Clawson's book will be helpful, but I don't know of any book detailing how to identify the parts by maker and year. The only way would be by examining and cataloging the machine tool markings on each part, and that has not (AFAIK) been done. Some work has been done, but again AFAIK has not been published. As an example, the machine tool marks on a US&S pistol are unique and would clearly identify a US&S frame even without any other indications. Similarly, the later Remington-Rand slides were ground on the sides and those marks can usually be seen and are unique, different from the planer or mill marks used elsewhere. Areas that do show in the book are the USP and model number font and position. They can usually show definitively if a slide is mismatched to a frame.
HTH
Jim
P.S. The last sale I saw of the "big book" was for $495. It is probably more now.
JK
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