Found this at an antique mall...56k

[Guest NashvegasMatt]

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It's called a night watchman's .38 special, but upon doing a search I don't come up with this name under the manufacturer of smith and wesson. It is in fact a S&W, but other than that, it is so old there are no good distinguishable markings... So my question is, how does one validate the legitimacy of a weapon of this age without just buying it and taking it somewhere to authenticate? The guy wouldn't let me take pictures of it out of the case, but being rebellious I snapped one anyway.

[Steelharp]

If it works... and he doesn't have an FFL... you can pretty much have a field day with him.

[gregintenn]

I can't tell from the picture whether it has a hammer or a grip safety, but it looks like a 1903 Safety Hammerless. It also appears that the grip panel is broken. It doesn't appear in the photo to have much finish left. Most of these I've seen had very loose actions. I'd also tell you to be aware that it is NOT a 38 Special, but a 38 S&W, which is hard to find ammo for. I'm also curious if the holster has a maker's mark on it. If it's an S.D. Myers, Lawerence, Heiser, etc., It could have as much or more value than the revolver.

The stag handled knife in front of it, however, I'd like to know more about.

Edited February 5, 2011 by gregintenn