"Cordwood" revolver grips?

Daryl (deceased) · April 14, 2009, 12:06:08 PM

Many years ago, I cut a couple of slabs from a mesquite stump off of a property I was cleaning up. I think it was from this pile, in fact:

So, a few days ago I was a bit bored, and decided to make a set of grips for one of my Ruger SA revolvers.

I started out by sanding one side of one slab smooth...and did this by hand. Not an easy task, considering I cut the slab with a chainsaw.

Then I used an old set of grips to draw an outline for the new ones, and cut them out with my wife's electric scroll saw.

After that, I used a dremel tool to rough-shape them, which turned out to be a pretty good "rough in", and finished by hand sanding to finish shaping and smooth them up.

They aren't the prettiest grips I've seen, by far, but they aren't bad (and they're basically "free of cost", which is good these days). They're shaped so that the sights line up naturally for me, and are a little wider along the back strap area to help a bit with recoil, and are a bit oversized to help with a two handed hold (which is what I prefer for shooting in the field).

Now I need to finish the coats of oil, and find/inistall the screw set-up that holds them on. Not sure where to find those, but maybe midwayusa or brownells will have them.

The first picture is of bare wood, and the second is with one coat of tru-oil; in fact, the oil was still a bit wet.

subsonic · April 14, 2009, 01:03:28 PM

Nice!

You may be able to order the screw and escucheon (sp?) from either Ruger or Numrich (egunparts.com)

rockinbbar · April 14, 2009, 01:12:17 PM

Great work, Daryl!

You going into the business?

Daryl (deceased) · April 14, 2009, 01:24:35 PM

Quote from: rockinbbar;91931Great work, Daryl!

You going into the business?

LOL! Not unless I get better equipment; that's for sure and for certain!

I mostly did it to see if I could, and how they'd turn out. They aren't bad for a first try, and I learned a few things, too (the second grip turned out better fitted than the first, even though the first is acceptable for the working gun I'm going to put them on).

There's an endless supply of mesquite around here though, so who knows?

Daryl

Daryl (deceased) · April 14, 2009, 02:03:19 PM

Subsonic,

Thanks. I found the escutcheons/screws online. I'll order 'em in the next day or so.

:)

Daryl

Jamie.270 · April 14, 2009, 02:17:15 PM

So the perps are going to get "mesquite smoked?"

They do look nice!

davidlt89 · April 14, 2009, 02:44:53 PM

QuoteThey aren't the prettiest grips I've seen

I think they look good, outstanding job! it never ceases to amaze what some can do on here! God Bless.

RatherBHuntin · April 14, 2009, 05:16:23 PM

I like em, always wondered why you don't see more mesquite handles on stuff. I really like mesquite and after a few more coats of oil they're gonna be sharp for sure.

recoil junky · April 14, 2009, 07:00:31 PM

Very nice Daryl. Very nice.

RJ

gitano · April 14, 2009, 07:51:13 PM

I'd pay for some of that mesquite to wend its way northward. Maybe we could work out a trade.. Mesquite for caribou antler.

Oh yeah, those grips look nice too... :)

Actually, the first thing I would do with a couple of similar pieces is replace the plastic inserts in myuger Rynite stocks It actually makes it look "good". Mesquite would be perfect for that. I have two rifles with mesquite thumbholes on them. It's definitely pretty wood for stockwork.

Paul

Daryl (deceased) · April 15, 2009, 03:47:11 AM

Paul,

How big would the pieces need to be for your uses?

Mesquite isn't hard to find around here, but pieces large enough, straight enough, and with good enough quality for things like stockwork can be hard to find. That's probably why it's not used more often for such things.

But, pieces like I cut from that stump aren't too hard to get. The slab was just big enough for me to get the two grips from it, and I'd sure be willing to send you some like that. It works great for pistol grips, knife grips, and such.

In fact, I have one more piece from that same stump that I'll likely make a knife handle from. I have three I'm making, so maybe one would look good with a caribou antler handle. :)

The wind here is blowing about 50 MPH today and tonight, but it's supposed to settle down a bit tomorrow. I'll get out and see what I can get for good, cured wood for you then.

:)

Daryl

Daryl (deceased) · April 15, 2009, 09:49:06 AM

I put them on the revolver this morning before I coated them again.

I think they look pretty decent. I think I'll dull them just a bit when I'm finished. No sense in putting a shiney grip on a bead blasted handgun, huh?

Daryl

rockinbbar · April 15, 2009, 10:15:44 AM

Those look even better on the handgun! :)

Did you construct them as a one piece, or do you have to drill a hole for the hardware to have a two piece grip?

Daryl (deceased) · April 15, 2009, 10:33:01 AM

Barry,

They're the basic two piece panel, but a little thicker; especially along the backstrap. The hole for the pin at the bottom of the gripframe is fit perfectly (and tight), so they stay in place pretty well (I used a marker to put a bit of ink on the pin, and then used it to mark the place to drill).

I'll have to drill a screw hole once I get the screw and escutcheon. It shouldn't be a problem, and I can touch up the finish if I need to (worst case).

A friend of mine has a drill press I can use, so I'll probably wait 'till he gets back from his TDY assignment in Iraq later this month.

Daryl

gitano · April 15, 2009, 11:31:11 AM

Those look great Daryl! Good job!

Here are pictures of the grips I am referring to.

First, the whole Rynite stock:

Here's the wrist panel:

Here's the forearm panel:

Here's a picture providing some scale to the pieces:

The dimensions for the wrist panel blanks should be about five inches long by an inch and a half wide by half an inch thick - 5 x 1.5 x 0.5.

The dimensions for the forearm panel blanks should be about eight inches long by an inch and a half wide by half an inch thick - 8 x 1.5 x .375.

Looking at the revolver grips, it may be difficult to get a caribou antler shaft large enough in diameter to span the width at the bottom. Send me a measurement of the widest point on the panels, and I'll do some measuring. However, no sweat for knife scales.

I'll be the first to admit that replacing the panels on this stock with wooden inserts will very nearly be the literal application of putting lipstick on a pig. However, I've seen the completed work, and it legitimately dresses up an ugly stock. At least to me.

Paul