Fancy S&W grips

[philmcon]

Hello Folks,
New member here from Chambersburg, PA.
My Dad, Emil McConnell was a collector in the northeast and was known as an expert on Griffin & Howe firearms as well as Savage and Colt. I have a pair of grips that I've not seen before that are in his estate and would appreciate any help in identifying them as to the model S&W they fit. They are similiar to grips that are featured on the cover of the 1951 The Gun Digest. The .357 Magnum was part of the John Barlow Collection of Milwaukee, WI.

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[GunNut]

Tough to say, hopefully somebody can come along and help you out more than I can.

 

[Richard Simmons]

Look like Roper stocks. Don't know for what revolver.

http://www.registeredmagnum.com/page_7.html

 

[SaxonPig]

Ropers.

I have never seen any with the finger grooves like that. If original they are worth a bunch, like $500-$1,500 depending on if original and how rare the grooved models are and what gun they fit. The N frame Smith models would bring the most, I think.

Like I said, I've never seen such a set.

 

[Old Fuff]

I agree with Saxon P. They are stocks made by Walter Roper, who was a pioneer in the field, and did most of his work between the 2 World Wars. Because his stocks were made on a custom basis the shapes varied, but finger grooves would be very uncommon. If you post a photograph of the underside inletting we might possibly be able to identify what gun they fit. Most of his work was for Colt and Smith & Wesson double action revolvers.

 

[philmcon]

Thank you very much, folks! I believe these are an original pair. Here's more images:

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[Old Fuff]

I think they were probably made for a Colt Officer's Model Match or Officer's Model Target revolver - and would also fit an Official Police or Python. I suspect they were made for an individual who had very large hands and no place to put his little finger.

As an aside, Roper also lived and worked as an engineer in the Northeast.

 

[SaxonPig]

I agree it looks like a Colt.

Ropers are very collectible.

 

[XavierBreath]

I agree, as well, probably Colt.

There is a sure way to spot Ropers. The jig holes in the back of the grips are square. It looks like you have that. There are a couple of other identification factors, which I will not mention, due to the increased risk of forgeries occuring. Rest assured, those factors are present in your grips as well.

Roper grips were all made by an employee, a Mr. Gagne, who was a master craftsman, and had worked for S&W. Roper was a salesman and sold the grips made by Mr. Gagne and called them "Roper" grips. the grips were actually made to fit the customer's hand. An outline of the customer's hand provided a guide for Mr. Gange.

Roper was born in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1881. Both his father and his grandfather were involved with the gun industry. In fact, his grandfather was awarded the patent for the choked shotgun barrel in 1866. The Roper men referred to themselves as engineers, not gunsmiths, which may imply something about how they viewed the trade. Roper attended prep school at Worcester Academy and graduated from MIT in 1903 with a degree in mechanical engineering. In 1918 he moved to Springfield and that is when his dedication to pistol shooting, experimentation and competition really began in earnest. Springfield was the home of the U.S. Armory and the Smith & Wesson factory and Roper soon established himself with the leading pistol and revolver shooters of the day—Colonel Roy D. Jones, General Julian S. Hatcher, J.H. FitzGerald, Captain Charles Askins and others. This clubby group really moved pistol competition from near non-existence to equal status with competitive rifle shooting in the 1920’s and 1930’s.
As an author, Roper contributed numerous articles to The American Rifleman magazine and wrote two books in the 1940’s. Pistol and Revolver Shooting was published in 1945 and Experiments of a Handgunner was published in 1949. He also co-authored Smith & Wesson Hand Guns with Roy C. McHenry. For many years he was the Sales Manager (later VP) for Smith & Wesson. During WWII he formed an engineering firm—Roper and Broderick—and did consulting work for other gun manufacturers. He died in 1954 at the age of 73.

Here is my Official Police in .22LR with Ropers.