aggressive stippling?

[jmoore]

I am one of the few who really likes the RTF2 texture on the Gen III Glocks. So - I'm looking to get some added grip on the M&P 9 as well. Has anyone had theirs done, and it came back with what you thought was stippling that was TOO aggressive? If so - I'd like the name of the person/company who did it:)

TIA

john

[JackOSU]

Personally I think the best method is the DIY job if you're somewhat proficient and patient to work on it for a few hours. I did my daily carry 19 and rail panels on my AR.

If you DIY and happen to make it too agressive you can file it down some with light sand paper or a dremel wheel.

If you want to wait for a professional then Ben @ Boresight Solutions is probably your best bet.

http://www.boresightsolutions.com/

[wesprt]

I did a fairly nice job with a Wal Mart soldering iron.

The rougher the better. Only concession I had to make after doing it was to always wear an undershirt, but that's not really a big deal. You can't have a pistol handle that is too grippy.

[Dirknar]

I started practicing on some P-mags with a cheap old soldier iron and have gotten some great results.. I wanna have a system down before I do my Glock though..

[NCPatrolAR]

I find Dan Burwell's "sharkskin" texturing on M&Ps to be high traction enough for me. Many say it's too aggressive but not I

[Robb Jensen]

I do mine myself.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v408/gotm4/3gunrifle2-1.jpg

[Magsz]

The RTF textures are great for gripping but pure hell for carrying as they WILL tear the shit out of your clothes.

To date there are very few companies that are producing textures that are conducive to grip while not being so abrasive that they ruin your hands and tear up your gear. Also, one of the biggest issues with traditional stippling is that it tends to wear down over time. Larger burn swathes like what Robb has done above while not pretty (no offense) will most likely last forever.

Here is an example of some texturing that caused a couple of my police officer friends to cry foul. :)

http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/5729/cdimpstippling11of1.jpg

[Lucky Strike]

To date there are very few companies that are producing textures that are conducive to grip while not being so abrasive that they ruin your hands and tear up your gear. Also, one of the biggest issues with traditional stippling is that it tends to wear down over time. Larger burn swathes like what Robb has done above while not pretty (no offense) will most likely last forever.


Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder....I find the style of Rob's work, looks like tree bark to me (Bowie also does that pattern) to be the best looking style of stippling out there. I'm currently trying to find someone local that can do the same.

That being said to the OP....fine grit sand paper can make any stippling that's too aggressive less "harsh". I had stippling done that was too aggressive and 30 seconds with sandpaper made it perfect.

It's definitely a situation where the end user can fine tune to their preference

[kalashnikov74]

I don't know where you're at, but I had mine done at a local place in Colorado. I'm really happy with how it came out. Trying to do it on my own would've been a disaster :sarcastic:

[Lucky Strike]

I don't know where you're at, but I had mine done at a local place in Colorado. I'm really happy with how it came out. Trying to do it on my own would've been a disaster :sarcastic:

I'm in oregon, and yeah i'm much too chicken to try it on my own...i've got a guy who's assured me he can do it but he just wanted to build a better tool end so he can do it more efficiently. When he's ready I'm gonna have him to one of the grip panels that I don't use first just to make sure his work is up to snuff

[Biggy]

This guys (http://coldborecustom.com/) tactical texturing/stippling is pretty aggressive. I prefer his carry texturing for my pistols though, as it is very factory looking with just enough bite. His prices and turn around times are very good.

[mikecon75]

Has anyone done it themselves and have an oopps story? I am thinking along the lines of I could probably do it, but what happens if I mess it up? Will it be salvageable?

[Robb Jensen]

Has anyone done it themselves and have an oopps story? I am thinking along the lines of I could probably do it, but what happens if I mess it up? Will it be salvageable?

Go slow and practice on old A2 grips etc. Some plastics melt faster than others. Gen 1&2 Glocks melt much easier than Gen 3&4 Glocks. I mount the wood burning tool in a vise in AR barrel blocks and push the plastic into the tool. Wear gloves (I use Mechanix gloves) and use a fan to keep from breathing up the fumes and keeping the smoke out of your eyes. Some plastics get stringy and you'll need to clean the bit often with a steel brush. I make my bits from brass screws and custom shape them. I use the 25W Weller wood burning tool from Lowes.

[mikecon75]

Hey Robb, Thanks for the tips. I hadn't thought of trying it on a A2 grips before, I think I'll give it a shot. Thanks again.

[one]

One thing I would recommend highly is what I consider the "prep" work before the stippling starts. If you're doing a full over stipple job you need to work out the checkering and the "lined" high spots in the frame.

Make sure the checkering is worked down smooth as possible and the outlined squares that border it are streamlined down. I use the flats of the wood burning tool or spade style tips to work these areas down flush. Another key area has been the outline border that encompasses where the factory faux like stippling is on the sides of the gun.

If you don't work these areas down you'll wind up with a shadowing or ghosting of what is underneath your stipple job.

On the underside of the trigger guard, if you stipple that, I wouldn't recommend doing the entire thing. Best I found was doing the front strap of the trigger guard and bringing it underneath from the front about 1/4 or 1/2 the way. If you do the entire bottom of it, and into the relief cut you're going to find that under a lot of practice firing you'll eventually rub the side of your middle knuckle on your middle finger raw.

I've gotten my best results stippling with the chisel tip end of a wood burning tool. Go slow and relax. Don't feel like you have to finish the entire frame in one sitting. It's ok to walk away from the job for the evening and pick up where you left off the next evening after you've rested. The work will take time but the benefits are well worth it.

