I have several N frames that I purchased used and they all came with rubber aftermarket grips. Been on eBay trying to purchase S&W wood grips that are appropriate for the time frame that they were manufactured. On too many occasions the advertised "N" frame grips that I "win" turn out to be "K" frame grips once they are delivered. Have not had any issues returning them but definitely frustrating.

Been reading everything I can find on the forum. Is it possible to correctly identify N or K frame grips from just few pictures or am I at the mercy of the seller? Are there better places to look for used S&W grips?

Any tips, suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Unfortunately, all the stocks for the various frame sizes look exactly the same in pictures. So you’re pretty much at the mercy of the seller (And how lucky you are). There are a lot of stocks on gunbroker, but usually go for more than the same stocks on ebay. Or check the listings on here.

I saw a beautiful set of S&W grips on ebay. Had a few beers in me and bought what looked like a nice K square grips. Got them and they were J. I feel your pain. I have though bought some very nice ones there. Bob

Post a WTB ad in the forum classifieds and you'll almost certainly receive the correct grips. Some ebay sellers know their stuff, but many have no experience with firearms and are simply peddling items they stumbled across.

N frame grips are wider through the medallion, but it takes quite a bit of experience to identify them from the front without a side by side comparison (N top, K bottom right, J bottom left).



They're easy to identify, if you can see the back. Compare the length of the ledge that runs from the circle inserts (washers) to the backstrap (K on left, N on right) and notice that the ledge is almost twice as long on the N frame stocks:

Magna


Target


It's much harder to identify target grips made after 1986-87 when they dropped the circle inserts.

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Problem solved.
f.t.

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Thanks everyone for the great info and tips. They will be a big help going forward.

Gerald