This is one of only about 142 .357 Magnum transitional post-war revolvers in all barrel lengths manufactured by S&W from late 1946 to 1949. These revolvers were similar in appearance to their pre-war counterparts but with a new micrometer rear sight and a "S" prefix serial number, and a vast majority were ordered by law enforcement agencies, like this example which was ordered by the State of Kansas. As confirmed by the included factory letter, the revolver was shipped on December 23, 1948 and delivered to W.A. Thompson Co. of Topeka, Kansas, with a 5 inch barrel, blue finish, an checkered walnut grips. As noted in the factory letter, "This shipment was for 50 units for the State of Kansas [Highway Patrol]." Matching serial numbers appear on the butt, cylinder, and ejector shroud. Provenance: The Dave Ballantyne Collection

Very fine as a law enforcement procured revolver displaying authentic wear and tear of spending a lifetime in the line of duty, retaining 85% original blue finish with holster wear and grips strap worn gray from spending years in the hand. The very good grips show similar "working gun" character with mostly crisp checkering. Mechanically excellent.