This old gun needs an identity.

[T. MIKE SMITH]

Cool you got this home, and it didn't hurt anyone. My dad had a Thompson stuffed in his duffle bag when coming back from Germany. They were checking and found it and took it of course. He was there at the end of the Battle of the Budge and when Germany surrendered. Didn't have enough points, so he was told he had 30 day leave and then ship out to Japan. I think he wanted to take the Thompson with him. The H bomb saved him from going.

 

[mtngunr]

Call me crazy I have several of these old gals and shoot every one. I use old style .38 of course. They are fun!

The old long action Smith and Wessons are the best shooting DA revolvers ever made.

 

[dennishoddy]

That puppy be old!
ETA: if this link is correct it’s a 2nd change

SMITH & WESSON .38 Hand Ejector Model of 1905 :: Gun Values by Gun Digest

A continuation of .38 M&P Hand Ejector series. Built from 1905 to 1906. Available in 4-, 5-, 6- and 6.5-in. barrels. Finished in blue or nickel, with round or square butt. The .38-caliber serial number range 62450-73250, with about 10,800 produced. Note: Prices for the following four variations...

gunvalues.gundigest.com

The S/N on this old gun starts with 312

 

[dennishoddy]

That's a M1905 first change 5.5 inch barrel

My first attempt at the barrel length was with Apple measure on the iphone. It was incorrect.
Here is a pic of the correct length.

 

[dennishoddy]

Is it a 5 screw?

Four on the locking plate and one in front of the trigger in the guard?

View attachment 519464

View attachment 519465

Yes.

 

[dennishoddy]

Sent ya a good bit of information via PM

Got it and hope you post it as well. Thank you very much!

 

[sushi & pistols]

The author asked me to post my reply to him via PM so here goes,
Hi there, so that's serial number is difficult to pin down the exact date but I can tell you what you have is a .38 Military & Police Model of 1905, 4th Change. Its basically a matter of math and a bit of guessing. They made 758,296 of those between serial numbers 241704-1000000. Between years 1915-1942. I'd say that puts yours between 1918-1920

 

[dennishoddy]

It appears the gun sleuths on OSA have found this old gun's identity when the S&W forum couldn't.
What a fun thread! Thanks to all!
I keep a ledger of all the old guns I have so whomever gets them after I'm gone can understand what they are holding and its history.

 

[dennishoddy]

The author asked me to post my reply to him via PM so here goes,
Hi there, so that's serial number is difficult to pin down the exact date but I can tell you what you have is a .38 Military & Police Model of 1905, 4th Change. Its basically a matter of math and a bit of guessing. They made 758,296 of those between serial numbers 241704-1000000. Between years 1915-1942. I'd say that puts yours between 1918-1920

You also said the S/N on the buttstock should match the one on the face of the cylinder. I was intrigued as I'd never seen one there.
Got a soft bristle brush and worked on it before finding it finally. They match!

 

[dennishoddy]

Sushi and Pistols also told me that there should be a S/N on the barrel just in front of the extractor. There is none I can find. Oddly there is little to no corrosion on the underside of the barrel in that location. He pointed out that it is pinned, so has the barrel been changed?
I have fired it many times with standard .38 S&W ammo. Never any +P stuff. None of the old guns will stand up to modern ammo pressures, so always keep that in mind when shooting them.