1910

[ithacaartist]

Originally Posted by wlyon

Many times this small piece is broken by not correctly removing the grips. Bill

This is also true. But within the Luger community, cautions to take care in removing the left grip abound. Some may not have heard the caveat, did not take heed, or have had a lapse in caution when doing so. However, the situation set up by a loose grip's potential to damage the grip isn't mentioned anywhere near as often--at least it's not stressed as much. I feel it's just as dangerous to the integrity of the grip, if not more so, and should be included as often when passing on Luger knowledge.

The last grip chip that happened to me was while shooting. The chip, however, did not become apparent until the next time I (carefully) removed the grip and the broken piece fell off.

What I'm saying is that loose grips should absolutely be addressed immediately, and that, as a matter of course, the ones that don't seem loose should be checked for adequate clearance around the lever's shaft as a preventative measure. This, because a minor looseness of the grip may not even be enough to notice, and that any looseness at all will stress the wood in that area if it's honeymoon-fit against the lever.