Ok, I spent quite a little bit of time searching the net and found around 1500 uses of the word "prawl".
Here is the pith of the search results.
I saw prawl used in place of:
prowl (esp "on the prawl" sic)
pawl (partner to the ratchet wheel--this is quite common, bolstering Lancel's theory)
prawn (large shrimp like animal--simple typo)
sprawl (another simple typo)
proper name (surname)
a few unknown
www.lawafrica.com/lsk/online/distress.asp
Absolutely NO clue what the writer means with this use.
www.automotivehelper.com/topic146085.htm
Window crank perhaps--I think he means pawl.
www.pfa-frozenfish.com/pfa2/pelag1.html
Suspect this is supposed to read "trawl net"
BUT, now we're getting to something interesting
place name (particularly "Prawl Point" in the UK)
www.devon.gov.uk/library/locstudy/sx73gre.html
There is a place in Britain (Devonshire) called "Prawl Point". This got me to thinking. I found three uses of the word "prawl" referring to the top of the backstrap in a revolver. These were ALL by British sources or were referring to British revolvers. It seems possible that this usage arose from the likeness of the shape of the grip to the shape of this geographical feature. The point is probably named for a person. Older maps show it labeled "Prawle Point". If you look at the map link above, you can see that the river/coastline roughly forms a revolver grip on its back (the barrel would be pointed northeast--if there was a barrel) with Prawl Point making a pretty good representation of what "prawl" is supposed to mean to the gun world.
Here are the only three references to "prawl" as part of a revolver grip that I found. One is describing a Webley revolver, the other two are in gun descriptions by a single British Auction house, Bonham & Butterfields.
members.aol.com/hrftx/TBBD.htm
www.butterfields.com/areas/arms/7378A/detail/7378a-9288.htm
www.butterfields.com/areas/arms/7480a/detail/7480a-1079.htm
A fourth was referenced by the search engine but the page was gone. It appeared to be a quote from the first of the three above.
So, I think that there are two possible origins.
1. Misuse and improper spelling of the word "pawl."
2. A coined word referencing a likeness of the grip protrusion to a geographical feature.
Either way, I'm still of the opinion that "prawl" needs to be scrapped since it is not clear how it arose, if it is a true word, and since, at best, it is so obscure as to be useless in terms of communicating the desired information.
