R9 Custom Grip options

[JHatmaker]

Would damascas be too much trouble (and too expensive) to look at as an option?  I've always loved the look of 1911's w/ damascas slides etc.  

[yankee2500]

If you have or can get a piece of damascus steel that is large enough to make a pair of grips from, I see no reason it can't be done. Once the machine is programmed and ready to run the grips, it doesn't care if there is aluminum, damascus steel or 24k gold to be machined, as long as you have the proper tool to cut the specific material.

John

[ACP]

Recommend the person who wants damascus grips contacts the custom knife world; particularly suppliers of damascus steel used in that industry.

Note: Some custom makers make their own damascus, ususally used for blades, but it cannot hurt to google "custom knife supplies" and refine your search to damascus makers who support makers who do not make their own blades.

[Junior]

Chad Nichols makes damascus that is used by a lot of knifemakers. I'd recommend stainless damascus.
He only has 2" wide material priced on his website but he should be able to make whatever you need.

http://www.chadnicholsdamascus.com/stainless_damascus

[Doug-2]

Perhaps something like these micartas by Pete Foldyna on my P7:

Very nice, I could go for that.....

[ccoorreeyy]

Those are really cool.  I wish we were talking about how nice the custom grips are for the R9, it's been long enough.

[Richard S]

Patience, Corey, patience.  

[ACP]

I hate it when people say that. I'm with Corey

[whkrog]

I am completely holding out for a milled iridium-osmium (or iridium-titanium) alloy for the most temperature -resistant,
chemical-resistant, totally scratch- and wear resistant pistol grip ever made by man. You could dissolve your entire pistol in acid, and the grips would still remain untouched.
An element in the platinum-related series of metals, it's silver-white sheen would go well with all but the Stealth Rohrbaughs, and would be particularly attractive with hard-chrome plated R9's.
Quoting the Wikipedia article:
"Although it is one of the rarest elements in the Earth's crust, with annual production and consumption of only three tonnes, it has a number of specialized industrial and scientific applications. Iridium is employed when high corrosion resistance at high temperatures is needed, as in spark plugs, crucibles for recrystallization of semiconductors at high temperatures, electrodes for the production of chlorine in the chloralkali process, and radioisotope thermoelectric generators used in unmanned spacecraft."
Well, s**t, how much more exotic do you want your grips to be?  
Minor problems in that it's virtually unmalleable, hard as h**l ,
doesn't melt until 4471 °F, and costs about the same as platinum, but we've gone pretty far off on the aesthetic theme of this topic, so for fun I thought I'd throw in something that would look terrific, be completely unique, cost a fortune, and that you'd probably have to hire someone associated with NASA to produce. What else could a collector ask for?  

[ACP]

whkrog:
Funny post and well documented but it doesn't get the job done. My interpretation of Corey's post was that it is time to get down to specifics, as to what custom grips will become available, to which I added my own impatience. (If patience is a virtue I am in trouble).

The sponsor of this string is a good man, in my experience, and there must be a reasonable delay. Having said that, I hope, like many of us, that John's efforts will bear fruit and we will actually find out what custom grips will be available, how much they will cost and how long it will take for delivery after we forward our prepaid checks for the grips.

[whkrog]

Sorry, the misguided attempt was only to be humorous. It will indeed be interesting to find out -- when all is said, done, and tested -- what grips will turn out to be both possible and functional, and the same time aesthetically pleasing. The latter part, or course, gets into the matter of personal taste.

[yankee2500]

Well I haven't been ignoring the post or trying to dodge the issue, I have been searching for a good supply of iridium-osmium, and can't seem to find the quantity I require.
  
   Seriously though, we are working on getting some more mag extension back in stock right now. The machinist is swamped with work, many shops have laid off workers and sold equipment, and this has created more work for the remaining shops, good for them from a financial stand point, but bad for production delivery times. He was also waiting for the blue prints on the grips, and they are also backed up.
   My guy has been putting in fifty to sixty a week at the business, and putting in more hours at his home shop, he told me a few days ago he only had six hours sleep in three days. He was working at home till 3AM and then leaving for work at 6AM.
  I hope to touch base with him this weekend and have an update on both projects.

John

[Rich_G]

Thanks fo the update John.

[kjtrains]

John.  I'll second that.  Looks like you've been busy as well.  

[ACP]

Third! Thanks for the update.

Also, whkrog: I didn't mean to seem rude or dismissive. Your post was both funny and clever.