J-frame grips

[Ascot500]

Are the grip frames on new J frame Smiths shorter than the used to be?

I bought a (cheap) used set of grips at a show and they are too short for my older airweight.

They may have been mismarked, but I was wondering if there had been a change.

 

[HighVelocity]

Grips for a 32 hand ejector, and the like, LOOK like J-frames but they are not. The opposite thing happened to me when I picked up some Stag grips for what I thought was a J-frame but they were too long. :banghead:

 

[Ascot500]

I looked again and realized that the grip frame on my airweight (37) is the same shape as a 22/32 kit gun I once owned.
Would that be considered a square butt?

Looking at pictures of other 37's & 36's on GB is see a mix of grip frame shapes.

What's up with that?

 

[Old Fuff]

Early J-frames had the same size butt (and stocks) as the earlier Improved I-frame. But before long S&W lengthened both the trigger guard and butt. The butt looked the same, but was 1/8" longer. The square butt style was introduced in the model 36/37 series, and was never changed.

Usually stocks made for the early, short, round-butt will be marked "Chief Special," not "Model 36/37."

 

[Ascot500]

So what is the shape of current production?

They appear shorter than what I have, but it's hard to tell with the "boot" grips.

 

[Old Fuff]

Current production round-butt S&W J-frames take the longer (by 1/8") stocks, but the handle may look shorter because the boot grips are wide looking, front to back. I believe that all round-butt J-frames that have the model number stamped on the frame behind the yoke (36, 36-1, etc) use the longer stocks.