S&W 422 frame markings

[jay6ird]

I have one 422 with "422" on the right tang of the frame and one 422 with "422" on the left frame above the trigger guard. Anything special about this and which is the older pistol?? Both are blue with wood grips. Thanks

 

[murphydog]

The usual model stamping on these is in the latter position as you mentioned. If you can provide photos of and the three letter SN prefixes for them, chances are high we can tell you which one is older .

 

[shoot summ]

I've seen a few variations, not sure how they correlate to the date of manufacturer, I think it does somewhat correlate to a later manufacturing date. Post the first three letters of your SN, and the city of manufacture(Holton/Springfield) that will give a rough indication.

Some early pistols have "Model 422" on the right side behind the ejection port. The right grip on these pistols is cut straight across from the ejection port. Later(I believe) pistols the grip came up behind the ejection port.

Beyond that most pistols had 422 on the left side, but I have seen some weird variations of others in the family that had the model on the right side.

 

[Westie1]

My 422 has the "Model 422" behind the ejection port. Serial number is TCB25xx, and that's located above the trigger guard on the left side of the frame. Came with 1 10rd mag.

One thing to note, when I bought it new, didn't like the feel of the stock wood grips. So, dealer pulled the black grips off a fixed sight version and replaced the wood grips.

 

[jay6ird]

One is "UAB" and one is "TED" with both pistols being made in Springfield Mass and have four digit serials. Any info? Thanks