Does stippling a gun add or decrease value for resale?

C

CDR_Glock

New member
I was just curious. I see a bunch of Striker fire pistols that have stippling. Does that add to the value for resale or markedly decrease it?

I like my guns stock, personally. It was just a curiosity.


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Like most modifications it depends. If you find someone else that likes the stippling job it might keep the value the same as a non-stippled gun, or maybe increase it slightly. However on the whole it can decrease the value as many people won't like the modification. Honestly with grip tape and Talon grips and similar I prefer to go that route rather than permanent modification. But if you know you're keeping the pistol do what you want.
 
To each their own. Stippling is less popular than stock, otherwise, stippling would be stock, right? So, it would reduce the market for the gun. As for value, who knows.
 
I check summitgunbroker weekly for used guns and have for years.

Two glocks have been on the sit in the last year with stippling. both were done professionally by Robar. One had the grip reduced.

Both were priced cheaper that other glocks of the same model and gen.

That being said, I don't buy guns with the intent of reselling them. The stippling and grip reduction make glocks easier to shoot for me.
 
Generally,design these days is about light weight and thin wall sections.Using less material.That polymer is sold by the pound and it isn't cheap.

So,if you start with a generous .120 inch wall,sand .030 off,then put .025 deep dimples in it...without regard for the effects of heat or stress,you have decreased the thickness/strength of the grip area.

Will it ever be a problem? I don't know.It might. If the you-tube kitchen table Dremel guy does it...???? I'll pass on the gun.I would not buy it unless it was practically a give-away.

Now,my own S+W M+P 9 C? For me? Its a tool with a job.I didn't buy it to sell it.
I did find some objectionable pressure points where my thumb went around a corner or a trigger finger tendon was moving the gun.Under the trigger guardwere some "hard" corners..

Yup! I did some minimal work with a half round file.I "inletted" my hand a bit.

I'm not in a hurry,but I can see how secure grip is good.I may add some texture FOR MYSELF,my way.Note the interchangeable rear grip panel replacement is $10. I bought a spare to play with.I have not done any stippling.

I did watch some you-tube handgun guru give a demo about simulating blood on your gun with dishwashing soap then trying to retain the gun.That was his sales pitch for stippling.I don't know.I'm not losing sleep.
IF I ever do stipple the gun,I accept I might be throwing away $100 plus resale value.Yet people pay far more to checker a 1911.It depends on what you value,but if the point is to be able to hang onto a Tupperware gun...???
I did not buy the gun to worship it.Its a tool.If you like tape,use tape.
I control how deep,how much. Its like shooting someone elses reloads vs my own.
IF I make the gun more effective without sacrificing integrity,my priorities are met.

On a $500 commodity gun,new,how much difference does even $100 in resale make?
If the gun fits,shoots,and feels good,I'm more likely to keep it.
If its perfectly original,but something annoys me,.....How much do I lose in pursuit of the Holy Grail?,Selling and buying something else? Handgun 2?3? 4?

Just my opinion,if my non-shooting great aunt Grettel who does needlepoint did a great stipple job on a plastic gun,a "Big Name" gunsmith's job is not worth a nickel more. Its not a mystic juju transfer of enchanted powers.Grettel is probably better at it.
 
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Stippling destroys the resale value unless it is done by a reputable gunsmith and even then it doesn't add any value. Grip tape is the answer. Easily removable.
 
I would probably be more inclined to pass on a used gun that has been modified by the previous owner. It's not that I would dislike the stippling per se, but I would worry that the innards have been modified, too. And I suppose in a way, the modification serves to emphasize that the pistol is used. I'm not advocating that these biases are logical, but they may affect resale value....
 
IMO, it reduces market size, but increases value.

If i wanted a stock Glock, stippled by Robar, i would pay extra up front in the used market to get it. If diy, i might pay extra depending on the result.

Wont glock replace the frame for $100?
 
If I had to make radical grip mods to a gun to make it work for me, be it a Glock, M&P, Walther, etc., I wouldn't buy it in the first place!
 
It absolutely does not add value. It might decrease the value. Especially on stuff like Glocks. It's not easy getting a polymer frame to look decent with stippling.
Grip tape can leave a sticky mess though. Can it not?
 
Probably decrease the value. Even more, to me it would be a big "red flag" in my decision to buy or not. If the previous owner felt the need to deface the factory grip or frame, what else did he Bubba up trying to improve the gun. Might be something that is the cause behind the gun being for sale.
 
If someone wants stippling, then the same or more.
For the rest of us, less to much less.
Personally I'd want a discount to take a stippled gun.
 
There's a very small market for stippling....if it were popular the gun manufacturers would do it at the factory. But in my opinion it makes ugly guns much uglier. I wouldn't even consider buying one.

Cosmetic modifications that are permanent will rarely increase the value of anything.....
 
I think it would all depend on what was done, and what it does for the buyer. I have a number of Glocks and other than the RTF2's, have stippled most of them, as that has been the only thing that gets me close to the feel/function of the RTF2 finish.

For me, the stippling makes a major difference in how the gun feels in my hands. If I were to come across one that had been stippled and it was done decently, Id probably be willing to pay a bit more.

Even if it werent done all that great, and I could get it for less, Id just redo it. So for me, it really isnt an issue either way.

Having used various grip tapes over the years prior to stippling, and knowing how they can be lacking and annoying, especially with guns that are used a lot, stippling tends to be a more superior method, or at least I see that it is.
 
Your chance of finding someone who appreciates the stippling enough to even consider buying the gun is about as good as a chance of a snowball in hell.
Precision checkering tastefully executed by a good smith would probably have a different outcome. Stippling pretty much went out of popularity about the same time as high buckle shoes.
 
Its really no different than any other "modified" gun. One persons perfect pride and joy gun, is anothers junk.

For as much as I hear people bitch about the stippling, I really have to wonder how many of them have actually spent some time with, and shot a gun that had it done, to know and understand the benefits.
 
I'd say it would lower the price, but for me it would mean no sale. I'm not interested in anybody's attempt at making modifications.
 
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