Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Identify a S&W 38 revolver for me.

My FIL has an old Smith 38 special 4" with adjustable sights but a thin barrel with really no lug under it just a bump the extractor rid locks to.

He bought it used in 1971 for the sheriff's office when he became a cop. It was one they'd taken from someone. I don't know what model it is but it has a k on it and a 5 digit serial starting with 76. I'm pretty sure it's a k frame maybe a combat masterpiece. I just dont know these old revolvers.

Is there anyone here I can text a pic to so they can tell me more about it?

Thanks,
Bb

Model 15 Combat Masterpiece. It should indicate that, and which dash (i.e., modification), on the frame under the cylinder crane.

It has a sideways 8 like infinity and then an 8 on the frame under the crane under the serial number and a 5 above it.

Bb

Does it look like my Combat Masterpiece in the image above, apart from the grip adaptor?

Yes it looks like that. Same little front sight ramp etc.

Bb

After looking around a bit more I'm pretty sure its a combat masterpiece. Although it has an extra screw on the right side just below the rear sight about where the firing pin would be with the hammer down. I think it's what they call a pre model 15, 5 screw model. I don't think it's a 14 because the sight is more like a 15.

Is this a desirable gun? I think any collector type value is gone because the sheriff's office or police office he bought it from scratched some initials and the date 10, 4, 71 in the side of the frame between the top of the grip and the cylinder. It might still make a nice shooter. My Father in Law is not the kind of guy who would typically give me anything or even give me a deal on anything but he really wants a ruger sr9c with a $300 crimson trace green laser on it I have that's like new still in the box. He offered to trade me for the 38 but as soon as I showed any interest he started back pedaling. I dont always understand him.

As an example, he had his families old coin collection which included some gold double eagles a handful of Carson city Morgan dollars and a bunch of other silver coins. He wanted to sell it so I said let's get it professionally appraised and I'll pay him the value for it to keep it in the family for my kids. The appraiser said he'd charge $65 to value them and my FIL got upset and said he wasn't paying that.

Months later I asked about the coins again and he said his brother had a friend that knew coins so he sold them to him for about $10,000. I know the collection was worth closer to $20k but he didn't even give me a chance to buy them.

I don't really understand his ways but he sometimes seems a bit like my own dad who likes to dangle the carrots out their until you're interested and then take them away and give them to someone else just to make you feel bad or something. Maybe that's not it but he's often been funny about petty things like showing me a book he's knows I'd be interested in and then refusing to let me borrow it. I'm talking a cheap paperback.

I'm not sure a gun trade is even worth trying to attempt and I don't personally want the 38 but I'd love to give it to one of my boys because it was the gun grandpa carried as a cop. Myself and my boys are the only ones in their family interested in guns.

His sons, my BILs, love to come shooting with me but only if I buy all the ammo and pay range fees. Both his sons have 6 figure jobs and nice homes he helped them get into. He treats his own 2 boys different than he does his 3 son in laws and 3 daughters when it comes to money. One makes over 250k a year but won't pay the $5 range fee much less chip in on ammo.

One time, soon after I got married I took them shooting and their dad gave us an old box of 9mm on the way out the door to take with us. We shot it and another $450 of my ammo. The BILs love doing mag dumps with my ammo.

Everytime I saw my FIL after that he went on and on about how he shouldn't have let me shoot up his box of 9mm because now he's probably going to have to buy another 1 day because he wants a 9mm. I should have just said your boys shot it so talk to them but I'd just gotten married and was trying to keep peace.

After about the 10th time he brought it up i happened to have a box with me in anticipation. You could literally see the stress leave his body after I handed him the $8 (at the time) box of ammo. He'd been worried about it for months and everytime he saw me he brought it up.

He's not exactly strapped for cash either. His wife let it slip one day that they have millions in their retirement account and I believe it. Theyre always on a European cruise or something.

I'm not a real cheap person since I've had money and am often pretty generous unless someone's always really cheap with me. I love to take people shooting and have spent thousands introducing people to it and sold people guns and stuff at a big loss to help them get going. However, I've learned over the last 13 to years to be cheap with my inlaws because that's how theyve been with me.

I no longer take them shooting unless my BILs kids want to go. I'll always try to take a kid shooting but I won't take the adults only in my wife's family anymore. My FIL asked the other day if I'd take him shooting again so he could shoot my 9mms. I said sure and then asked if he still had his that ammo he could bring. He didn't like that and hasn't asked to shoot since.

I'm convinced the gun trade is not even worth the time it took to type this to me but the only thing I ever got of my grandpas was an old rifle and I treasure it. I can't help but think one of my boys would treasure their grandpas duty weapon. I'd do it at a loss just for that but it's probably not worth the brain damage that would come with it.

I apologize to the fire for another boring novel but it's 2:00 am and I'm still awake and in incredible pain with my ankylosing spondylitis. Sometimes typing my random thoughts out takes my mind off the pain. I don't expect anyone to actually read it and should probably take up Journaling. I tell me kids if they want to know more about me or hear more boring stories after I'm gone to read my fire posts. I just need to tell them not to read them to their mom.

Bb

M15s can still be bought relatively cheaply because there were a bunch that were police trade ins. The one you describe is a Combat Masterpiece from before S&W used model numbers but every model had a name.

It would command a premium being a 5 screw but the electro pencil work you describe makes it just a shooter and probably not worth any more than the run of the mill 15.

I’d not be willing to give a $300 set of grips plus a pistol in trade for it unless like you say it was for sentimental reasons. And in that case the guy I was trading to would have to not be a douche and it doesn’t sound like that’s what’s going on here.

If it's a five screw, unmolested, and in nice shape, yes, it has collector value.

Sorry to hear of your troubles.

BB, I understand the sentimental things as I have a few of my wife’s grandfathers guns that I hope my kids will enjoy…. However they and I are very close to him. Closer than my own dad for that matter. How do your kids feel about their grampa?

Personally I would just keep peace and let him figure it out with someone else. If you trade and one of his other grandkids wants gun down road you are in a bad spot. But my wife says I can be a real a-hole if I want to be so take the advise as you will

You need to dump those freeloaders.

A model 15 is basically a model 10 with adjustable sights. Good shooters, but not rare or extremely valuable. In laws are always fun.

I'd definitely pass on that one. The gun definitely has the potential to be a great shooter, but at the cost of giving
This^. Then add in the fact that you'd likely be giving the a- hole a chance to give you further grief when he reconsiders the deal, which seems likely, and the price is way too high.

Model 14s have 6” barrels while model 15s are 4”. A quirk in S&W model numbers as most models come in varying barrel lengths.

Always out doors: Not all Smith & Wesson Model 14 revolvers have 6" barrels - some had 4" barrels and some had 8 3/8" barrels.
IIRC
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy

I’m going to give you the best Mormon advice ever. Tell your fil to go ph uck himself he’s a sorry pos. Your bil same thing sorry ph ucks. Oh ph uck thst model 15, go buy a model 19 to give to your kids.

Unless you want your kids to have some false illusions about grandpa, I would not want to hand down a legacy with that much negative baggage attached to it.

Last 2 posters pretty much nailed it

Yep.