Hi Kevin, those are the nicest grips I have ever seen on a recent Pietta, and all that for $150 with free shipping. While my brass framed 1851 and 1858 .22s aren't a fact in history, they can just written off as an Italian invention. I can do that since my family is Italian.
I think that the brass framed BP revolvers are simply beautiful in their own right. Being set up as .22s will let me shoot in my basement all winter. I don't even need to wipe them down after shooting. I have other .22 handguns, but find shooting the 1800s single actions brings me the most shooting enjoyment.
I'm still suffering on whether I should file down the front sights. After years of buggering up some firearms, I have learned to keep all my gunsmiting attempts easily reversible.
Regards,
Richard