When was the time this gun madeThe American double action 38?

Answer 1

There were at least two models of The American .38 Revolver manufactured in the very early 1900s. I have one of each. One came to me from my Grandfather (1880-1964) and the other from an Uncle (1875-1955). One model is 'hammerless', i.e. double action only. There is an exposed hammer but without a thumb tang. There is a scoring on the hammer to facilitate pulling it back needed. This model was an ideal pocket gun - no hammer tang to hand up in the pocket. The second is both double action and single action. This hammer has a thumb tang. Neither of the guns have any safety features to prevent accidental firing. A common way would be to rest the hammer in between two cartridges, or on an empty chamber on on a fired cartridge. These were the Saturday night specials of the day. The gun's firing pin was part of the hammer and as such was not replaceable. The firing pin easily broke and the entire hammer had to be replace - obviously these guns were not for target practice. As an FYI, my Grandfather and Uncle lived in the deep South during KKK days.