How to Identify/Date a S&W

Bill,

If you are interested in military training .22 rifles, have you heard of Thomas D. Batha's book, U.S. Martial .22RF Rifles? An excellent resource for the .22 military rifle collector.
 
No i haven't herad about it till now thanks i'll get that book today. I find the older 22cal rifles very interesting. My oldest is a 1894 Hopkins & allan 922 single shot so far center break youth rifle. There seems to be a lot of ww2 training 22cal rifles out there too. I've seen the mossbergs, stevens and there civilian style counter parts still in military dress.
 
My girlfriend will be getting a s&w 357 from a relative of hers. She doesn't have it yet but was told the serial # is A1Jxxxx. Does Anyone have an idea of the model?
 
No way to tell the model with that little information. But the good news is that it should be printed on the frame under the barrel. Open the cylinder and you should be able to see it.
 
Excellent post. I work at Smith & Wesson and I have alot of trouble keeping getting all the model numbers correct. It is impossible to do without a cheat sheet. This is a very impressive post. Currently I only work with newer (M&P/Shield/SD and in the near future SW1911 [moving from 1911 production from Holton, ME to Springfield, MA next month]) slides, but if i ever decide to move to another part of the plant I and have to work with revolvers or with older models this information would be very useful.
 
Could anybody date my S&W 686-2?

S&W ,686-2
S/N BAS6XX
6" Stainless
no-lock
square butt frame

I don't know if this is the correct place for this question but on a side note I need some new grips, where are some sites I should look?
 
Sorry to bump an old thread, but was looking to see if someone could help date a revolver the wife just inherited from her grandfather. It's a model 49 blued finish with serial number 53J3XX. Any help would be much appreciated.
 
UberMunkey said:
It's a model 49 blued finish with serial number 53J3XX. Any help would be much appreciated.
Click to expand...

No need to be sorry, this is fun for some of us. According to the Standard Catalog of Smith&Wesson:

1971-1972 J1-999J99

Does it have a pinned barrel?
 
Well I had to google that, not too familiar with older smith revolvers, but yes it does have a pinned barrel. Does that imply it was earlier in that series of serial numbers?
 
Oh, that's good to know. I doubt she would ever part with it though, she was very close with her grandfather and teared up when her father gave it to her.

Thank you for your help in dating it, we both appreciate it greatly.
 
Hello fellow gun-lovers - I just bought a Smith & Wesson stainless steel 66-2 from a friend. Could anyone date it for me?

Serial is ANA8142.

Thanks for any help you can give!
 
Just took in a S&W Model 34 kit gun - trying to figure out if it's C&R eligible or not. Serial number 838xx; This is one of those guns that makes me want to just keep it myself!

Close as I can figure out it was made between 53 (when they started making this gun) and '69, when they put an M prefix on the serial number. But that means it might or might NOT be C&R eligible.

Can anyone help me on this?





Slide show here: http://s26.photobucket.com/user/LonelyMountainArms/slideshow/S-W 34
 
dwarven1 said:
Just took in a S&W Model 34 kit gun - trying to figure out if it's C&R eligible or not. Serial number 838xx;
Click to expand...

According to the SCSW:

1960 70000
1965 108087

Probably 1962 or 63.

Too bad someone cranked down on the bottom of the grips. Otherwise they's be great.
 
FPrice said:
According to the SCSW:

1960 70000
1965 108087

Probably 1962 or 63.

Too bad someone cranked down on the bottom of the grips. Otherwise they's be great.
Click to expand...
Thanks, Frosty. Appreciate it.

And yeah, the munched on grips are really the only thing bad about this. Owner found it in her late husband's father's safe deposit box, along with a 1903 Colt. Box hadn't been opened in 25 years...
 
Hi - My aunt gave me a Model 36 stainless steel revolver that she said had belonged to my grandfather. I don't remember him having any S&W that weren't blued. My grandfather was a big man at 6'5" and I can't imagine him buying such a small frame S&W. This .38 also appears to be in almost new condition and my grandfather passed away 20+ years ago. I'm thinking this wasn't even manufactured before he was gone!

The serial number doesn't match any of the numbering formats at the beginning of this older thread. Is there another source of information where I could check? The serial number is on the butt and is 99J9xx. I placed x's for last two numbers since I see many others doing so in the thread.

It is a pristine and beautiful weapon and will have a place in my safe regardless but I prefer not to attach any sentiment to it if it truly did not belong to him.
 
Are you sure this is stainless steel and not nickel? Is there a model number in the crane area (the area you can see on the frame when you open the cylinder)?

The stainless steel version was the model 60 and had serial numbers which began with the letter "R". The serial number you posted appears to be in the 1971-72 range.

Can you post pictures? Clear ones.

Too said:
Hi - My aunt gave me a Model 36 stainless steel revolver that she said had belonged to my grandfather. I don't remember him having any S&W that weren't blued. My grandfather was a big man at 6'5" and I can't imagine him buying such a small frame S&W. This .38 also appears to be in almost new condition and my grandfather passed away 20+ years ago. I'm thinking this wasn't even manufactured before he was gone!

The serial number doesn't match any of the numbering formats at the beginning of this older thread. Is there another source of information where I could check? The serial number is on the butt and is 99J9xx. I placed x's for last two numbers since I see many others doing so in the thread.

It is a pristine and beautiful weapon and will have a place in my safe regardless but I prefer not to attach any sentiment to it if it truly did not belong to him.
Click to expand...
 
FPrice said:
Are you sure this is stainless steel and not nickel? Is there a model number in the crane area (the area you can see on the frame when you open the cylinder)?

The stainless steel version was the model 60 and had serial numbers which began with the letter "R". The serial number you posted appears to be in the 1971-72 range.

Can you post pictures? Clear ones.
Click to expand...




image.tiff






I'm not sure of material, it very well could be nickel instead of stainless, it just is not blued.

It has "Mod. 36" in the crane area and "38 S&W Special CTG." on the barrel.

If the serial number places it in the 1971-72 range then this could've belonged to my grandfather. Unless he purchased for concealed carry I can't imagine him having this small framed model.

Thanks for the info!
 
Last edited:
Having just joined this board I am having difficulty figuring out the photo posting thing. I'll try again here in a new reply:


image.tiff
 
Could anybody date my S&W Model 60?

S&W Model 60
S/N: R289XXX
Barrel length: 1.875"
Stainless
Round butt frame
 

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