Blackfork has a beautimous picture up of a nicely worn set of target diamonds on his K-22.
(For those not conversant in S&W geek-speak, that means oversized target stocks, or "grips", of the old pattern, the one with the diamond in the center of the checkering, on a medium-frame target .22 revolver.)
Was the second picture of the Python reversed or are those left-handed grips?
ReplyDeleteGotta go back to my local (newly opened) small town gunshop where they guy has a stock(!) of Pythons. Most he keeps for his personal collection, but if I could talk him out of a 4" blued in good condition, I might be a very happy man.
"20 bucks delivered..."
ReplyDeleteMaybe he'll let me give him ten for that little pair of castoffs on the left ;O) AT
Thank you for saying stocks. Col. Cooper would be proud!
ReplyDeleteAT,
ReplyDeleteI've got a set of diamond magna grips just like that except in better condition, that came off my K-38 Combat Masterpiece,(I too replaced them with a set of vintage diamond target stocks from e-bay).
Just thought I'd offer.
Oops, may the ghost of Colonel Cooper have mercy on me I meant to say "stocks".
ReplyDeleteThank you Montie...very thoughtful and nice of you to offer.
ReplyDeleteI'm an ex-FFL and though most of my boxes o' bits went to the new owner of the business, I kept some nice vintage handgun furniture...mostly castoffs from dopes who couldn't wait to get Hogues or Uncle Mikes mounted.
At the time (80's & 90's) wheelguns were pretty universally disdained in favor of all the gee-whiz semis, and little thought was given that when those revolvers' bowling pin days were done, the original stocks should be remarried to the guns to retain the fitment and period wear that collectors look for.
My comment was in that vein, and was an apparently too-veiled admonition to Blackfork to keep them together. And you may think your K-gun has no chance of future collectibility, but a generation from now (and probably not that long considering how and from what most firearms are being made now), some collector may disagree...again, thank you for your kind offer, but keep 'em with the gun!
Also, as to your comments here and at CY regarding the Costco incident and others, I sense your concern, even some alarm, that policing - and police - ain't what they used to be. As a friend and acquaintance of many more senior officers (remember my gun counter? flies/honey) like yourself, I share your lament...and I don't know where we're headed in that regard.
AT
AT,
ReplyDeleteKnowing you are a regular commenter here at Tam's I thought I should at least make the offer.
Your assessment is correct regarding my concerns/alarm.
Thank you, sir!
Years ago I put Hogue grips on my Model 29, but still have the originals. Never occurred to me to get rid of them - for one thing, if I ever sold the gun, it seemed appropriate to have the original grips go with it, too.
ReplyDeleteDo people really dispose of stock grips? I really can't understand that. Even the rifles I've restocked still have the original wood available.
Steve: My "dopes" comment may have made it seem I was criticizing using the Hogues; I wasn't, on some guns I loved 'em, and anyone who shoots that .44M of yours much would love 'em too.
ReplyDeleteIt was of course not keeping originals with the gun when possible that I was harping at. "Do people really dispose of stock grips?" They do, and especially back in that day they did...and not just stocks but boxes, papers, tools, triggers, sights, etc. The aforementioned "boxes o' bits" that I left for the buyer of my shop was testament to that; I didn't realize how much of that crap I had 'til we started doing the inventory.
And as with most hindsight, it's clear to me now that I should have kept a lot more of it...I've mentioned before that the only thing that might entice me to endure the unpleasantness/liability of holding an FFL again would be a niche vintage iron shop...and those stocks, little blue boxes with waxed paper, etc. would have been major accoutrement for that.
So I guess I'm calling myself a dope too...ah, well, not the only and certainly not the worst of the dumb shit I've done.
AT
"...and those stocks, little blue boxes with waxed paper, etc. would have been major accoutrement for that."
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of how much of that stuff I pitched back in my "Glocks R Cool" days, I am nearly physically sick.
Just think of how much all those little S&W bore mops and screwdrivers are worth now... :(
First off, I am not a big fan of revolvers. Never saw the point of them, not with guns like the Browning HiPower and 1911 out there.
ReplyDeleteBut.
I love, love, LOVE my five-pin K-22.
Anon, my favorite handgun (not for shooting, if that makes any sense) is my grandfather's Colt Vest Pocket Auto in .25 ACP - blued with walnut grips. He bought it in 1927 on graduation from Northwestern, before moving to Seattle (I guess even then they thought you needed to pack heat coming out West - or maybe it was a Chicago "Roaring Twenties" thing).
ReplyDeleteAfter he died my mother gave it to me - in the original box, with manual and cleaning brush and a few boxes of old ammo. It would still be special to me without the accoutrements, but having the whole package is icing on the cake, and it's also a constant reminder of my grandfather's meticulous and organized personality.
Oh, and I did not take your "dopes" remark as criticism of Hogue grips - I assumed it was directed at those who throw out the originals.