View Full Version : New Grips
berettabone
07-10-2020, 10:35 AM
I've been carrying my SP101 with the stock grips and though I like them, they are a tad small for my hand. Ordered some G10 grips and they arrived yesterday. Putting them on proved to be a bit more than I asked for. Got the VZ Twister grips in black cherry with black hardware. They come with a couple of mounting pins. A large pin and a small pin that fit in a few choice holes in the grip to get a tighter fit, along with the large Ruger pin I had, used for the stock grips. Your supposed to try the small pin in 3 different locations on the grip and check for wobble in each location. I tried all three locations and didn't have any wobble with any of them. The problem that I did have was where the grips fit on the underside in front of the trigger guard. It just wasn't a good clean fit, in fact there was a large gap. Pin locations didn't seem to matter. Of course I had 2 options. Send them back or try to fix them. I chose the later, and after an hour of Dremel work, I got them to fit snug, and left the small pin out all together. I had read a review from a guy who said he did the same thing with the pin, just left it out. I sent them an email stating my disappointment, and explaining that I wasn't being paid for gunsmithing work, and at the cost of these grips, they should have mounted themselves. I told them that if I wanted to do gunsmithing, I would have ordered some grips from Thailand, or Pachmayr, where some fitting is expected................I tried to post some pics but my computer says that this site is not a secure site so it won't let me.:faint2:
Bawanna
07-10-2020, 11:36 AM
Strange, I post pictures and never seen that message. Kind of like to see these new grips.
Curious how you fixed a large gap with a dremel? Change the angle or something?
Sad to hear of your disappointment, new grips should be a happy thing.
berettabone
07-10-2020, 05:05 PM
Not sure what's going on. I've posted plenty of pics in the past. Ever since the site made changes is when it started. First time I've tried to post pics since the changes were made, whatever they were.
dustnchips
07-10-2020, 06:07 PM
No doubt you were wise to fit them yourself. If you had sent them back you would have gotten another pair just like them.
berettabone
07-11-2020, 07:35 AM
Strange, I post pictures and never seen that message. Kind of like to see these new grips.
Curious how you fixed a large gap with a dremel? Change the angle or something?
Sad to hear of your disappointment, new grips should be a happy thing. The grips had a couple of small humps in the trigger guard area. If I could post pics, I could show you. Going to try again with a different camera. I just sanded off the small humps on the inside and it did the trick. I usually don't do that kind of sanding work, but I took my time, thought about it and it worked out fortunately.
berettabone
07-11-2020, 06:55 PM
I don't know exactly what I did or didn't do, but I managed to get some pics of the new grips up. The spot right behind the trigger guard is where I had the issues.
Nice work - she's purdy.....
Bawanna
07-11-2020, 07:55 PM
Never seen any like that before. Looks like they be nice to hang on to.
Canine Dave
07-12-2020, 04:23 AM
I have a 342PD with a pair of cocobolo "Spegel's" on it. Very nice grips, look swell after a torturous life on a c.c. handgun. Just need to rub them on my nose occasionaly to bring up their natural sheen. (October born wife does this with her opals.)
If you'd like to read about the nuances of handgun grip fit from a "grumpy old man", pop over to Craig's web site, craigspegel.com and read all about it.
berettabone
07-12-2020, 09:53 AM
I AM a grumpy old man and I DO understand the "nuances" of handgun grip fitment.:p All of this is well and good but with some "makers", they're like a weatherman. What the hell, as long as I'm close, they can deal with it. That's great for grips that cost $30. Totally understandable. When you start paying in excess of $75 for little grips, my standards go up a notch. In my situation, I believe that Ruger has made 3 subtle frame changes to the SP101 since inception, identifiable by serial numbers. Usually, serial #'s below a start of 573 are one way, and above another. This is all info that is easily found on the net. You would think that someone who is an artisan in grip making would be aware of this and adjust accordingly, and ask about your serial number, and have handled the firearms themselves, so they understand the "nuances". Then people wouldn't have to either wait forever to get a replacement, which will probably be the same, or to fix it themselves, which releases the maker from any liability or warranty issues. This is not to say that ALL grip makers are like this, but many just use the "old standard". In my case, the grips were made by a large co. with large machines, and not too much hands on I would imagine. You would think that they would also be aware of the "nuances" and adjust accordingly themselves. Maybe grip makers should take a step back and realize that in the whole scheme of things, most firearm owners are not gunsmiths, and if you put a Dremel or a file in their hand, the results would be catastrophic at best. I am able to use a Dremel, so I guess you can say no harm, no foul. But for the rest of their customers, it turns in to a PITA.............................................. ..
Canine Dave
07-12-2020, 10:48 AM
I think ol' Craig has you covered. He sez...
"Second, I DO NOT offer any sort of money back refund if your gun is a little off from the norm.
Third, If you have any concerns about this, either call me for an explanation or don't place an order (see what I mean by the grumpy old man comment)."
I did place an order long time ago, and never looked back and never regreted it.
There is something special about his grips. I like to imagine Spegel's on my K9-sadly that will never happen.
