Several years back MGS started a thread on the K-Frame large pre-war SILVER medallion stocks, that are somewhat of a rarity. That thread got a little sidetracked with some discussion on the relatively common GOLD dished medallion stocks of the same diameter that were used from approx. 1910 - 1920. Here is a link to that thread:

Large Medallion K Frame stocks

Recently, I came across a mint condition, nearly perfect set of the same and I saw George Jamison post a photo of beautiful set on an 1905 4th M&P Target in post #20 of this thread:

What did I find in the attic?

I posted a response in the above referenced thread, but upon second thought, decided that this topic needed a thread of its own.

I believe that these stocks were some of the earliest silver medallion K-Frame stocks that were replaced shortly thereafter by the smaller silver medallioned pre-war K-Frame stocks and that from that time forward the large SILVER medallions were used exclusively in the N-Frame "service" and "magna" stocks. All of them that I have become aware of are numbered in the 611XXX range and one set that I saw on a gun (on GB) with matching numbers was a 4" 1905 4th M&P fixed sight gun in the 611XXX range.

Here is my set:





Comparison with a set of "normal" small silver medallioned stocks in the 634XXX range:





Your thoughts and photos are much appreciated.

Thanks,

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

Very interesting! I'm a fairly new collector of Smiths, and had not noticed the different sized medallions.

This one of my M&P's with the large silver medallions, 610953 shipped August 3 1932. Its just a shade before your 611's.

Thanks Richard for this thread on these pre war grips.

The set you see on my target m&p do not number to that gun. There is
a number written in pencil on the right hand grip but I can not make
it out.

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George Jamison

Brigham:

As a numbers guy, I'm going to round your SN to 611XXX. Close enough for gov work. Seriously, though that is the 1st set in the relatively small population that I have come across that is still in the 610's.

Thanks for sharing,

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

I just acquired this one over the weekend. Serial number 292xxx, which puts it very close in date to the one referred to in David's post number 24 above. The picture makes it look bluer than it actually is. I think it had some kind of lacquer on it that came off when I cleaned it. The grips are aftermarket, with the markings partially rubbed off. But I can read .32 hand ejector, terrier, and 22/32 kit gun on the back. It's not in the greatest shape mechanically but it was so cute I thought I'd take it home.

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Chuck, I think your post ended up in the wrong thread. This one has only four posts in it before yours. Did you have another thread open in another window or tab at the same time?

Those are probably postwar Jay Scott grips, which would have fit all of the models you mentioned as being identified on the back. Nice looking gun. You can have a lot of .32 caliber fun letting that one get its exercise.

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David Wilson

I will repeat here verbatim what I posted in the older thread Richard mentioned that started to wander and died in the middle of topic drift.

My large-medallion K-Service stocks:



On the right inside surface is the stamped three-digit number 127.



But if you look above the stamp and the screw hole, you will see a six-digit number in pencil that starts 611. I think the three following blurry digits are the same as the stamped digits -- 127.

So here's another set of large-medallion K-frame service stocks numbered in the 611xxx range. Guns with serial numbers a little higher shipped as early as 1931 and as late as the mid-1930s. The earliest date that one of the 611xxx guns could have shipped is not clear, but might be 1930.

That's pretty close to the end of the medallion-free 1920s era, and I wonder if the large medallion service stocks on K-frames might be the first of the stocks with reintroduced medallions in the 1930s. For whatever reason (splitting wood and ruined stocks? Simple availability from the supplier?), the large medallions were quickly dispensed with and the smaller medallions were used in service stocks until Magnas displaced them as the standard stocks on S&W revolvers a few years later.

The K-22 was not yet in production when the 611xxx guns were being produced. The lowest serial number for a K-22 OD is about 20,000 higher.

I wonder if any .32-20 HEs were equipped with large medallion stocks. I have never heard of one, and I suspect that all the guns on which these distinctive stocks were installed were .38 M&Ps. It would be interesting to know if they were all square butts, or if some round butt stocks were produced with large medallion inserts.

If anyone else has serial numbers to offer that bear on this question, please post them. We seem to have heard of earlier large medallion guns in the 610xxx range, but there has been no reference yet to these stocks on guns numbered in the 612xxx range.

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David Wilson

David Damkaer, long-time editor of the S&WCA Journal in the 1980's, put together a
scholarly Journal article on these grips, and all their variants. It's in Vol 20 Number 4
Winter 1986, titled "K-frame Stocks". I just briefly reread it, and I didn't see anything
about the large medallions. There is another article that talks about these.

Mike Priwer

David:

Since I initially posted this thread, I have seen several more large medallion K Frame service stocks and they were all in the 610XXX to 611XXX range. I have not made note of any in the 612XXX range.

I know that you have seen them (as you posted and followed the thread), but there are 5-6 more sets posted in Chad's 12/5/12 thread (fun to re-read) :

Pre War Large Medallion K Frame Grips

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

I have M&P Model 1905, 4th, s/n 611490 with the large silver medallions. I have not lettered the gun. I will take the stocks off , check the markings, and update this post.

Update - My gun had the right stock stamped with the full 611490 s/n. There is also a faint pencil mark that I cannot make out.

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Dennis
SWCA #2409, SWHF #353

Were the large silver medallions ever put in early Magna stocks?

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

Your thoughts

something like gee thanks Richard something else I need to find

Also that it is educational for me and something else I would like to hunt for.

I really need more ammo on this safari

All N Frame pre-war magnas have the large medallions. However, I have never seen large medallions in the pre-war K Frame magnas, which I believe were only available in the very late 1930's and 1940. This would be consistent with the belief that the large medallioned K Frame service stocks were only available for a very short period in the early 1930's. BTW - Here is a photo comparing the N Frame service stocks with the large medallioned K Frame service stocks (N's on the left and K's on the right):

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Richard
Engraved S&W fan

I figured I'd add my Model 1905 stocks to this old thread, since it was referenced in my post about my new Target 1905 M&P. It appears these large medallion K frame stocks are unusual, so I thought it might be helpful to add some pics. I can see some old pencil writing on the inside of the number (675427) stamped stock, but can't make it out. Anyways I hope this adds to the information on these stocks.

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Tom
"Panem et Circenses"