 22, 96. Oct.8.01
Dec.17.01 Feb.6.06. Sep.14.09
On each side of the barrel stamping there are two Maltese crosses.
sw1_zps5fee3214.jpg

DSCN4218_HDR_zps075fe628.jpg
 
Thank you for taking the time to research my S&W revolver.
I'm not sure what model, year, or frame type it is. I've included
two photos along with what's stamped on it. Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
I think what you've got here is a .38 Hand Ejector Military & Police, Model of 1905, 3rd Change, and the number range of those revolvers ran to 241703 and ran from 1909 to 1915. It would be my guess that yours would be around 1914 or 1915?

The wood stocks on it now are not the original grips, those are far more modern.

This revolver evolved in to the Victory Model and eventually, the Model 10.
It is a K-frame, and the most produced single model of handgun... ever! :)
 
I just purchased a used model 57 blued 6 shot six inch .41 magnum revolver. The serial is n477xxx. Wondering when it was made and possible value. The bluing is probably 95+ percent and has a few handling marks.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Nice one. Built in 1978 according to the book.

Value is wild animal, especially on a .41 Magnum. Definitely a less-traded Smith & Wesson revolver, and many dealers would look at it that way. They'd be less inclined to want to take it in as it might be more difficult to sell. However, that's a two-way street, as .41 Magnum fans simply KNOW they don't have a lot of guns to choose from, and they might pay a premium to get it.

So value would be generally difficult to assess, but if I have to take a wild stab in the dark given what I've seen at the many gun shows I've attended, I would imagine $800 is somewhere in the ballpark.

Running a number of searches on Gunbroker over a period of time is another way to get an idea of "value," and the closed & SOLD auctions are far more informative than the ones with crazy prices and zero bidders.
 
I happen to have a six-inch Model 66 with the AVBxxx serial number and ours are of the same production cycle, most likely 1987.

The table for serial numbers in that era is a little wacky with some numbers a bit out of order, but either very late '86 or early 1987 seems most likely.

Yours is in far, FAR better condition than is mine, I was able to get mine for a song because of it's condition, but it's a fantastic shooter and I'm thrilled to own it.
 
Thanks Sevens. I hope it looks this good after a few seasons serving as a close call back-up weapon during deer and turkey season. Had a few close calls with hogs and coyotes this past season so I made sure I was ready for this one. There is very little wear around the cylinder and forcing cone. It has been shot very little. I bet I can keep it in service for many seasons.

Thanks Again.
 
Would it be possible get date on a 14-2
K848***
40f
14-2
Is what shows on inside of crane with cylinder rotated out
Click to expand...
14-2's ran from 1961 to 1967 with -3's running from 1967 to 1977. Serial numbers ran from K779163 to K848781 in 1968 and K848782 to K946391 in 1969. That leaves four possibilities. The -2 stamp is actually a -3, the technician miss-stamped it, an older unused -2 stamped frame was used during the assembly or it's magic.
The change to -3 was the relocation of the rear sight leaf screw.

Jim
 
I have a S&W 38 Special ctg. Model 64-5. I'm trying to find the date it was produced. It's number BDB3XXX.

Thanks for any help.
 
Possibly very late 1988, more likely to be very early 1989.

Mostly because this was the time period where I first got in to guns, I am more attracted to '86-'91 era Smith & Wesson than to all others. Not that they are "better", these are simply the ones I truly love the most. ;)
 
Thanks very much.

My brother gave me this one about 3 weeks ago. It's actually my first hand gun. I've been reading up on this one and most seem to really like it. I haven't made it to the gun range but hoping to soon.

He's been collecting them for years. He's let me fire them numerous times and I've been partial to the Revolvers, so he gave this one to me as a gift.

Thanks again
 
S&W Terrier Date of Manufacture

Hi all. I inherited an S&W Terrier that my father bought when I was a little kid. It's a 4-screw with a ramp sight, SN 712xx. Can someone please let me know the date of manufacture? Thanks in advance!
 
This is one of those models where the book that gives us the answers is very, very vague. It says that the range from 54474 to 122678 was built from 1949 to 1974.

In this case, you can use the math to get an "idea" but you'd have to be lucky to be right, however without access to the records that Roy Jinks has, anyone out there would have no more information to counter your mathematical assertion. :p

So, there's two other options for getting a more accurate date of birth.
First is to contact S&W Historian Roy Jinks and request a factory letter. This will cost $50 and take 6-8 weeks, but it's very cool. You'll find out the features it had as shipped, when it was shipped and WHERE they sent it. He'll also give a brief rundown of the model & the history of that model. Very cool letter.

The other option is cheaper, less accurate, not nearly as cool and more difficult to obtain... :p
That's to spend a lot of free time searching the web & stopping at every one you see at a gun show (needs to be a high quality gun show!) and look for similar guns with factory letters that are also displayed. Find a revolver of the same model with a serial number that is close... and ALSO has a Roy Jinks letter and you'll get an idea of when yours was built.

If we just use simple math (which may or may not reflect reality...) then math says it was built in/around 1955.
 
Thanks, Sevens!

I'm not sure I want to throw $50 at this to be "cool". (I'm more of a classical music kinda guy!) I'm pretty sure I was only about 5 when he got this; a salesman came to our house and my dad let me hold it. I distinctly recall, at about 5 years of age, that the gun (less than a pound!) was too heavy for me to hold at arm's length! That dates it at late 1950 to 1951.
 
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