There are many, many pictured examples of stipple jobs online and on this forum. I'd collect as many as I could that I liked if I were you and go back and study them to see what appeals to you when you're ready to do it.

One thing tool wise. The chisel tip on the wood burning tool will wear down over time. I'd select a tool that the store carries replacement tips for.

Anyway, that's what's worked for me. I've got somewhere between a dozen to fifteen Glocks behind me with these techniques. Robb here has offered some excellent advice. I usually prefer to use the wood burning tool held more as a pencil though. Grab an old A2 grip like he said to start with and see how that goes.

[jmoore]

Only concession I had to make after doing it was to always wear an undershirt, but that's not really a big deal. You can't have a pistol handle that is too grippy.

...as I live in the Republic of Illinois, i.e., no CC. I would always be grabbing it from a stash point in the house, or the center console of the truck. In either case - I want GRIP:)

Thanks.

john

[theblackknight]

Go slow and practice on old A2 grips etc.

^Dang thats some OG knowledge.^Never thought of that.

I went super agressive on the front strap and back.

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a56/mxer1/IMG_20100906_205536.jpg
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a56/mxer1/IMG_20100906_205349.jpg
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a56/mxer1/IMG_20100906_205220.jpg

[Chadzillaa]

Do it yourself! Its really easy and the results are fantastic. Check out this video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-JQXnox4Yw

[deuce9166]

Go slow and practice on old A2 grips etc. Some plastics melt faster than others. Gen 1&2 Glocks melt much easier than Gen 3&4 Glocks. I mount the wood burning tool in a vise in AR barrel blocks and push the plastic into the tool. Wear gloves (I use Mechanix gloves) and use a fan to keep from breathing up the fumes and keeping the smoke out of your eyes. Some plastics get stringy and you'll need to clean the bit often with a steel brush. I make my bits from brass screws and custom shape them. I use the 25W Weller wood burning tool from Lowes.

Robb, how do you shape your brass screws?

I just re-stippled a few G35's. I will try to get some pics up. I like the aggressive texture. I really like TruGrips, but they can be hard to come by. I also like 20lpi checkering on 1911's. I can always get new clothes, but I hate tracking my sights down.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/deuce9166/g35full.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/deuce9166/g35grip2.jpg

[aveisone]

If those are aggressive then I went very aggressive on my rail panels. I too have and love my 19RTF. I have carried it quite a bit but it needs a layer of clothing between it and the skin to be "comfortable". I usually bring the 26 out now. Rail panel pics:

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j253/aveisone/IMG_1265.jpg

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j253/aveisone/IMG_1266.jpg

[Cesiumsponge]

I did my Glock 17, it was easy. I had the luxury of a temperature-regulated soldering station which adds a bit more precision than a standard iron or woodburning tool. My advise is if you do the heated tool method and want to remove the fuzzies afterwards, use a couple disposable razors to shave off the fuzzies gradually. Using sandpaper tends to push the fuzzies around but cuts down the peaks of the stippling which is what makes it grippy.

I'd also test it out. Get some motor oil or lubricant slathered all over your grip and test it out to simulate sweat or blood. I did this with the factory Gen3 stippling/squares and found it unacceptable under such artificially-induced adverse conditions which was why I decided to DIY stipple. Several hours and $100 saved later...
\\http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5298/5520605776_e794faef1a_o.jpg

I've since added horizontal lines on the front of the slide where the thumb would index. I found these look a bit better than a big patch of stippling, and the horizontal orientation of the engraved vees prevents your finger from wanting to slip off vertically.

[one]

I'd love to see an updated pic with the horizontal lines.

[Cesiumsponge]

Here is a photo of it. I don't think they're deep enough yet so I'm not entirely happy. I started with sharp point but put a very small radius at the end because I was afraid it would dig into the plastic too much when I dragged the soldering iron tip across the frame. I'm going to go back and do it again with a very sharp tip to get a deeper valley in the grooves now that I feel more confident. I didn't do it in a scientific manner, just took a metal ruler and used it as a guide to drawing the soldering iron tip across the frame multiple times.

It is deeper than it looks, I used head-on lighting which doesn't cast a shadow into the grooves. I might put a vertical line in the front and a slanted vertical line to the rear of that patch to "box in" the ends visually. It looks kind of ratty when zoomed in that much but looks fine when you hold it 8" away.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5139/5562572035_2a6ed433df_o.jpg

[one]

10-4 thanks.

[bkb0000]

if it wasn't for tearing up your clothes, i'd have stippled a long time ago. not sure if i've ever mentioned it on this board before, but i use bat tape on my pistol grip. i use it on my carbine, too.. but it really excels on a pistol. anybody who's played baseball know how it works.... is smooth against anything but your hands, but when you wrap your hand around it, becomes as sticky as tape- and sticks just as good when wet.

something to consider, for those who don't want to tear up the insides of their jackets.

http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab6/bkb0000/pistols/100_0719.jpg?t=1301205191

[one]

I'm really curious to try the bat tape on my Gen 2.5 26. No checkering on it makes for a slippery gun.

[Cesiumsponge]

Bat tape, there's an idea I've never thought about. Does it work equally well if your hands become slippery? I'm not sure how sweaty hands get in baseball but if you needed grip under adverse conditions with a firearm, water, sweat and possibly blood would be things you're fighting against. I'd be curious to know because that doesn't appear to make the grip noticeably larger and it's a quick solution.