re: Picked this up for free tonight. 1959-1961S&W Model 10 .38 Special w/ 4" Barrel

Because I have a blued model 10

Shut it weagle. That nickel plate doesn't look good to me. I hate nickel plated stuff.

quote:

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Take the grips off the gun with a flathead screwdriver, there should be an "N" stamped on the bottom of the grip frame meaning it was factory nickeled. Sometimes there is also an "N" marked on the front of the cylinder by the ejector star.

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I will do this when I get done with my homework. Thanks!

Since some of yall appreciate older family heirlooms, you may like these. My grandparents gave them to me last month for my boy to grow up with. They were my dads in the early 60s, so they survived him and me. Hopefully they will survive him. I love old metal toys. They don't make em like that anymore, not even close.






This is the first 5 rounds I put through the .38. Just wanted to figure out the sights, and see how it did.



First one I put 10 yds behind it, shot right over the top.

The next few I started to figure it out, need to put a few more down range though. Until I buy more ammo I'm not planning on shooting anymore. Only had 12 to start with.

Yes, that is a paper plate, what of it?

Edit: I was standing about 20 feet from the target.

Beautiful

Very nice.....I have a 10-7 5 inch pencil barrel stamped Detroit Police. Love that gun. Also have my dads old pre model 10 5 inch pencil barrel.

You can see my nickel one in my awesomely terrible sig

Thanks guys. I sincerely appreciate how much ya'll like the gun and its history. I am a little perturbed(not really) at my dad for never talking to me about it. Such a beautiful gun to keep locked up for that long.

I have a few more questions I was hoping you guys could help me with. Maybe I am going overboard, but I am a first time revolver owner, and a first time C&R gun owner. I want to make sure I dot every i, and cross every t in care and maintenance. I want to keep this gun in perfect shape for my son, and teach him how to take care of it for his son.

I took off the grips like PolyPusher86 suggested, and sure enough there it was.



Funny thing is, where the serial number sometimes is under the barrel I found this about 5 minutes later.



Was there the whole time and I just missed it. I even looked there earlier today to see if there was a serial number under there.

Taking off the grips lead me to my questions. The gun is in almost perfect condition, except for under the grips.

Right Side


Right Side


Left Side


That is obviously rust. While I do not think the nickel is chipped, my fingernail definitely catches on every spot. Is there a way to repair this? Maybe there is a way to polish the rust out? I mean, obviously I could completely refinish it....but Lord only knows how much that would cost.

I find it a bit strange that this gun is basically mint everywhere except a couple of spots under the grips. Was it because of the moisture in the wood? Or maybe moisture from a humid southern summer settled under the grips when we were moving and it was in the back of a moving truck? We all know how humid it is in the south in the summer.

Even if I cant polish the rust out, how would ya'll advise polishing nickel? I would like to give this thing one really nice cleaning, and see what it looks like.

Also, after firing it the white marks inside the barrel are gone. Though now, and perhaps more concerning, the rifling grooves are tinged red, a rust color. Is that because of the old ammo?

This is the best pic I could get of coloring in the grooves.


These next 2 are of the view down the barrel. I tried cleaning it with q-tips, but some of these marks do not want to come out. Are the longer marks possibly permanent scratches in the barrel? If they are, chalk it up to another "Old guns always have random niggles." moment. Because it makes no sense that they would be there.





In both of those, and in this next one. Notice the red hue on the front of the cylinder. It really isn't as bad as the last 2 pictures make it look, ftr. It actually isn't even as bad the this next one. I just wanted to show the red hue along with the barrel so you could get an idea of the color along the rifling grooves. I am hoping it is just the copper bleeding through.



And the white marks, any ideas what they were? Were they powder burns? Oxidation? Something else?

I have other questions regarding the serial number, model number, and other identification marks. However, I am going to post on the S&W forum to get those questions answered. It seems like several guys over there love to research S&Ws. Should be a snap to get manufacturing answers.

Seriously, Major Thanks fellas! I owe everyone who has answered/will answer my questions a beer or 5. Consider this a favor IOU. Maybe if we meet up at a Bama-LSU game somehow, I will indulge your imbibing.

Fine little collection you have there

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