finally worked up the nerve to sand off the stupid Glock Gen 3 finger grooves

[1KPerDay]

I bought this G23C in the mid 90s and it's been a good pistol, despite being an ergonomic nightmare for me. I have large hands and the finger grooves are annoying, bordering on uncomfortable, and the stupid glock trigger guard hump has always bugged me but particularly on the midsize frame, and I think particularly in .40 because it's pretty snappy and you have to choke down on it. My middle finger knuckle got sore and worn. I sanded out the trigger guard hump on the original frame, but then one of the rear rails broke, which prompted a trip to Glock, who replaced the entire frame and all the guts at no cost.

but then the hump was back. So yesterday I took a file and some sandpaper and went to work. About half an hour's work and it's almost like it was made to fit the human hand. I shot it last night and I can't believe how much of a difference it makes. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to leave the frontstrap smooth (with remnants of the OEM texturing) or try to stipple it. It's shootable as is; just not particularly attractive. but then, it's a Glock.

 

[FL-NC]

You could just get a inner tube tire for a bicycle and stretch that over the grip for a sticky feel.

 

[JN01]

Get a set of Gen 1/2 Traction Grips for less than 9 bucks, it will look fine.
http://www.tractiongrips.com/catalog/i138.html

 

[1KPerDay]

Thanks. I wish they offered the granulate in a one-piece including the frontstrap. I don't like the rubbery ones.

 

[pblanc]

I took the finger grooves of a Gen 4 Glock 19 and wet sanded the front strap until completely smooth. Also used a Dremel sanding disc to undercut the trigger guard.

After smoothing the front strap of the grip, I stippled it using an inexpensive wood burning iron with adjustable wattage. None of the above was too difficult to do and the end result is massively better. The G 19 finger grooves were an abomination for many of us with larger than average hands.

 

[1KPerDay]

do you need to use lower or higher wattage for stippling?

 

[pblanc]

I had to turn the wattage up to near the unit's maximum to get the effect I wanted. I bought a unit made by Walnut Hollow from Amazon and used the smallest conical tip to create a random granular pattern. I practiced doing a bit of stippling on a Magpul AR magazine to get a feel for it first.

 

[tarosean]

do you need to use lower or higher wattage for stippling?

FYI: you need to remove the existing textures to get the stippling uniform.

 

[CDW4ME]

I call them finger protrusions and they don't align with my fingers, I remove them