Custom Revolver Grips

[legion]

I have a Colt Officer's Target model in .32 S&W Long. The rubber handgrips are entirely too small for me. So small, that my pinky does not fit on the grips.

I'd like to make my own handgrips for it. I'm sure it will take a few tries and I'll screw it up more than once.

I know next to nothing about woodworking. What kind of wood would be suitable for this task? Any tips for a beginner?

[ODDJOB UNO]

take patterns from NILS/HOGUE/ PACHMEYER, after finding which fits.



on both my model 60 smith in .38 and model 60 smith in .357 pachmeyer(decellerator model) adds length to grip to solve "hanging finger" conundrum.

[targa911S]

Any hardwood is good. Cocobolo,walnut, mesquite, bloodwood, tulip wood, the list is long. Tips? Go slow, take yer time. OR you can look at what these guys have, OR you can send them yer wood and let them cut them, then you finish them.

Colt Grips - Custom Pistol Grips and Kits - CollinsCraftGrips
Pistol Grips, Revolver Grips and Handgun Grips: grips4guns.com
Hand Carved, Pistol Grips,pistol,grips,carving,metal,inlay,exotic

I have used this place...
Hand Gun Grips, Gun Handles, Pistol Grip from Eagle Grips - Eagle Grips Inc.

[m21sniper]

You can probably just buy really nice hogue wood grips for it for about $70.00

[fred cook]

Take a look on Ebay, Gunbroker, AuctionArms, etc. You can usually find nice custom (used) grips at a good price. I bought a set of Colt grips done by Lew Sanderson for about $60 not too long ago. The seller did not know what they were for or who made them, otherwise they would have gone for $3-400 for the set! If you really want to carve your own grips, you can use the originals as a pattern. Pick the kind of wood you want to use but understand that some woods are harder to work than others. Cocobolo for example is very hard and very slick. I would start with some Walnut and once you figure out what you want them to look like, go to some of the more exotic wood. The Colt Officer's Model is a nice pistol ( I have one in .22 rimfire) and one that you will enjoy shooting!
Good luck with your project.

Here are a couple of picture of the custom grips on my OM.

[legion]

This is for an Officer's Target model, not an Officer's Model (though I have one of those too).

The Officer's Target Model is MUCH smaller and much rarer. No, it's rarity doesn't make it worth much of anything, it just makes it impossible to get parts for. The grips on this gun are a whopping 1.5 inches long by 1 inches wide. I need something more like 3.5 inches long by 1.5 inches wide.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Chris,

Just about any hardwood will do. I'm sure you have something laying around the yard you can practice with? Can you take a casting of the current grips and use this as a model to whittle a new set with? My FIL did this with some antlers a few years ago. It took him a couple of months working on it VERY part time. A sharp chisel, good knife, and moderately steady hands and you can do this yourself. Remember to oil the wood to protect it from splitting! (oh, and antlers are harder to work with per my FIL)

Oh, and some places sell blanks that you can customize yourself. But the blanks always seemed expensive to me...

[fred cook]

The Officer's Model is known as an "I" frame, the Officer's Model Target is an "E" frame. Both of these revolvers use the same size grips. The "I" frame guns were made before WWII, the "E" frame guns after the war. This should make it easier to find grips for your revolver.

[tabs]

Let me guess...the SN range on you OMT is in the 650K range....

The 32 in the OM is fairily rare...I sold a 7.5 inch 1920 mfg for $2800...at the begining of 09...sorry I sold that gun, as it was Colt special order...when I sold it I knew I would never see one again.

There have been several recent auctions where 32 Colt OMT in that 650K SN range have gone for $2800 NIB...these were made in a special run back in 1940-41. Other wise trying to find a 32 OM in anyother SN range is TOUGH if not impossible.

Now try to find one with the Full Colt King Super Conversion...I have seen TWO in over 30 years....I have one... I also have one NIB and one with King Sights..

Condition is everything on your pistola...as I said NIB is $2800...90% is $700-$800..these are rare and desirable to shooters...and collectors

A S&W K32...prewar with only 100 made is worth $15000 in just about ANY CONDITION...a post war NIB is trading around $3000 give or take, they made about 2700 postwars..I have a 1973 K32 NIB..never shot with paperwork.. I knew what was coming on those...and got one while the getting was good.
BTW Keep the original grips...

BTW on the Colt Officers Models I know just about as much as anyone out there...I collected the prewars for awhile....I know the guy who has the BEST Colt Prewar DA Collection in the world...he has an example of every model and in every model he has every Barrel length, every caliber and every finish, in each of the overlapping catagories...including special orders and factory prototypes..All told he has about 1000 Colt DA's

[legion]

Let me double-check. I think I might be confusing pistol models. I'm pretty sure I have nothing worth more thank $500 (no k).

I have a Colt Officer's Model in .38 special from the early 50's.

The model I'm trying to make new grips for is a very small frame Colt in .32 S&W Long. I thought it was an Officer's Target model, but the talk above about frame sizes and values has me second-guessing that.

[legion]

Okay, so the revolver I am trying to make custom grips for is a Colt Pocket Positive.

The Colt Officer's Model is one of the other revolvers I inherited. I'm not sure if it's a target or not, I haven't gotten it out to check.

[legion]

This is what I came up with:

I made the grips out of oak and shaped them with a dremel, some rasps, and a bench-top belt sander. I used chisels to carve out the compartment for the metal handle.

This was my first try. I had two other attempts, but I tossed them and went back to my first attempt.

They look okay. They are more functional than pretty. I used some glass-bedding material to fill in the gaps. It took color, but is visible on the outside. Right now, the two halves of the grips are essentially glued around the frame with glass-bedding resin. I haven't tried to separate them, and I'm not sure how without causing damage.

You can see the old grips to the right. These are much more comfortable and I might actually use the revolver now.

[ODDJOB UNO]

in no time at all you will be building stocks for all of us. look nice. that was damn fast must have been a heavy coffee day!

[targa911S]

Good job. I make stocks all the time, so if you have any questions about fit or finish shoot me a PM.

[legion]

I got the wood stock a week and a half ago and spent all day Saturday working the grips. I went out and bought a bench sander so that I could ensure that I filed the curves to the correct shape. (Though some of the later shaping ruined this.)

I need to refine my technique.

I basically shaped the outside the way I wanted it, then split it with my table saw. This removed about 1/8" of material.

I was thinking that getting a band saw would make for some easier shaping with less removal of material due to the blade width.

I need to make a stock/handgrip for my Marlin 36 out of Walnut. (I had a slight glass-bedding accident.)

Anyone have a stock duplicator?

[targa911S]

yes i do.

But go here for what you want.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=172341796

[legion]

Thanks. I may go with that.

A stock maker is a little more than I want to spend at this point.

[targa911S]

It would be more cost effective for sure. Why pay me when you can enjoy the pride of doing it yerself. I use semi inletted stuff like that for the most part. The only time I fire up the dupe is when a repro is not available or it's a custom job.