so this is a friends pistol ... he found it when grandpa died and doesnt know the model i think its .38 looks too big to be 32 but ive been wrong before .. thought id through the serial out and see what hits its 11518X cant find a model number but i dont know smithys ... its got a backstrap safety kinda like the 1911a1 colt
If it is in fact a .38, it's a .38 Safety Hammerless made ca. 1897. It was also called a "New Departure" in factory literature and was known as a "Lemon Squeezer" in popular slang. S&W made a series of small design changes to this gun over time, so collectors have categorized the different versions into 5 "models". I don't have my book handy, but IIRC your gun should be a 4th Model. Here's a picture showing the distinguishing features.
http://www.armchairgunshow.com/images/38-Safety-Hless-Mods.jpg
If it's a .38, it will be chambered in .38 Smith & Wesson aka .38S&W. Factory ammo is available from Remington, Winchester, Ten-X, Fiocchi, and Magtech; the last two are generally the most reasonably priced. It is
not interchangeable with .38 Special, which uses a substantially longer and slightly smaller-diameter case. .38S&W is not common enough to be available at Wally World or big-box sporting goods stores, but it can be found at many dedicated gun stores or mail-order houses. Of course, you should probably have the gun checked out by a competant gunsmith before attempting to fire it.
FWIW if the gun is a .38
and not a .32, it qualifies as an Antique under federal law and can be sold to private individuals across state lines without a FFL, although it may still be subject to applicable state laws.
BTW please post some better pictures. The lighting is so bad that I can hardly see it.
Try photographing it outdoors in the evening or morning when the sunlight isn't bright enough to cause dark shadows.