[ithacaartist]

Pat,

The grips have also been "refreshed". They have been gone over with a checkering cutter to sharpen up the diamonds and this also lightens up the color--gets down to formerly unexposed wood. However, whoever did this couldn't guide the cutter very well, and you can see in the close-up how the cutter has run off-track and mowed down material that should be there.

This process takes the max in concentration and control of the tool. I know this because I've been practicing, myself. But I'll not be totally addressing the original grips until my skills are more polished and accomplished! For practice, I've been working on extra Erma grips, some cast urethane repros for my Mauser 29/70. and some Jay Scott faux-stag P-08 grips from which I belt sanded the "stag"--because I got them cheap and because they started out a full half-inch thick and were ridiculously uncomfortable. The technician who perpetrated this operation on these grips did not make the same decision...

Do not despair, because Hugh Clark (hugh) on this forum has the skills to pull off a refreshment of the grips, I think even in their current shape.