I have a couple serial numbers I’d like to look up on SRS (1870 trapdoor rifle 43681 & a sharps carbine converted to 50/70) . How do you find these records to research?
texcl2
The first question is whether the pieces of reference here are within the SRS database featuring certain guns of official noteworthy characteristics of origin. 'If so,' SRS previously provide a fee-based letter of verification attesting to such characteristics. I don't know whether such service is yet offered. I was fortunate in a kind soul viewing my GB Thread with sufficient information for him to pass on a portion of SRS information relevant to my Springfield rifle. A matter of considerable lingering gratitude. Perhaps SRS provenances are yet available or your GB "stripes" earned, the circumstance of a knowledgeable kind soul willing to share record data!
Happy New Year & good luck!
John
Happy New Year & good luck!
John
Do the eBay drives have the same info? I take it there’s no more research being done and the info that is out there is what is available? I was sort of hoping there was a site out there working with some govt entity still collecting data and putting it in a searchable format but I guess that’s a lot to ask lol.
Many people simply ask if a serial number of a specific firearm is in the records. Some of us have all 4 volumes of the SRS records and look numbers up for people, no charge. If you want lists of firearms looked up, that's another story. You might want to read about these SRS records here:
I bought the SRS Lists on USB Stick at a Gunshow in Loveland, CO while visiting the US in 2019 - always happy to look up numbers for people...
No hits for your Trapdoor...
43617 73C 080477 DEPT OF DAKOTA (SHIPPED TO SA)
43659 73R 101179 5TH INF - PVT M RYAN
43664 73R 011980 BATTY B 2ND ART
43804 73R 021430 OO TO RARITAN ARS
43833 73R 101179 5TH INF - C O ZANDT
No hits for your Trapdoor...
43617 73C 080477 DEPT OF DAKOTA (SHIPPED TO SA)
43659 73R 101179 5TH INF - PVT M RYAN
43664 73R 011980 BATTY B 2ND ART
43804 73R 021430 OO TO RARITAN ARS
43833 73R 101179 5TH INF - C O ZANDT
The trapdoor is mine and the sharps was for sale, it sold this afternoon to another person. My 1870 trapdoor has painted rack numbers on it and is pretty unique looking. it appears to be totally unmolested with very excellent cartouches but has some damage to the forend, I’ll try to take some pictures next week and do a separate post of it. I sure would have liked to know where it served. I’m from North Dakota and am very interested in anything Indian wars. Thanks again!
Jismail - Please start a new thread and someone will surely help you out. But please start afresh so there is no confusion. Photos are always a plus! Thanks for joining, Mike.
Couple things in addition to all the other comments.
The USBs you see on ebay are pirated copies and not official SRS copies. The only digital copy released, was released in the early 2000s, right before the founder died (in 2004). It can't even run on modern computers, it has directions for running MS Dos (that should give you an idea how old it is). I have a copy I treat it as a collectible at this point.
I have heard of there being errors in the USB. But I suppose that's the risk you take with a pirated copy of the original, the quality goes down (as it does with most examples).
Bill Mook was never part owner of the SRS to my knowledge. You may be thinking of Franklin "Frank" Mallory. He did have some help from friends in his though. The main players were Frank Mallory, Charlie Pate and Wayne Gagner (current owner).
The original guys did not want everything for free. The guys who ran the SRS would get irratated at collectors trying to milk whatever they could for free with having to pay as little as possible. Can you imagine spending countless hours pouring through government documentation and people simply take a screen shot of your work and trying to sell for a premium on the cheap? It's pretty low in my opinion.
I was told by a friend of Mallory's he found that irratating, collectors just trying to increase their values rather than appreciating the actual history of it. Which I can understand.
The SRS is almost completely defunct at this point. Which is unfortunate, it's owned by one individual who is in his mid-late 80s. You can imagine how taxing that can be traveling to Washington DC or College Park as you're approaching your 90s. He's a nice guy and I like him, and its unfortunate the state it's in now. Mallory's life work has been reduced to a cheap thumb drive which is copyright infringment. Contrary to popular belief you can copyright data off of primary sources. You're not copyrighting the government document, just the data off of it in the manner you organize it. Which required substantial effort on their part.
The USBs you see on ebay are pirated copies and not official SRS copies. The only digital copy released, was released in the early 2000s, right before the founder died (in 2004). It can't even run on modern computers, it has directions for running MS Dos (that should give you an idea how old it is). I have a copy I treat it as a collectible at this point.
I have heard of there being errors in the USB. But I suppose that's the risk you take with a pirated copy of the original, the quality goes down (as it does with most examples).
Bill Mook was never part owner of the SRS to my knowledge. You may be thinking of Franklin "Frank" Mallory. He did have some help from friends in his though. The main players were Frank Mallory, Charlie Pate and Wayne Gagner (current owner).
The original guys did not want everything for free. The guys who ran the SRS would get irratated at collectors trying to milk whatever they could for free with having to pay as little as possible. Can you imagine spending countless hours pouring through government documentation and people simply take a screen shot of your work and trying to sell for a premium on the cheap? It's pretty low in my opinion.
I was told by a friend of Mallory's he found that irratating, collectors just trying to increase their values rather than appreciating the actual history of it. Which I can understand.
The SRS is almost completely defunct at this point. Which is unfortunate, it's owned by one individual who is in his mid-late 80s. You can imagine how taxing that can be traveling to Washington DC or College Park as you're approaching your 90s. He's a nice guy and I like him, and its unfortunate the state it's in now. Mallory's life work has been reduced to a cheap thumb drive which is copyright infringment. Contrary to popular belief you can copyright data off of primary sources. You're not copyrighting the government document, just the data off of it in the manner you organize it. Which required substantial effort on their part.
No hits..
134704 98R 98 CO I 1ST NC VOL INF
134715 98R 98 CO I 1ST NC VOL INF
134731 98R 98 CO K 10TH OHIO VOL INF
134757 98R 040798 CO M 4TH VA VOL INF (LOST)
134757 98R 041299 4TH VA VOL INF (LOST)
134704 98R 98 CO I 1ST NC VOL INF
134715 98R 98 CO I 1ST NC VOL INF
134731 98R 98 CO K 10TH OHIO VOL INF
134757 98R 040798 CO M 4TH VA VOL INF (LOST)
134757 98R 041299 4TH VA VOL INF (LOST)
I have the thumb drive and was told it’s actually an older version that’s not complete. I do have all four volumes. I found them at a local gun show for $10 each. I’m guessing you have to look in all four volumes when researching a number? Seems that way most of the time.
Yes, it appears the electronic .txt versions that are available (which I have and use) do not represent the most recent data set, and may be a 'sucked out' version of when the SRS Look up was available on the internet many years ago.
I don't like that the thumb drive exists as copyright infringement, having paid for the service for a while years ago. I have all 4 volumes of SRS and have looked up many numbers for people asking. One guy kept asking for me to look up more and more numbers, never had a hit, and I finally had to say that was enough. You can take advantage of generosity up to a point. For those who haven't seen this, i wrote up a summary about SRS a few years ago on Krag Collector's Association forum.
Does this research extend to modern firearms such as Garands?
I sent a FOIA request back in February for my 1943 Springfield Garand, but I'm sure it's still too early for them to get back to me.
I sent a FOIA request back in February for my 1943 Springfield Garand, but I'm sure it's still too early for them to get back to me.
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