Chip
.30 Stingray
Posts: 294
|
Post by Chip on Mar 12, 2023 18:09:53 GMT -5
Anybody know what's up with Altamont grips?? Are they making grips?? A lot of the grips have been temporarily out of stock for awhile now or am I missing them offering them in between??
|
|
jeffh
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,744
Member is Online
|
Post by jeffh on Mar 12, 2023 20:30:07 GMT -5
I've checked regularly over the past couple years and gave up. Then, recently, I looked again and it just seems as more and more stuff is out of stock and they're not replenishing it.
I have not done the logical thing and contacted them, because they don't really have what I want - exactly anyway, but I could modify a set to what I need. I eventually acquired a set of grips from someone else and did just that.
|
|
|
|
Post by ezekiel38 on Mar 12, 2023 23:16:43 GMT -5
Gave up on them, don't know what happened.
|
|
gnappi
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,599
|
Post by gnappi on Mar 13, 2023 15:13:51 GMT -5
I placed an order a couple of weeks ago, the package was shipped Friday 3/10. It's still in their local post office.
|
|
gnappi
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,599
|
Post by gnappi on Mar 15, 2023 11:59:54 GMT -5
Well, I got the grips in from Altamont today and I'm not one of those ninnies that whine and crab over minor imperfections in craftsmanship, wood grain, and demand a refund and that the builder / worker be fired, but these grips were a surprise, and not a good one.
I bought them for a S&W "N" frame which as you all know has been in production a pretty long time, so it really surprised me that their CNC could have been coded so badly (or their machine is out of spec) as to have proud wood sticking into my middle finger to make them unusable without modification.
OK, dremel here a bit and even though the finish needs touch up, it is a disappointment but no REAL biggie. The real surprise was the ferrules, BOTH sides are threaded and the screw (3 supplied for different grip widths, good deal there) had to be used to re-thread the entry ferrule to reach the other side!
I was going to order grips for a Ruger blackhawk, but I'll look elsewhere now.
|
|
Chip
.30 Stingray
Posts: 294
|
Post by Chip on Mar 15, 2023 16:38:30 GMT -5
That's sad.
|
|
jeffh
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,744
Member is Online
|
Post by jeffh on Mar 15, 2023 19:23:47 GMT -5
.....unusable without modification...... THIS seems to be getting more common with many things, which makes me hesitant to spend money on anything anymore.
I wouldn't mind spending $40 or $50 on a decent set of grips, which fit and aren't too ugly, but for a WHOLE and COMPLETED set of grips, NOT an unfinished "kit version."
Appreciate the update on your experience.
|
|
edk
.375 Atomic
Posts: 1,162
|
Post by edk on Mar 16, 2023 20:20:51 GMT -5
Agreed, and on the flip side I can’t get my kids to accept a mint condition 1990s Japanese made Honda trac drive snow thrower because they have been conditioned to believe nothing older than 5-10 years can possibly be any good.
|
|
gregs
.327 Meteor
Posts: 524 
Member is Online
|
Post by gregs on Mar 19, 2023 17:18:16 GMT -5
Bought some what I thought were coke bottles to replace some grips on a M57 mountain gun only to have a duplicate pair of the same grips without finger grooves. Ended up going with Houge but screwed up and got finger grooves also.
|
|
tj3006
.375 Atomic
Posts: 2,080
|
Post by tj3006 on Mar 21, 2023 6:44:22 GMT -5
Lits of grip makers out there.
And you pretty much get what you pay for,,,tj
|
|
wpeel
.30 Stingray
Posts: 201
|
Post by wpeel on Mar 21, 2023 22:16:33 GMT -5
My first set of Pachmayer Renegades was unevenly inletted. The grip escutcheons were installed at an angle. I tried to even things up with a file and some sandpaper, but after about forty-five minutes they were only slightly better. Disgusted, I returned them to Lyman, and after a few emails they sent me a replacement pair. The fit is just a hair off on one of the panels but I can fix that with judicious use of painter's tape on the gripframe. The point is...I shouldn't have to be doing this. Minor mis-alignments and machining errors are one thing...but the necessity of returning a product one or more times in order to be satisfied is becoming the norm. It shouldn't be that way.
Now, I understand why custom grips are more expensive.
|
|
|
|
Post by ezekiel38 on Mar 23, 2023 18:39:21 GMT -5
Herrett's are still around and they have a new website that doesn't list a lot of their old designs. But they will make the Roper and the Trooper, which are my favorites. They stand behind their work. Their figured walnut is beautiful!
|
|
|
|
Post by needsmostuff on Mar 23, 2023 19:37:11 GMT -5
Now, I understand why custom grips are more expensive. To truly understand why good custom grips cost so much you have to make a few sets. After you buy a few sets of poorly fitted manufactured grips you understand WHY people pay for custom made. |
|
|
|
Post by rkcohen on Mar 24, 2023 7:44:14 GMT -5
i had a quick phone call w/altamont a few weeks back - they are "fully employed" turning out grips for a couple of big name outfits.
the small, one-off sort of thing will ramp back up when all of their contracts have been filled...
you don't mention what style grip/gun you are looking for but i would bet there are a fair amount of "opportunities" waiting for your phone call!
|
|
wpeel
.30 Stingray
Posts: 201
|
Post by wpeel on Mar 24, 2023 10:50:14 GMT -5
Now, I understand why custom grips are more expensive. To truly understand why good custom grips cost so much you have to make a few sets. After you buy a few sets of poorly fitted manufactured grips you understand WHY people pay for custom made. I have done exactly that. Tried making/modifying two sets of grips. One set was "kind of" successful...the other was a full blown disaster. |
|
