Gregorelli & Uberti, Navy Arms revolver

This is a Gregorelli & Uberti (GU on right side of bbl), .36 caliber revolver imported by Navy Arms. The bottom barrel flat has proof marks and the Roman numeral XVI date code, which equates to 1960. So, judging from what I deem as fine and even near mint condition, it's previous owner truly appreciated it and even kept the original box with its papers - and the combo tool. Lost is the barrel wedge retaining screw.

But I have a question about the numbers. Stamped on the frame where it meets the barrel lug is, what I'm assuming to be, the serial number, "E63". But, the end of the arbor has 'E50'. The barrel lug opposite the loading port has 'E50'. And when the hammer is pulled back, you see the '50' down in there. See pics.

This revolver does not appear to have replacement parts judging from the consistency of the engraving throughout, which could be aftermarket, but even the screw heads are engraved and they're all there. Do these non-matching numbers mean anything significant?

I suspect they’re assembly numbers.

That is quite the gun. I don't think PN had anything to do with numbers though. Ruger has numbers etched on the front of its cylinders and nothing there that has relevancy. Something to do with production of course but nothing to do with the SN.

Matching part numbers is a function of parts technicality that in theory were not interchangeable. The Luger is a good example as it was a hand fit gun. Better production and tolerance ability reduced that need in latter models.

Its mostly if not all a military gun thing. It then became a collector thing as there were fewer matching guns part number wise than there were not.

The reality was you could swap parts, the function might or might not work as well but parts did break and or worn out (rarely) and probably as much just lost of swapped.

One guy posted he made fake Lugers by buying a number of guns as the parts match was only the last two numbers from the serial numbers and Luger repeated every 100 numbers with a leading designation. But people would buy them as a higher value collector item because they were so called parts number matched.

Collecting is a strange world. I know of a fake Luger group that was assembled from spare parts post and then a story was spun out how they were a War expedient production. Until someone finally researched it and proved it was a fake, the Uber Luger collectors were paying in the $15-20,000 range. One guy admitted to being taken in and oh well. I never had that kind of money to risk.

Luger has a serious interest and our guns do not. They may be hand fitted (sort of) but no SN match link up, just what they put on them like the Ruger for some kind of ID which could be an mfg and or inspector thing.

CKGreene said:

This is a Gregorelli & Uberti (GU on right side of bbl), .36 caliber revolver imported by Navy Arms. The bottom barrel flat has proof marks and the Roman numeral XVI date code, which equates to 1960. So, judging from what I deem as fine and even near mint condition, it's previous owner truly appreciated it and even kept the original box with its papers - and the combo tool. Lost is the barrel wedge retaining screw.

But I have a question about the numbers. Stamped on the frame where it meets the barrel lug is, what I'm assuming to be, the serial number, "E63". But, the end of the arbor has 'E50'. The barrel lug opposite the loading port has 'E50'. And when the hammer is pulled back, you see the '50' down in there. See pics.

This revolver does not appear to have replacement parts judging from the consistency of the engraving throughout, which could be aftermarket, but even the screw heads are engraved and they're all there. Do these non-matching numbers mean anything significant?

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Wow, that's early! 1960.

springfield art said:

Wow, that's early! 1960.

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Yeah, I consider myself fortunate to have found it. It's two years older than I am but doesn't look it.