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Old July 6, 2013, 07:24 PM   #4
James K
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Join Date: March 17, 1999
Posts: 24,383
Sounds right, so the chart given by the OP (and widely published) is at best not complete.

The rationale behind the whole mess was to reduce serial number confusion. Prior to 1968, most companies numbered each model or each group of models (frame sizes, for example) in one series. But that meant that there were many duplicate numbers on a company's guns - an N frame number 1234, an I frame number 1234, etc. GCA '68 gave ATTD (the predecessor of BATFE) the authority to rationalize numbers so police would not need to know the model, only the make and the number to uniquely identify any given gun made after that time.

S&W really went round and round trying to come up with unique serials until it finally dawned on them that there was no real reason to tie the serial number to the model. The current system is model independent, and totally unique to a specific gun. S&W revolver ABC1234 can be traced by number alone; the model is irrelevant.

Jim
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