Serial Numbers on Smith and Wesson Firearms

If you own a Smith and Wesson handgun, you might be interested in finding out some more information on your particular gun. Once you locate the serial number, then you are able to do some research and find out a little history on your gun. Below you will find some visual examples of where to look for the serial number on your S&W handgun. You can then use the serial number to find out the Smith & Wesson date manufactured for your particular gun. Keep in mind that many Smith and Wesson guns produced before 1957 did not have a serial number stamped on them. These older guns will take a little more effort to find out their history. For those Smith Wesson with serial numbers, see the pictures below to find where to look.

Smith Wesson Serial Numbers - Revolvers


Dating a Smith & Wesson Revolver: This list is merely a general guide and not meant to be exact. There is some dispute regarding the dates on some serial numbers. Your gun may actually be a year off from what is listed. The precise shipping date as 'lettered' can be several years off depending on model. Partnership with Horace Smith & Daniel B. Wesson was from 1856–1874. Family owned by the Wesson Family from 1874–1965. Smith & Wesson became a subsidiary of Bangor-Punta from 1965–1983. Between 1983–1987, Smith & Wesson was owned by the Lear Siegler Co. On May 22, 1987, it was sold to R.L.Tomkins, a British holding company. A new serial number system. The new system consists of four sets of digits separated by a hyphen. The first set is the manufacturers code, the second designates the type of firearm, the third set is the firearms chronological number, the fourth set shows the year of mfg. AYA 1995-2006 Year ser. # end 199516-03-001-95 16-03-800-95.

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S W Serial Numbers Chart

Smith and wesson serial number lookup model 41Smith And Wesson Serial Number Database

Smith And Wesson Serial Number Lookup Model 19

Smith Wesson Serial Numbers - Pistols

There are some exceptions to the locations shown above for certain S&W pistols. On the Sigma series and the SW99 models, you will find the serial number in the locations shown in the pictures below.

Smith And Wesson Serial Number Database

Smith Wesson Serial Numbers - Sigma Series


Smith Wesson Serial Numbers - SW99

Once you've located the serial number, then you can try to contact Smith and Wesson and see if they can give you an information about your particular gun like date of manufacture or other specific details. You can try to contact their customer support by phone and see if they would be willing to help you that way. If they are unable (or unwilling) to help over the phone, then you can contact them via writing with information on your S&W pistol, and they will research your particular firearm and send you a written report. You can send them a picture and they can find out more of the background on your gun along with the date manufactured. They will charge you for this service ($50 at the time this was written) and it is probably only worthwhile for older collectible guns which have no serial numbers. If you can find the serial number, then you are better off just trying to call S&W customer service first. If that doesn't work, then you could try to contact a gun shop and see if they can help you. Furthermore, some internet forums are filled with helpful and knowledgeable people that would be happy to help try to interpret the serial number on your handgun. In addition, a book such as: Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson written by Jim Supica, Richard Nahas, published 2007, can be used to try to get more information about your gun. This book can be very helpful in finding Smith & Wesson date manufactured information and also general historical information about different S&W firearms. In fact, if you post a message on an internet group asking for help in identifying your particular Smith & Wesson gun, then it is very likely that a member of the group will use this book or something similar when they help. Thankfully, most people will probably have a newer gun with the serial numbers, and it should be relatively easy to get more background information using that number. The old guns without the serial numbers are the ones that can be a little trickier. Regarding old Smith & Wesson guns, below is an interesting video narrated by Jim Supica about an early S&W revolver given to the legendary Teddy Roosevelt.

S&w Dates Of Manufacture By Serial Number


Smith And Wesson Serial Number Lookup Model 41

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