Pre-WW2 Smith & Wesson S&W 357 Non-Registered Magnum 4″ Revolver 1940 C&R
SOLD FOR: $6,981.00
WOA#: 240526BJ015
Make: Smith & Wesson
Model: The .357 Magnum, Pre-War Non-Registered Magnum
Serial Number: 60910
Year of Manufacture: 1940
Caliber: .357 Magnum
Action Type: Single and Double Action Revolver with Swing-Out Cylinder
Barrel Length: 4”, Pinned
Sights / Optics: The front sight is a King’s serrated ramped blade screwed to a King’s serrated ramped base that is pinned to the barrel. The rear sight is an adjustable square notch sight screwed to the top-strap. The top-strap, rib, and front sight base are checkered.
Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are two-piece checkered walnut magna stocks with smooth diamonds and silver S&W medallions. There are no serial markings on the interior. There are a few light nicks, compressions, and scratches, the most noticeable marks are on the bottom faces. There are light handling marks. The checkering is strong. Overall, the grips are in Fine condition.
Type of Finish: Blue
Finish Originality: Original
Bore Condition: The bore is bright and the rifling is sharp. There is no erosion. In my opinion, this bore rates 10 out of 10.
Overall Condition: This handgun retains about 90% of its metal finish. The frame, barrel, cylinder, yoke, and ejector all have matching serial numbers. There is finish wear on the edges. There are a few hairline scratches and little nicks. There are some scratches on the barrel at the forcing cone. There are some scuffs that have thinned the finish, some of the most noticeable are on the cylinder. There are a few areas of finish loss most noticeable at the muzzle, butt, and on the cylinder. (Most seem like holster wear.) There are some spots of minor surface oxidation. The cylinder has a turn line. The markings are clear. The screwheads range from sharp to lightly used. Overall, this revolver is in about Fine condition for C&R.
Mechanics: The action functions correctly. The cylinder lockup produces light side-to-side play on each chamber with the trigger depressed. The double action trigger is smooth, the single action crisp. We did not fire this handgun. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.
Box, Paperwork & Accessories: Included is a Smith & Wesson letter & envelope, (which is a fun read) also included is a copy of the photographed brochure with a picture of Chief of Police L. B. Reed, who placed the order in 1940.
Our Assessment: The grandson of Smith & Wesson co-founder Daniel Wesson, Col. Douglas Wesson, collaborated with Phil Sharpe and Elmer Keith, both renowned handloading experts, and set out to develop a cartridge that could propel a projectile at 1400 fps with muzzle energy of more than 700 ft. lbs. and the .357 Magnum, the first of the magnums, was born. Smith & Wesson developed a revolver around the cartridge on their N frame with initial production being entirely on a special order basis. The revolvers could be ordered with barrel lengths from 3 ½” to 8 ¾” available in ¼” increments, choice of sights, grips, finish, and even hammer profile. Early production guns were presented to luminaries such as J. Edgar Hoover, John Olin, Phil Sharpe, George S. Patton and Ed McGivern. These early .357s would be built to the customer’s specifications and shipped out with a registration card which could be returned to request a registration certificate, giving the new firearm the name “Registered Magnum”.
There were also .357 Magnums that did not have the registration number marked in the yoke cut and are known as “Non-Registered Magnums”, they are rarer than the Registered Magnums and only around 1,400 were ever made. “The .357 Magnum” revolver was noted for its durability and reliability and has been a favorite of shooters since its inception. The 3 ½” barrel length was extremely popular with FBI agents from the 1940s to the 1960s. General George Patton carried an ivory handled Registered Magnum with a 3 ½” barrel (along with his ivory handled Colt Peacemaker) Patton called the Model 27 his “killing gun”.
This is a Non-Registered Magnum as confirmed by the included Smith & Wesson letter. It was shipped from the factory on July 3rd, 1940 and delivered to Kansas City Police Department, Kansas City, MO Attn: Chief L.B. Reed. Records indicate that this revolver was shipped with a 4 inch barrel equipped with Baughman quick draw front sight on a King ramp base, square notch rear sight, blue finish, and checkered walnut Magna grips. It was sighted in a 50 yards with .38 Special Mid-Range wadcutter ammunition using a dead canter hold. The single action trigger was set at 3.5 lbs. And the double action trigger at 10lbs. The shipment was for 200 units all in the same configuration and they were billed at $35.45 each.
The aforementioned Kansa City Police Chief of 1940 is notated in photograph (copy included with the letter and revolver) as “Recently of the F.B.I.”. The Item included seems to be a Smith and Wesson brochure advertisement, cross promoting the fact that the Kansas City Police were “100% Magnum Equipped”.
This revolver looks good and has a lot of its blued finish remaining. It should be a hit with the collectors. If it gets past the collectors, some lucky shooter will get a chance at one of the strongest double-action .357 Magnum revolvers ever made, built on S&W’s N-frame, also used for the .44 Magnum. Similar items in this configuration have sold upwards of $8200. I repeat only 1400 of these revolvers were ever made, so rare isn’t even the word to describe this anomaly in armament. So bid high and bid firm. I highly encourage you to take a look at the condition in our high quality photos. Good luck on your bid. -K.F.
