M&P Grip question

[57jeeper]

Hi to the group.

Last week I happened across an old M&P model 1905 4th change. It has a little light rust on the bluing but has at least 95% of the original finish. There was rust on the shiny metal parts like the hammer and trigger and on the inside. I polished off the rust on the shiny parts and from the moving parts inside. While I had it apart i did a polish on all the moving parts. It looks pretty good now, and the only thing I would like to change are the grips.

Back to my question, since this is the old style action, will grips from a K Frame fit this style frame?

Thanks.

 

[wheelgun610]

... will grips from a K Frame fit this style frame?

Yes, any K frame square butt stocks will work.

Mark

 

[Göring's S&W]

Yes, any K frame square butt stocks will work.

Actually, grips made after about 1950 won't fit very well. That was when the K grip frame size became a smidgen shorter. Ideally, you should look for pre war K frame square butt grips. The early post war "sharp shoulder" K frame grips would fit (same size as pre war), but they are hard to find....

 

[glowe]

Since the revolver most likely dates back to the 1920s, I would keep the vintage look. 1920 stocks come up for auction quite often on ebay and they are usually not too expensive. They should look like the ones in the picture below.

 

[wheelgun610]

Actually, grips made after about 1950 won't fit very well. That was when the K grip frame size became a smidgen shorter....

Jim, I know we've had that discussion here a few times regarding N frame grips. It's even been documented on several occasions. I personally don't recall ever running into that with K frames in the context of pre and post-war frames.

So to cover my tail feathers before offering a rebuttal, I just pulled out the first two K frame revolvers I came to and actually measured the distance from the bottom of the frame to the bottom of the stock locating pin. There was actually less than .005" difference between my mid-30's M&P target (649000 S/N range) and a Combat Masterpiece in the K 296000 range. I'd think that would be a pretty trustworthy random sample.

That .005" difference wouldn't represent a difference between pre-war and post-war frame sizes as much as just the normal differences (i.e.; manufacturing tolerances) between virtually any two guns of the same frame size.

And, based on my 21 years of experience in firearms manufacturing, I think it's safe to say that that variable would come mostly from the polishing operation.

I may also have presumed that the OP was interested in a larger set of stocks to make his revolver more comfortable to shoot, hence my initial reply to his question.

Mark

 

[DWalt]

Sometimes postwar grips fit earlier K-frames OK, and sometimes they don't. Several times I have needed to do a little fitting with a woman's fingernail emery board (don't laugh, it works) or with a Dremel tool. I have even encountered fitting problems with pre-war frames and non-original pre-war stocks fitting properly

 

[gmborkovic]

What is a "smidgen"? Is that similar to a "skootch" or a "RPH"?
I have never heard of the term. When I bake my world famous apple
pie, I use a "pinch" of this or that. Yes, Im raising an issue. Nice word for jerk. Mike 2796

 

[rjb1]

Mike - You must be from "up North". "Smidgen" is a common Southern unit of small quantity. It's equivalent in cubic-centimeters is not known, but you would know a smidgen when you saw one.
("Skootch" sounds alien to me...)

 

[wheelgun610]

... I have even encountered fitting problems with pre-war frames and non-original pre-war stocks fitting properly

I'm sure most of us who've swapped stocks have found that pretty much holds true - whether we're talking about pre or post-war guns. And again, a lot of that variation is manufacturing tolerance, but the "match polishing" of the stocks to the frames accounts for most of the differences we see from one set of stocks to the next and from one frame to the next.

Mark

 

[glowe]

Mike - You must be from "up North". "Smidgen" is a common Southern unit of small quantity. It's equivalent in cubic-centimeters is not known, but you would know a smidgen when you saw one.
("Skootch" sounds alien to me...)

I am just about as far north as you can get and my mother always used that term. I think Mike must have lived a sheltered life.

 

[gmborkovic]

Its Mike, born, raised and educated in Virginia. Moved to south Fl. Just havin some fun with you boys. Mike 2796

 

[Göring's S&W]

Thanks for clarifying Mark. I didn't realize that only the N frame grip frame lengths changed noticeably.

I probably learned the term "smidgen" from some cantankerous old man that I admired for various reasons....despite the stereotype in this thread of it being a southern word, I heard smidgen up here and I have heard skootch up here as well.

Up here in Pittsburgh, "we red up the haus n nat near the crick on Thursdee"

 

[wheelgun610]

.... Just havin some fun with you boys.

OK, so what's a 'RPH'?

 

[glowe]

OK, so what's a 'RPH'?

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. . . and my personal favorite - Remote Piloted Hexapod

 

[H Richard]

In my part of the country, a Smidgen is about half a Pinch. It sort of depends on how big your fingers are.