Maybe you can pick up a nice used set on ebay. Check 'em out! (search spegel grips)
Dave
340pd
07-12-2020, 04:31 PM
My last pair of Spegel's took nearly three years from order to delivery.
https://i.postimg.cc/sDcyMKXP/586l_Comp_Spegel.jpg (https://postimg.cc/qzzWYs2g)
The Hogue G10's on my Kimber were a great improvement over factory grips.
https://i.postimg.cc/s2m5J0Cb/Kimber_fix.jpg (https://postimg.cc/sBBBjmXJ)
getsome
07-12-2020, 08:29 PM
Those look really nice bone, sorry you had to do so much to get them to fit but you done good....I've had good luck with a couple sets of grips from Altamont which fit very nice and the price was right but a while back I bought a set of Magna grips for a S&W model 19 from Midway and when they came the left grip was a light blond color and the right side was a dark walnut so I had to wonder what the person that picked them from inventory was thinking....I sent them back and they did refund me but it was a disappointment....Glad you got yours to fit finally and I bet they will do nicely.....
Canine Dave
07-13-2020, 04:06 AM
Those look really nice bone, sorry you had to do so much to get them to fit but you done good....I've had good luck with a couple sets of grips from Altamont which fit very nice and the price was right but a while back I bought a set of Magna grips for a S&W model 19 from Midway and when they came the left grip was a light blond color and the right side was a dark walnut so I had to wonder what the person that picked them from inventory was thinking....I sent them back and they did refund me but it was a disappointment....Glad you got yours to fit finally and I bet they will do nicely.....
They will do nicely. VZ makes good stuff. I had a pair of VZ slim Pros on my barbeque Hi Power. They fit good, gripped like a rasp, and really looked great. I sold that gun very recently so put the factory wood grips back on for the sale. The VZ's sold in a heart beat on another forum.
Dave
PS No one should ever be without a Hi Power. I still have my made in-assembled in-. It's fitted with Pachmayr Goodyears and they are fine.
berettabone
07-13-2020, 07:35 AM
Between the wait time and the cost, there's no way in Hades that I would pay that much or wait that long for grips. I also wouldn't use them on a regularly carried firearm. If others don't mind doing this, it's fine by me. Don't care if they trudged through the rain forest for weeks just to get a piece of wood. I especially wouldn't hang grips on a firearm that cost more than half of what the firearm cost. They only get so good. They're still just grips. Then what happens after a 3 year wait when they don't fit and you have to fix them yourself or wait another 3 years? Sorry, I don't have that much time to waste/wait. It's also what happens when makers get too big for their britches. "Call me with an explanation or don't order". "I do not offer any sort of money back refund if your gun is a little off from the norm". The only reason your firearm would be off from the norm is if you dropped it off of a 10 story building. A few thousandth's of an inch can be expected in manufacturing, but the grips I purchased were much farther off than a few thousandth's. Yeah, that's who I want to order from. Some call it grumpy, I call it egotistical a-hole, especially when he's taking your hard earned money. Just another overpriced weatherman......................:rolleyes:
Bawanna
07-13-2020, 11:20 AM
My last pair of Spegel's took nearly three years from order to delivery.
https://i.postimg.cc/sDcyMKXP/586l_Comp_Spegel.jpg (https://postimg.cc/qzzWYs2g)
The Hogue G10's on my Kimber were a great improvement over factory grips.
https://i.postimg.cc/s2m5J0Cb/Kimber_fix.jpg (https://postimg.cc/sBBBjmXJ)
Do you install the grips on that Smith and then put a wood plug in to cover the screw? Never seen that before, Matches perfectly but must be tough to remove the grips?
Canine Dave
07-13-2020, 08:28 PM
My last pair of Spegel's took nearly three years from order to delivery.
https://i.postimg.cc/sDcyMKXP/586l_Comp_Spegel.jpg (https://postimg.cc/qzzWYs2g)
The Hogue G10's on my Kimber were a great improvement over factory grips.
https://i.postimg.cc/s2m5J0Cb/Kimber_fix.jpg (https://postimg.cc/sBBBjmXJ)
Remember, rub those gorgeous spegels on your nose every now and again. The G10's, maybe not.
Planedude
07-14-2020, 07:31 AM
I think ol' Craig has you covered. He sez...
"Second, I DO NOT offer any sort of money back refund if your gun is a little off from the norm.
Third, If you have any concerns about this, either call me for an explanation or don't place an order (see what I mean by the grumpy old man comment)."
I did place an order long time ago, and never looked back and never regreted it.
There is something special about his grips. I like to imagine Spegel's on my K9-sadly that will never happen.
Maybe you can pick up a nice used set on ebay. Check 'em out! (search spegel grips)
Dave
I'm three years in on Mr. Spegel's wait list. I've enjoyed our (short) talks over the years, while checking to see about my place on the list. Craig sounds like a great guy, so maybe some day I'll get a couple of pairs. I'm lucky in life though, married a fine woman 37yrs ago, have a great professional life and have the money to spend. I'm young enough and healthy enough to have some time in life to wait... so I ain't complaining.
I used VZ G10 boot grips for many years on my EDC S&W 642 and I love them. I switched over to CT laser boot grips two years ago, at my wife request, just in case she every had to grab the gun when the SHTF...
I have lucked out over the years and never bought a set that didn't fit fine, but as an aircraft mechanic "trim to fit" is my profession so it would be no worries...
Peace
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