How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

I don't know a lot about guns but I had a friend offer me this gun for what I thought was a good price so I bought it. I normally search online to find out about guns before I buy them but there wasn't as much info on this one as it was old.

It is a Smith and Wesson hammerless .38 that he says is over 100 years old. It has ivory grips (not pearl!) and a chrome finish. It's in excellent shape. I paid $275 for it plus I got a box of ammo for it.

Did I come out ok or get a bad deal?

http://imgur.com/Oju2Nl.jpg

http://imgur.com/TIcYPl.jpg

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

I would have paid that much!

Usually those old grips want to crack. If they are intact, I start wondering if they are replacements. Either way, the gun itself looks like it is in fine shape.

Gregg

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

It's a GOOD deal if you can get someone else to pay you more for it later (inflation adjusted of course). If not, well...

These were reasonably well made. Not terribly rare. In the old days you could order these pistols from a catalogue for $20 or so. Finding ammo may be a little difficult, but not impossible. See if you can find an old original box of 38 S&W (not 38 Special) from a cartridge collector, clean it all up and put it away for another hundred years. :wink:

EDIT: Sorry, 38 Short Colt it is...

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Is it marked ".38 S&W"? If so, that is the same cartridge as .38 Colt New Police. Midwayusa has ammo in stock. In that time period, .38 Short Colt and .38 Long Colt were also popular, but they do not interchange with .38 S&W.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Oh, and yes, I think you got a pretty good deal.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Thanks for all the replies. I've been trying to learn more about guns so I'll be wiser when it comes to buying. This forum definitely helps.

Thanks!

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Close it up (without bullets), pull the hammer back (again-real important-no bullets) and see how much the cylinder will rotate back and forth. If it is more than just a little bit (a 1/8th of an inch or so), have a gunsmith look at it. The cylinder has to "lock up" while the bullet is lined up with the barrel. I've seen some older revolvers get so sloppy that they didn't lock up well and were actively dangerous to fire.

If it doesn't lock up at all the firing pin strike will miss but it is possible for the pin to catch enough of the primer but the bullet hits the forcing cone (barrel entry).

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Hey boss...

What hammer?:biggrin::thumb.aspx:

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Well it has a hammer, it's concealed. :wink:

I'm just used to doing it that way, the trigger doesn't need to be pulled. :5_1_120:

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

I do like the breech style loading.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Modeled after the S&W .44 Schofield No. 3 action. Designed for the U.S. cavalry for easier loading and unloading. Produced from 1870 to late 1880s and originally chambered in .44 S&W American and .44 Russian...and later the .45 Schofield (sometimes referred to as the .45 "short" Colt) for the cavalry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_&...No._3_Revolver

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

The cylinder barely rotates at all. Maybe like 1 grain of sand in length.

It is a .38 short colt, the guy gave me a brand new box of remington cartridges for it.

The ivory handles are pretty cool. They are engraved with chinese dragons. I'll try to take a closer photo.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

:s9:Yeah I know. It was just... seeing how its a "hammerless" and all..:tongue_ma:

That's a pretty gun BTW..


Not sure It would have been worth that much to me. But if you like it - good on ya.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Very nice! That's a beautiful gun.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

very nice never shoot anything but blackpowder in it

talk to the gunshop about whether those smokless cowboy loads are safe for it.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

That's pretty tight, good for you. I've seen some older revolvers just shot to s***.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

http://imgur.com/MG0bXl.jpg

http://imgur.com/cWj0Ql.jpg

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

If those are real ivory, or even certain marked vintage period grips - they alone could be worth more than you paid for the whole shebang.
Also called a 'lemon squeezer' because of the backstrap safety that has to be depressed to fire. There were 5 models between 1887 and 1940. The serial number would help place it but don't post the last 2 or 3 digits, just post xxx in their place. Values in my 2001 S&W guidebook for an excellent condition gun range from about 300 up to 850 depending on model. Adjust that for inflation and ad some because of the grips and condition of the nickle and you probably have a $600 plus in saleable value to a S&W collector - more if it is a 1st or 2nd model. Go over to
www.smith-wessonforum.com
and ask the experts over there, you might even get an answer from Roy Jinks or Jim Supica himself.

very good deal in my opinion

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Thanks for the information. The serial # is 249XXX. I'm headed over to the forum now.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

Wow that is a sweet revolver. I think you got a great deal.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

SN puts it at a 5th model and their sn range started at 220,000 about 1907 and went to slightly less than 261,500 in 1940 so... your is about in the middle of that range - I would guess early to mid roaring 20's timeframe. Search the S&W forum and some of the estate auction sites for one of those same models that has a S&W factory letter... that will peg exactly when different SN left the factory and you can sometimes narrow it down much closer.

Re: How did I do? Just bought an old Smith and Wesson gun
 

If you bought it as a shooter, probably not such deal due to ammo costs. As a collector piece, not so bad.