S&W 640 stamped like a bad panny?

March 17, 2009 11:33

Hello from the sunny south [8D],

There's a S&W 640 in stainless steel up for auction with "airweight" stamped on the barrel....Is this a fluke, a mistake...like a double stamped coin?

Thanks,

Jim
GunHawke

Comments

5 comments

rufe-snow

March 17, 2009 11:39
It would only be any value to a collector, if you could prove it left Springfield with the mismatched barrel.

Since the barrels on S & W revolvers are removable, it could have been done after it left the factory.
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nmyers

March 17, 2009 11:41
Just a mistake, not likely to command a premium.

But, it's not like a double stamped coin. Barrels are completely made in a separate operation, including the stamping of markings. This was apparently a case of a barrel getting put in the wrong bin.

Neal
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beantownshootah

March 17, 2009 17:47
What Neal said.

Its a Smith 640 that has either had the barrel replaced, or alternatively, one that was put together at the factory with the "wrong" barrel (either deliberately or by accident).

It may NOT be possible to tell which, since if the mislabeled barrel were put on at the factory and escaped quality control Smith probably wouldn't have documented this error.

Obviously, if some gunsmith put on the barrel after the gun left the factory, that's not going to INCREASE the value of the gun. Further, if you can't document that this is NOT what happened, again, no increase in value.

As to the likelihood of this being a factory "error", I've posted on this before, but given the literally millions of handguns put out by Smith over the years, there are some that are put together from parts not originally intended to be put together, or mislabeled.

Some of these are "lunchbox special" guns cobbled together by employees from parts and snuck out of the factory. Some are the "Monday morning specials" assembled by hung over employees, etc.

I've talked to a gun store owner near Springfield MA (where Smith and Wesson ins HQ'd) and he tells me he sees some mislabeled gun or non-standard variant nearly every month.

There are a lot of these "mongrel" guns out there, and in general they don't command significantly (or any) more money than comparable normal guns.
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givette

March 18, 2009 07:35
Beantown: Can you still drive around behind the main bldg. at S&W to the customer service window? Thanks, Joe
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beantownshootah

March 18, 2009 12:39
quote:Originally posted by givette
Beantown: Can you still drive around behind the main bldg. at S&W to the customer service window? Thanks, Joe

I have no idea.

Haven't been to the Smith factory in three years, and when I was there I didn't get the grand tour.

I will say that their new open to the public range is quite nice (as you might expect).
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S&W 640 stamped like a bad panny?

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