Target Talk Archive

Grip Setup

Posted by RSO on July 06, 2000 at 11:38:02:
I have been shooting my FWB603 for awhile (six months). Getting pretty proficient at 10m off-hand. For me that means 475-500/600. I am learning my limitations and what I need to focus on with rifle.
Now for the question... I shoot an FWB P34 for 10m pistol. Love the gun, sites, precision, workmanship. I have gotten comfortable with a stance and position. I am getting more comfortable with establishing a sight picture (although my targets don't think so).
I hate the grip on this gun. I would change it if I knew how. But I am lacking two critical pieces of information:
1. How do I determine optimal grip (angle, cant, feel)?
2. How do I correct my grip to achieve this? (I heard all about putty, dremel tools etc., but I don't feel comfortable attacking a potentially costly mistake to recover from when I need to buy a new grip and start whacking on it after wrecking the first one.)


Posted by Gene Rotsch on July 06, 2000 at 19:41:54:
The P34 has a great deal of adjustability built into it. Before you start carving or applying putty to your grips make use of the tunability of the grip position on the pistol. By loosening the grip screws (one on each side of the grips) without removing them completely, you can tilt the grips forward and back about 15 degrees. This will let you establish your hold on the pistol, with your wrist locked, and then adjust the angle of the pistol in relation to the grips so when you bring the pistol up for a shot the front and rear sights are perfectly aligned. This will require a little tweaking to get it just right. The time invested is well worth it in the reduced effort required to get your perfect sight alignment while shooting. Your owners manual has a section on grip angle adjustment that will cover this task also. The grips can also be turned left/right off the bore of the barrel to fine tune your hold after you have done grip work with your dremel and putty. Work on the grip angle before you start carving to custom fit the grip to your hand. Do one change at a time so you can keep track of what you are doing and write down the changes too. From week to week you will tend to forget what do did the pervious training session to modify the pistol. Be sure you validate the changes you make so you dont head in the wrong direction with your modifications and find you cant return to your start point without major time and effort. You will find that grip work is a work in progress that requires a tweak from time to time as your technique evolves. Well shaped grips can make the difference between flawless strings of well placed shots and shots that are a struggle to control with inconsistant results. Remember, its the journey, not the destination. Enjoy.


Posted by Andre on July 06, 2000 at 20:11:06:
I know a simple and logical way to go about grip change. Your pistol's grip is essential in properly supporting the weapon, which is essential to tight grouping. I go about it first by trying to work with whatever adjustments I have available without adding any material on the grip. To know if a grip is ok, I bring my pistol up to the target with my eyes closed. When I open them, if the sights are not aligned, the grip is not ok. If I can't get it perfect without physically changing the grip, I add normal window putty to the grip, after covering the wood with scotch tape so I don't ruin it. Don Nygord wrote a great article on changing your grips, at http://www.nygord-precison.com . I suggest you read it to find out more about this complicated topic.

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