New to me 1951 K22 Masterpiece Pre 17

[Lt.Donn]

I only had one 17, a 17 no dash, so I was happy to add this to the collection. Pretty clean gun.

Serial K135724 dates it to 1951, I believe. Serial on the butt of the frame, the cylinder, and barrel all match.

It has a small repair on one of the grips. I'm sure I could find a more perfect set of grips without the repair, but these are pretty nice and numbered to the gun. What are thoughts on that? Better to have a perfect set of grips, or the set numbered to the gun with a small repair?

She's a beaut...and what great shooters they are, from back when the great rivalry between Colt and Smith was raging

 

[RKmesa]

One of the things that I love about S&W Revolvers is the ease with which a set of grips/stocks can be changed. A few twists of an appropriately fitting screwdriver and the gun can look totally different. I collect revolvers and I collect grips/stocks for those revolvers, and I routinly play "musical grips" with my guns trying to get the perfect look and fit for both the gun and the grips. NOTE: if I have the original grips that number to the gun they always stay in close proximity to that gun (usually in the box) even if I like another set on the gun better. That way, it can be restored to "original grip condition" with a few twists of a screwdriver.

 

[KalamazooKid]

Very nice K-22! As mentioned, there's no wrong answer on the stocks - you do whatever YOU want to do. Only thing you might try is a nice set of target stocks as they can be sweet if you have big hands. But whatever, shoot the heck outta that thing!