[Austrian]

Servus, here now some better pics of my babes.
And now to my request to S&W regarding the years of production of my weapons. I got the info that the 686 is supposed to be from 1989, and the 60 from 1949 or 1950.. Honestly, i doubt that. My brother (he left Austria in 1988 or 1989 to move to Houston, Tx, until 2 years ago)) bought it before, so far i remember. Dr. Google thinks, the mod 60 in stainless steel was produced in 1965. What you think?
I have now written again to S&W to double check the numbers. If that was a good idea...i will see.

 

[Wiregrassguy]

Unless you have a newer gun made after 2000, it is not a good idea to ask S&W when it was made. S&W customer service consistently gives bad information on the older guns manufacture dates. It reflects ignorance of the serial number history over the years which is widely varied. If you want accurate information, you have to ask the Historical Foundation and pay $100 for a letter of authenticity. Although 1989 is not out of the question for your 686 since S&W did not ship in serial number order, 1949 or 50 is absurd for a Model 60 and reflects extreme ignorance of the model's history. The Model 60 began production in 1965, just as Google said.

The modern Smith & Wesson company no longer cares about its history. They eliminated the company-funded Historian position a few years ago and basically left its history up to the collector community so they could save a few dollars and stop the nuisance manufacture date questions. They don't take such requests seriously and will give frivolous answers such as the one they gave you on the Model 60. It is futile to expect anything they tell you about older guns' manufacture dates to be accurate.

 

[Austrian]

Thanks for the unembellished answer, after the answer from S&W I was already afraid of this. Actually, it's a pity that a company which could/should be proud of its reputation attaches so little importance to a not uninteresting part of its company history, a pity and also sad.

 

[jesseschmidt1987]

It's because the Smith and Wesson of today is not the same company from all those decades ago, so it's really not their history in their minds, as they only bought the name and rights.