The stamping "38 S&W CTGE" on a Harrington & Richardson (H&R) firearm stands for .38 Smith & Wesson Cartridge. This is a historical marking found on hundreds of thousands of affordable pocket revolvers manufactured by H&R between 1884 and 1941. The .38 S&W cartridge has a slightly wider case diameter and is significantly shorter and less powerful than a .38 Special. Modern .38 Special ammunition will generally not chamber in these vintage H&R revolvers, and trying to fire high-pressure modern rounds through them is incredibly dangerous. H&R top-breaks are famous for their mechanical cleverness. When you lift the latch over the cylinder and snap the barrel downward, an internal extraction star automatically springs up and flings all five spent shell casings out at once, making it incredibly fast to reload for its era. Third Model (1905-1941): Smokeless Powder Era How to spot: The roll stamp "38 S&W CTGE" is cleanly pressed into the left-hand flat side of the barrel. The top strap of the gun usually drops the old 19th-century patent dates and simply reads: "Harrington & Richardson Arms Co. Worcester, Mass. U.S.A."