SR1911 grip wood

Help Support Ruger Forum:

onfinal

Bearcat
Joined
Feb 28, 2009
Messages
43
Location
out West
This has probably been asked and answered but I can't find it. Does anyone know what kind of wood the factory SR1911 grips are made of?

Thanks
 

GunnyGene

Hawkeye
Joined
Nov 23, 2013
Messages
9,285
Location
Monroe County, MS
onfinal said:
This has probably been asked and answered but I can't find it. Does anyone know what kind of wood the factory SR1911 grips are made of?

Thanks

Just judging from the pics on the Ruger site, I'd say american walnut. However, the spec sheet says "hardwood", which covers a whole range of woods which can be dyed or stained to mimic walnut color (but not the grain). I doubt that Ruger themselves even know, and probably don't care, since they don't make the grip panels. They buy them from suppliers, and I'd bet my last dime the contract says "hardwood" without specifying species. Which means the supplier sells Ruger whatever he's got that will make him a profit.

One of the "woods" used that you'll see on the Shopruger.com site is "Dymondwood". There is no such thing as a "Dymondwood" tree. It's a composite of many thin veneers (basically a plywood), most often Birch, and stained in various colors. It's actually a pretty stable material for grips, but you can't do any carving or personalize it, like you can with solid wood. It does qualify as a "hardwood" in a sense although to a woodworker like me it's simply cheating.

Same thing with any grip that is labeled "Super" walnut, rosewood, etc. It's actually Dymondwood with a different marketing name.
 

onfinal

Bearcat
Joined
Feb 28, 2009
Messages
43
Location
out West
Thank you, Gunny. Very informative and about what I figured. I'll bet I could call Ruger c/s and they wouldn't be able to give me a definitive answer.
 

GunnyGene

Hawkeye
Joined
Nov 23, 2013
Messages
9,285
Location
Monroe County, MS
onfinal said:
Thank you, Gunny. Very informative and about what I figured. I'll bet I could call Ruger c/s and they wouldn't be able to give me a definitive answer.

You're welcom. You could query Altamont. That's who they buy their grips from. Altamont does make a few very nice grips out of a variety of exotic hardwoods in addition to the Dymondwood stuff for factory stock guns. They also sell to a dozen or so other manufacturers. https://www.altamontco.com/

For a look at some really fancy black walnut (as opposed to "Super" walnut) see my post about "Nice Feather" in the Lounge. :wink:
 

teuthis

Single-Sixer
Joined
Dec 16, 2008
Messages
168
Location
Wisconsin
I think the wood grips look good but I replaced mine right away with Hogue rubber grips. I get a better purchase and more reliable grip under fire with them.
 

Latest posts

Top