Uberti grips

[blackpowder bob]

Does anyone else think the finish on Uberti grips looks to shiny. If the pistol was in a case it would look great. But to look true to an original wouldn't they be treated with a good wood oil?
I strip mine and treat with Danish Oil and a good paste wax.

 

[Allison]

I think they're too shiny.
I strip mine and coat them with a mixture of ballistol and burnt gunpowder to make
them look old. I also coat the inside of the grip to prevent it drying out and cracking.
The least little but of oil on those shiny new grips makes (at least in my case) the
gun hard to hold on to. Probably affects accuracy too, I'm thinking.

 

[Peter M. Eick]

Agreed. I was thinking I need to order another set of grips for my walker and strip them down. It is so shiny that given a bit of sweat I was loosing the grip on my Walker today.

 

[mykeal]

Some people like shiny, some don't.

 

[Dino]

I stripped mine and used tru-oil and steel wool.
Here's a before and after pic ...

 

[messerist]

I bought a Uberti 1858 Remington and I swear the grips were orange! Not your typical "hunter orange" but a weird rusty color. I stripped them and gave them several coat of boiled linseed oil. I've bought several other Ubertis since then and the grips were fine. No more orange grips!

 

[madcratebuilder]

I think you well find numerous threads about Uberti orange grips with the thick plastic finish. Some like them, some don't. My personal preference is to strip to bare wood and use pure tung oil.

 

[wittzo]

I had a really hard time holding my Walker because of the grips' high gloss. It was slipping and sliding from the lube and sweat.
I stripped them using a water based stripper (couldn't find Citrus-strip like this web site recommended http://members.cox.net/longshot_logan/SRefinish.htm)
It's 4th coat of Formby's Tung Oil is dry, I think I'm done. I didn't use any stain, I liked the color of the wood the way it was.

 

[rodinal220]

Yup,too shiny and slick.Stripped mine and put several coats of Watco Danish oil and some paste wax.

 

[Fingers McGee]

But to look true to an original wouldn't they be treated with a good wood oil?

If by true to an original you mean same finish as when they were new - then they would not be oiled. Colt used a shellac or varnish on the grips of new guns, not unlike the hated reddish finish on todays replicas.

 

[madcratebuilder]

I have spent hours discussing the correct finishes on various mil-surps, it sometimes becomes a "duck season" "rabbit season" debate. I don't recall reading any period information from Colt about the finish on the wood but have read that "China oil" was often used. "China oil" is a 19th century name for Tung oil.