Plastidip a Pistol grip?

[David121582]

Just curious if anyone has every applied plastidip to an AR pistol grip. I have seen this stuff on crewdrivers and today was thinking I would like to try it on one of my spare grips. Heck maybe even try and mock up som finger grips similar to a Hogue prior to applying the plastidip. I have a hogue that I can probably make a mold of then bondo up the finger notches and then transfer them to the grip that is going to be coated. I would just do the first one in black but if it turns out well I would try their make your own color kit for Flat Dark Earth. Just looking to see if anyone on here has every tried this. Below is the link to their web site. thanks,
Dave

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/default.aspx?catid=699&parentcatid=773&gclid=CLjK6tWQ06cCFYvsKgodU1sd-A

[BPTactical]

Might work but I would think adhesion would be an issue. Possibly if you blasted it prior to dipping that may help. Another thought is it would be hard to get it even with the varying contours. I have seen a couple that were sprayed with bedliner that were ok. Personally I'll stick with Hogues.

[Marlin]

Well, going off my experiance, about 20 years ago I put some on a few screwdrivers. So, ymmv on a pistol grip. Out of the 4 that I did, one became so chewed up, I ended up striping it the rest of the way off. That was the "main use" on though.

One became so slick, I could barely hang on to it when I used it. The third, well, Just about every bit of dirt and grime that was within a mile must have stuck to it, and it was impossible to get clean again.

The fourth one was one of those small control screwdivers, that, I never use that often. Still have that one and the plastidip is still on it and still looks fairly decent.

[Wolfeie]

I used the rattle-can plastidip on a couple of AK and AR pistol grips. Love it. Better grip than stock, holds up and looks good.

I used alcohol to clean the grease off of the grips and then about 5-7 this coats moving quickly and spraying past the ends to keep the coat even. About 20 minutes between coats. Warm day.

[David121582]

I figure the worst that would happen would be that I was out the 8 bucks that I spent on the plastidip since I have a few spare grips. Not really though cause I could use the left over on my actuall tools.
I think dipping it instead of spraying it would give it an even coat over all of the contours. I think I would also lightly sand/scuff all of the surfaces that I want it to stick to and then degrease/clean it to help with adhesion.
I think I am going to check at a few of the autoparts stores/hobby shops around and see if I can pick a can up locally that way I don't have to wait for shipping. I will try it out tonight if I can find one locally and maybe post some pics.
The reason I would like to try it in black first is because I have seen the red plastidip after heavy mechanical use and the grease/dirt definitely embeds into the material. I am hoping to try it in black first and then check and see how well it holds up and then try different colors. The reason I am not just getting a hogue is because I like building things and making them my own/one off.
Thanks for the input and have a great day.

[colocowboy01]

I have tried this on a couple different pistol grips with minimal success. After a couple of months of use the plastidip starts to wear off and peel. It works well for a few months though.

[SouthPaw]

fwiw one of my co-workers put it on his handgun and seems to be very happy with it.

[David121582]

Firgured I would give everyone an update.
Last night ended up going to Lowe's and getting a can of spray on black plastidip, the dip-in can was a little too narrow to dip a pistol grip in and I didn't want to deal with transfering that stuff to a new containger. I acetoned one of my dmps grips and stuck it on a dowel and placed a screw into the safety deten hole to protect from overspray. I think I put on 4-5 coats last night and this morning I went out and checked it. It looks great and feels awesome. I am gonna put another 2 or 3 coats on before work this morning and then install it tonight. I would do pics for you guys but since I didn't mod the grip it looks like a standard grip with a little less detail on the backstrap groves and the side checkering. Overall at this stage I am very happy with it and am excited to see how long it is going last. If it lasts long enough I may just start putting some on a few of my hunting rifles/shotguns.

[David121582]

Alright so I did a total of 8 coats which seems excessive but I read that the more coats you do the more sticky it will be and I wanted sticky. I installed the grip back on the other night and it was a snug fit but overall had not problems with the grip. The grip looks almost identical to the other factory style grip that I have only a little more shiny and a little more textured. As far as feel goes it is a huge difference. On the original grip my finger would easily slide around on the grip and with the plastidip it takes much more effort to slide a finger. I don't know how it will hold up in the long run to abuse but I know before I had even installed it I had dropped it on the ground from about four feet and the only damage was a little scuff on the corner that hit first. I will post if I have any problems but otherwise I am extremely happy with this mod. thanks
Dave

[Marlin]

[Awesom]

[David121582]

Ok well last night I was bored as the wife and kids are out of town for spring break. Ended up stippling my second dpms grip and throwing some plastidip on top. It was my first time stippling and I think it turned out pretty dang good. I cut off the finger nub first and left the vertical slits on the back. It looks pretty sweet and has incredible grip. It almost feels like holding sandpaper might have a littlem more bite than I like but we will see. I will post pics once my wife gets back and returns my camera.

[David121582]

Alright I know this is dragging up an old topic but was emailed about it so I figure I would provide another update. They ended up working out really well especially for spending less than ten bucks on them, stickier than the hogues and durable if handled with care. I would say that the coat lasted about 6 months of fairly hard use with minimal peeling on some of the sharp edges. I still haven't recoated it and don't really plan to unless I end up doing the actual can and dipping it to put on a thicker coat that may hold up better. Overall very happy with the grip. Thanks,