Altamont Grips

[v8stang289]

Not trying to start a flame war, because I believe in individuality and to each their own.
So if you love them and they work for you, that's great.

But IMO nearly every set of Altamonts I've seen look like overpriced stained plasticized plywood.
I just don't get the hype.
They look like fake wood laser engraved oddness that takes away from the lines and greatness of the guns they're installed on.

The real wood ones look almost ok except for the odd lines of the "checkering" and engraved designs

I think the Ropers would be ok if they offered them smooth or with traditional checkering. But the checkering/design they offer on them just looks like crap.

Am I alone in this perception? I may be, but in my opinion they could do some cool stuff, but fall short.

 

[StrawHat]

I believe since S&W no longer has a wood shop, they use Altamont for their supplier. They are machine made, so they lack any sort of individuality. Not like the old factory stocks that were fit to the frame and hand checkered. They do use plywood or “super wood”. Not sure what finish they apply.

Fortunately, I know a guy who makes what I prefer, smooth antler,





Kevin

 

[Speedo66]

I’m not a fan of the glorified plywood grips they make either, same for the grips on the new Pythons.

Actually, between the grips and the finish on the new Pythons, I’m not a fan of them at all. Where is the highly polished Royal Blue they were famous for?

 

[bihj]

I believe since S&W no longer has a wood shop, they use Altamont for their supplier. They are machine made, so they lack any sort of individuality. Not like the old factory stocks that were fit to the frame and hand checkered. They do use plywood or “super wood”. Not sure what finish they apply.

Fortunately, I know a guy who makes what I prefer, smooth antler,

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Kevin

How about including some contact info?

 

[Sacramento Johnson]

Altamont also supplies grips for Ruger and yes, I don't think much of their offerings. If you want to see something even worse, look at Eagle Grips kirinite grips; just ghastly...

 

[Riomouse911]

I don’t mind them, especially when I can get a set for $20 on sale to put on a $180 dollar revolver like my Wrangler. (Those wafer-thin plastic grip panels stink!)


I don’t know who made the panels for my recently-made S&W Model 48 .22 WMR. They may be from Altamont, though.



For me, anything harder-kicking than a 6” .357 in a DA revolver wears synthetic grips anyway. I am more of a function-over-style person once the guns start kicking and the hand starts hurting.

Stay safe.

 

[Slamfire]

I recently purchased a set of Altamont grips for a M1911.

I wanted very grippy, and so they are. I don't know if these are laminated G10 grips or not. I have seen a lot of laminated G10 grips being listed as "Rosewood", when in fact, they are not wood at all. But, for my 1911's, these red G10 grips pictured below have almost file teeth checkering, which is what I want on my 1911's. These were not advertised as rosewood, but similar ones are. You can see the lamination layers in the bottom of the grips. These are very grippy. When I shoot a 1911 one handed, I am using a Monster grip to keep the thing in place. I can see checkering indentations in my palm when I grip hard. So, these G10 grips are just fine.

A comment about grips for semi autos. I am of the opinion that laminated polymer grips are safer to use in semi auto pistols because the materials are stronger. I had a case head blow in a RIA 1911, due to a magazine release that held the magazine too low. this allowed bullets to hit the feed ramp and get stuffed into the case on feed. That raised pressures and this case head blew. The case with a stuffed bullet was actually in the magazine, and you can see the affects of gas release on compressing the spring, and stuffing the bullet back into a loaded case. Primers are from previous fired rounds, pressures were not excessive with this load.

The gas discharge through the 1911 RIA magazine well cracked my nice and Harrett cocobolo grips. I probably avoided having splinters in my palm due to the magazine design.

The factory magazine has a removable base, as seen in the picture above. So pressures never rose above that which would pop the base plate off. Might have been worse with a GI welded base. I can imagine pressures would have built up to the point the grip panels would have been blown into my palm.

I have noticed Pachmayr rubber 1911 grips have a steel mesh inside, no doubt to protect the shooter's hand.

Laminated grips are man made, don't look as good as a nice piece of wood. But they have their advantages.

 

[Jonesy814]

I put Thai grips on a lot my revolvers. They are real wood and cost less. Fit and finish on them is good and they have a lot of variety in styles. These are all Thai grips I got on Ebay

 

[Jonesy814]

I put Thai grips on a lot my revolvers. They are real wood and cost less. Fit and finish on them is good and they have a lot of variety in styles
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[Armybrat]

I like these Altamonts on my New Vaquero.
They fit pretty good.

 

[Old Dog]

Eh, I had a member make a disparaging remark about "plywood" grips when I posted a pic of one of my Pythons with some Altamonts. I don't put grips on my handguns because I care about what others believe or think about them. Laminate is here to stay in any application that used to, or still does, use wood. It's simply easier, cheaper and far less labor intensive that carving, machining, hand-checkering... Anyway, I worry more about fit and function.

