This is the initial thread about Custom Handgun Stocks from their
early years. This first offering, courtesy of SG-688 , is a good article
by James Mason, about some of these early producers. You might want
to set the magnification to 125% - some of this print is a bit small.

















Regards, Mike Priwer

Mike, thanks for getting this thread going. Joe.

I have this article and remember it well, it , along with several others that outline some basic stock making tips started me along the path. My first set of Fuzzy style grips was made the summer before this magazine was published, some of my motivation was due to Col. Coopers thoughts on the subject of revolver stocks. I located and cut up a good bit of Zebra and Paduk wood in the next few years as it was all the rage at that time, I much prefer good walnut now. I'll see if I can put my hands on the other articles I remember and post them here.

Keith

While not handmade, this is one of the more interesting sets of grips I've picked up.
Marked "Sports, Inc." (a company mentioned in the above article) they're plastic pre-war style K-frame magnas with S&W medallions:

__________________
John

John

That is a very interesting plastic (probably resin) reproduction of
pre-WW2 magnas. I had not seen those, before.

Joe

I have some pictures of some of your stocks, that will be part of
this series.

Keith, & Farrant fans

That cut frame corner is interesting. You just finished up a pair of
round-butt early K-frame stocks, which were made from a square-butt
pair. I had ground off a lot of wood, in the vicinity of the front corner.
I was thinking about this, and its almost as though Farrant, and
others, realized that the front corner of a square-butt grip/frame was
not the right configuration. What he winds up with is something a lot
closer to a round-butt grip !

Regards, Mike Priwer

Thanks for posting as it's a great thread and very intersting. The only custom grips I now own are made by forum member Kurac and one set of round butt finger groove Ahrends on a Model 64 snub nose.

Thanks for getting this going, I look forward to more!

Here are some pictures of a pair of Mustang N-frame grips, probably in
bocote.







This last picture shows how well the grain is matched, from side to side.



Regards, Mike Priwer

Thanks Mike! Very interesting stuff.

Jerry

Several sets of Fuzzy Farrant grips.

Two sets of N-frame grips cut for the "chopped" frame:







This set is for a K-frame round butt in Pau Ferro wood. I ordered these in the late 1970's and used them on a 2.5" Model 19 and later on a 3" Model 65:

__________________
John

please move to top

Excellent series of articles. Thanks!

Charlie

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SWCA # 2294

Old thread, I know, but I only had one question and no pics so I didn't want to start a new one. Question is, did all Farrant stocks only have the one fully-bored grip screw hole? In other words, did he always fill in the hole on the right-side panel where the screw would fasten into and re-checker over the hole (if the panel was checkered)? Reason I ask is I came across a pair that I think might be Farrants, but they have two normal, fully-bored grip screw holes. Everything else screams Farrant or one of his contemporaries, like Hurst, the diagonal-cut frame, the thumb rest looks correct, and the checkering on the right-side panel, which follows the contours of the finger grooves. Which one of these makers that made grips for the cut-frame revolvers bored their grip screw holes all the way through?
Thanks,
Ryan

All the Farrants I've ever seen (and owned) have had the hole plugged. But you just never know. Post some pics, only way to know for sure. Here is a set I just got back from DWFAN. The repair job he did is nothing short of phenomenal. The previous repair was crumbling away. Unless you knew they had been repaired, you'd be hard pressed to find it. And to top it off... a beautiful oil refinish.

Thanks. If I can pick them up for the right price I'll post a pic.
Ryan

I've had two pair of target pattern Farrants that I was tempted to cut to holster size, like this pair, since the holster grips are so much more desirable. This one looks good.

I have seen photos of several pair of grips like this that closely match the grips identified by Walter Rickell in the 1970 Guns & Ammo Annual as being by Joe Blackford. I've never found any reference other than that one.

(Not to be confused with Bill Blackwood, another grip maker about whom we know little.)

BUT -- the upper right profile also is similar to early Hurst, ... but not the upper curve of the checkering border.

Farrant grips I found/bought on eBay. Seller did not know what he had and marked them as Colt 1911 grips, listed in Colt grips sections. Nobody bid except me.

Here's a set of Fuzzy Farrant's grips in ebony. They were given to me by a friend about 30 years ago. I was shooting an L frame in a PPC league at the time and put them to good use. Now they live on my old K-22.

Being new at this, I haven't figured out how to make the photo bigger yet.

Attached Images

K-22 with Farrants 002.jpg (58.1 KB, 71 views)

I've had several pair, but Joe Kent has more Farrant stocks than I've seen anywhere else. All have plugged off-side screw hole.

Just a sample:



The stocks on the mdl 67 are copies by a local wizard.
====
Added another photo. Some of the same and a few others.

Not the best digital...the set of J fame RB Farrants I bought in 1976. They have the plugged hole too. BEST set of J frame gripps I've ever owned. Should get them reproduced for my Kit Guns.

Had a set for a 4" M-57 they were not much larger! Needless to say, they didn't work for me and they went down the road.

Fuzzy did wonderful work especially his checkering.

FN in MT

Nice pair of stocks - do you know what the wood is ?

Mike Priwer

More











Mike, don't ask; we don't know.

Zebra wood Bear Hug grips,




I don't have any info on these except they fit K square butt,

I'll give this a kick with another pair of Farrants for a round butt K frame.

These were damaged when they came to me, and I finally got around to repairing and refinishing them.

My photography doesn't do justice to the wood.