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Old October 6, 2011, 12:11 PM   #1
Calusacat
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Help in dating old S&W 38 spec. CTG

I was hoping someone here could help me in dating an old 38 spec. I was gifted from my grandfather a number of years ago. Serial # on butt is S followed by a large gap of a 1/2 inch. #9580xx. Appears to have a 2 inch barrel, blued, fixed sights, stock wooden handle with S&W emblem on both sides. Left side of barrel says Smith & Wesson 38 S&W SPC CTG. Serial # is also printed on face of cylinder and matching set of numbers D 32182
can be found were cylinder swings open. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Last edited by Calusacat; October 6, 2011 at 02:12 PM.
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Old October 6, 2011, 12:30 PM   #2
carguychris
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The serial number is S9580xx. The other number is an assembly number used to keep track of the gun's parts during assembly; it became meaningless when the gun left the S&W factory.

The gun should be an early post-WWII .38 Military & Police made in 1948. It is the predecessor of the more recent Model 10, and collectors often call it the "pre-Model 10" for convenience, but it technically had no model number when it was built. S&W did not start using model numbers on their swing-out-cylinder revolvers until 1957; prior models only had names.

S&W added a "V" (for "Victory") prefix when .38 M&P production surpassed 1 million units in 1942. An "S" (for "Safety") was added when the hammer block was redesigned in 1944. When the war ended, the "V" was omitted, leaving the "S". When M&P production surpassed 2 million units in 1948, the prefix was changed again, to "C" (which AFAIK doesn't stand for anything in particular). Yes, S&W really built 1 million of these guns in the span of 6 years! IIRC it took them until 1968 to reach 3 million units and change to a "D" prefix.

[EDIT] There is a Smith & Wesson Serial Number Search thread stickied in the "Revolver" subforum, probably shoulda sent you there first!

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=277680
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Old October 6, 2011, 12:56 PM   #3
Calusacat
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CarGuyChris,

Thanks so much for all of the information. It is extremely enlightening. Very much appreciate your time and knowledge. Thanks again....

Calusacat
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Old October 11, 2011, 06:07 PM   #4
Calusacat
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Collectable or Not

Curious as to how collectable this pre-Model 10 is and if anyone could inform me of Fair Market Value for this 38 Special in Good condition..? Thanks in Advance.
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Old October 11, 2011, 06:25 PM   #5
Jim Watson
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In real true NRA Good condition? Not much. This is a very common gun and would have to be in top notch NRA Excellent condition to be "collectable." Or for Grandpa to have been a major historical figure with proof the gun was his while he did important things.
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Old October 12, 2011, 03:50 PM   #6
carguychris
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Quote:
In real true NRA Good condition? Not much.
+1, but I think some explanation is in order since I don't know how much the OP knows about NRA grading.

NRA "Good" essentially means "pretty durn ugly but functional, complete, and shootable". AFAIK there's no definitive percentage of finish associated with the modern NRA grades, but "Good" is usually around 60% original finish remaining, possibly some minor rust and pitting, but no really deep and nasty rust.

The good news is that factory-original 2" .38 M&Ps from this time period are relatively uncommon and command a premium, assuming the barrel hasn't been cut to this length (which is unfortunately commonplace).

The bad news is that "relatively uncommon" does not equal legitimately rare or collectible; virtually no postwar pre-Model 10s or M10s fit this definition. After all, we're talking about close to 2 million guns!

If the barrel is cut or it's refinished, $125-$150. In true NRA "Good" condition, factory-original configuration and finish, this is a ~$200 gun. $300-$350 is ballpark for a Very Good or Excellent example. A truly like-new example with the original box and papers could fetch $400-$450. You'll see some GB sellers list these for $600+ but they're delusional.
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Old October 12, 2011, 05:07 PM   #7
BigJimP
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$ 150 - maybe $ 200 tops in my area is about right / there are lots of them out there for sale....

my buddy in our area, that owns a used gun store - turns down a couple of customers most every month that are trying to sell or trade them in on something ....and I'm seeing quite a few of them at our local gunshows most every month ...( and I'm seeing more of them re-finished / and sellers asking close to $500 for them ...) which irritates me .../because someone who is not really educated on these old revolvers might get taken advantage of ...
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