Cleaning out checkered grips

[1911ShooterTJ]

Hello everyone!

I have a seemingly easy question. Is there a good way to clean gunk out of checkered grips (wood)?

There is a lot of gunk in the valleys of the checkering primarily where my fingers of my right hand wrap around the grip to the left side of the gun. I assume it skin cells shredded off from recoil?

In any case I'm tempted to use a needle to gently scrape it out and a toothbrush to get the scraped out pieces. Any other ideas?

Thanks!

 

[buttrap]

old toothbrush.

 

[98C5]

old toothbrush.

+1

 

[Roswell 1847]

Tooth brush and lighter fluid has worked well for me but it depends on the sort of finish on the grips.
I've always done my own checkering and I thin the finish with lighter fluid to allow it to soak deeply into the checkered areas while avoiding a build up in the cuts. This works with natural finishes but I can't say that it would work with synthetic finishes like Urethane.

Ballistol seems to clean just about everything without harming finishes. It also removed almost all the surgical scars from my hands and softened the burn keloids. Great stuff. Its recommended as a wound dressing for hunting dogs and horses as well.

I've been experimenting with using Balistol alone as a stock finish. Wiping the stock down every so often with Ballistol and 0000 steel wood has resulted in a rich warm look that brings out the figure of the wood without obscuring it.
Since its primary use is as a bore cleaner and metal protection any excess is just rubbed into the wood. No sign of oil perishing of the wood so far.

 

[Jim K]

I know some folks will not want to spend so much money but I recommend a NEW toothbrush. Old ones have the bristles all bent over and don't do a good cleaning job. Actually, there are brushes with short bristles that are even better. I use a mild soap and a little water for most grip cleaning, wood or plastic.

Jim

 

[Halo is for Kids]

Did anyone say toothbrush?

Nylon brushes seem to work the best for me. I also have brass and steel brushes, they're too hard on the wood though.

 

[chris allen]

cleaning

A tooth brush and a good saok of lemon oil.

chris

 

[ZeSpectre]

New -SOFT- toothbrush, Murphy's oil soap, and warm water.

 

[Khornet]

Sometimes

if the checkering is real gooey, or especially if the diamonds are very flattened, I've used a checkering tool to make a light pass with good results.

 

[WaltonS]

I haven't tried it myself but has anyone treated their grips/stocks with paste wax? I heard of one person who claimed to have done it, but never really witnessed the results myself.

 

[rcmodel]

I have used Johnsons Paste Floor Wax on Hogue wood grips for years. That's how they finish them at the factory.

Well, O.K., they use real Carnuba wax and a buffing wheel, but Johnsons keeps them looking very nice.


rcmodel