Smith & Wesson Model 41 .22 Auto Grips, Checkered Hardwood

These grips are beautiful. Works of art. However, the milled tabs on the inside of the grips did not line up perfectly with the slot in the steel magazine retainer. Off by maybe a millimeter and they would not seat properly. I chose not to return the product. I used a Dremel to remove a tiny bit of material from the side of the tab on each grip to make them fit. Once I did that, they fit perfectly.

These were to replace the original grip on a 1970 Model 41 I recently acquired that had a big chip missing from the bottom left (common problem on older grips). The originals were walnut, the package for the new ones just said hardwood, but the grain is nice on the new ones. The checkering on the new ones does not extend to the back as far as the originals, but it is sufficient. The new ones do use a couple of tightly fitting locating pins in the rear of the grips to lock them together, the originals did not. I could feel the originals flex a little when using a tight grip, the new ones don't. The new grips have a satin finish rather than the glossy finish of the originals. The ambidextrous thumb rests are a little more rounded than the original ones, I actually prefer the new ones for left-handed use.