To Checker or Not to Checker?

To Checker or Not to Checker?

  • Yes, sign me up for some tasteful checkering.

    Votes: 24 66.7%

  • No, keep it nice and smooth.

    Votes: 12 33.3%
  • Total voters
    36
C

Cosmodragoon

New member
Alright, folks. Let's say you've got a revolver in a magnum caliber. You are getting some nice wood grips. Do you go with checkering or not? Why or why not?
 
Put me down for checkered. I like the way it breaks up the canvas of the wood.



But I'm going to switch over to Hogues for shooting if it's a hard kicker either way.
 
Checkered. It helps to get a more consistent grip for most applications.

Smooth for fast draws, it allows me to readjust the grip better.
 
I voted checkered. I like the extra grip it provides and also think it looks better.

For example. Take these two grips from Eagle, I think the checkered model looks much better on the gun...

Eagle Grip for GP100 no checkering:



Same grip with checkering:



Rest my case ;)
 
On properly designed stocks that fit YOUR hand checkering is a waste of time and money. ON THE OTHER HAND[pun intended] sometimes checkering looks really good on some heavily grained " burly " lookiing wood.
And so it goes...
 
Alright, folks. Let's say you've got a revolver in a magnum caliber. You are getting some nice wood grips. Do you go with checkering or not? Why or why not?
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your call.

<IMHO>
it's a wash, appearance wise
for function, it's whatever works for you
</IMHO>
 
Size and shape determnes the checkering. When I shoot a 1911 my fingers don't touch the grips. Therefore a nice piece of rosewood is not messed up.
On the other hand backstrap and frontstrap are checkered -- with a checkering file ! That is FLAT TOP checkering. The filing is stopped before the checkering comes to a point. Thus the grip is almost as secure as full depth checkering but far easier on hands and clothing ! Many shooters have never seen or tried it but it's far better !!
 
I like the look of checkering but I'm mindful of a gun scribe that said something to the effect:

'the checkering was like taking a rasp to his palms every time he fired the gun.'
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For personal use I've always liked Pachmayr grips.
 
Checkered. It helps to get a more consistent grip for most applications.
Click to expand...

Another vote for checkered for that reason. Checkering is not for decoration - it serves a very real purpose.
 
A more practical side of the debate seems to be showing up. With heavier recoil, some people have said that checkering provides a better grip while others have said that it "rasps" the hand. Maybe it's a matter of how much heavier. All my guns in "more than .357" have cushy rubber grips and I don't plan on changing that. I do remember reading about wood grips on a .454 where the reviewer had to loosen his grip to accommodate the recoil. He said he had to get used to letting it roll back in his hand, which felt strange but was still accurate after a little practice. I imagine that smoothness would be a plus in that situation.
 
With heavier recoil, some people have said that checkering provides a better grip while others have said that it "rasps" the hand.
Click to expand...

It's not going to rasp the hand unless it can move in the hand. Which means you're probably holding it wrong, or not tightly enough. Or it's the wrong grip for you.

Ergonomical YMMV -- one size fits some.
 
For years I would only have checkered grips, perhaps that is do to styles at the time, or what I learned to shoot with. For the last five or so years I've switched to Elk stag as my favorite grip material. Stag is slick enough, not to cause some of the problems checkering can cause. Yet you can order stag grips with enough "bark" left on it will help control recoil. They also seem to hold up better than wooden grips.
 
Up to you and your personal taste. I have quite a few revolvers - I like wood and I like the looks of checkering but on some I've switched them out. I have had several (one set on a Ruger and one on a S & W) - the checkering was so sharp it was like hanging on to a coarse horse hoof rasp. A 100 cartridges through them at the range and my hands were chewed up.
 
Racing tires don't usually have tread but they grip better than street tires. We don't checker ax or hammer handles. Does checkering really improve purchase on a wood grip? It seems to me that when my hands are sweaty, a smooth wood grip provides a better purchase than a checkered grip but I wouldn't want to drive in the rain with racing slicks.
 
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