But the checkering/design they offer on them just looks like crap.

Yeah, I guess these grips just ruin the look of this gun. Sigh. But I can't help it, I like shiny things.

 

[Bigdog357]

I recently picked up these Olivewood Altamont grips - excellent fit for my Smith model 65-5
and these for my Smith 36

 

[v8stang289]

Yeah, I guess these grips just ruin the look of this gun. Sigh. But I can't help it, I like shiny things.
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As I said, to each their own

 

[v8stang289]

To be clear, I'm not disparaging laminates or laminated grips.
They certainly have their place and in the right applications look great.

 

[357 Terms]

I have the "combination" set of "Super Rosewood" and checkered rubber grips on my 170 prefix GP100, great fit and feel, they've held up very well.


I also have a set of their combat grips on my 640 pro series.
These allow a three finger grip while still concealing easily.
Fit is excellent.


I've been very happy with the price, aesthetics and performance of my Altamonts.

 

[v8stang289]

I recently picked up these Olivewood Altamont grips - excellent fit for my Smith model 65-5View attachment 1165142
and these for my Smith 36
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The wood on those look great.
I like the shape and design of the Ropers and of the boot grip. I'm just not a fan the design/checkering they have.

 

[Armybrat]

These inserts are a nice improvement for my SP101….

 

[Gladius]

When I got this beautiful vintage model 19 some years ago, it came with Altamonts. They're okay, for now. I occasionally get the itch to replace them with something else (not totally sure what, yet), but they work. I recently got a pair of faux stags from Altamont for a pre-27; they look better than the cheaper plastic "toy-like" stag grips that are out there, and I got a good price for them. I'll eventually replace them with something else (most likely real stags).

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

They’re okay. I have a few Altamont and quite a few equally hated (by others) Hogue laminate wood grips. They fit my needs

 

[Rodfac]

Oh, I don't know...these Altamonts in Olive wood look pretty sharp on my 5" bbl'd, M-629, I'd opine. Your opinions are your choice, of course....as beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. But truth be told, those stags with a Tyler or Pachmayr grip adapter in Strawhat's post really ring my chimes! Best regards, Rod

​

 

[StrawHat]

How about including some contact info?

Ken has a quirky business model, but it works for him. He makes a set of grips, sometimes two, for whatever revolver the piece of antler is sized for. He then puts them up for sale on the S&W forum or the Colt forum. When they sell, he lists another set, if he has one made. If nothing is ready for sale, he doesn’t list anything. He does NOT accept orders, commissions or down payments for a set of grips. I have tried! I have seen him list, one after another, a half dozen sets. And I have also seen enough months go by with no listings that I have contacted him to make sure he is okay.

It is very much being lucky enough to catch his listings first.

Kevin

 

[v8stang289]

Oh, I don't know...these Altamonts in Olive wood look pretty sharp on my 5" bbl'd, M-629, I'd opine. Your opinions are your choice, of course....as beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. But truth be told, those stags with a Tyler or Pachmayr grip adapter in Strawhat's post really ring my chimes! Best regards, Rod

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Those are among the better looking Altamonts, I just can't get behind the weird checkering/pattern

 

[dfariswheel]

Most Altamont grips are made of a wood Micarta.
Thin sheets of a hard wood are injected with dyes, then injected with a phenolic resin, stacked in layers and put under heat and pressure to bond it into a solid mass.
Typically this is in 4x8 foot sheets and can be up to 8 inches thick or more.

The advantages are that the material is totally water and oil proof, resistant to most all common solvents, and can be machined like metal.
It's stronger and more durable then plain wood and, won't splinter or break easily.
Since the finish is IN the wood, all the finishing that's needed is to polish the surface to whatever level of shine wanted.
The manufacturer can make lower priced grips requiring little hand finishing, and still have a grained appearance better then the typical cheap grade woods usually used.

Not for everyone's taste, but the average gun buyer never changes the factory grips.

 

[v8stang289]

I'm glad many of you are happy with your Altamonts.
I have nothing against the company and by all accounts they produce a quality product.
As I said before, if they work for you and you like them, that's great.


I was just curious if others felt the same way about the aesthetic of their grips.

 

[StrawHat]

Oh, I don't know...these Altamonts in Olive wood look pretty sharp on my 5" bbl'd, M-629, I'd opine. Your opinions are your choice, of course....as beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. But truth be told, those stags with a Tyler or Pachmayr grip adapter in Strawhat's post really ring my chimes! Best regards, Rod

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Those grip’s don’t do much for me but that holster is NICE!

You like smooth antler and grip adapters? So do I!