I was interested in getting a set of boot grips for my J-frame and went to the Spegel website. I still have a checkered set I had on my 3" 66 years ago - very nice stuff. On the site he suggests going to Lightning Sports - there's an icon to click on to go directly to them to look at photos.
So I call the place, as there is no price listed on the site. A very nice gentleman offers to send me an E-mail with the photos of several Spegel uncheckered boot grips he's got. The price? Flippin' $195!
It got me to thinking: Why would someone pay that price if you can get a set from Spegel for less than half that? Is there that long of a wait or did he go out of business? Wow.
Just a side note: When I got my Spegel grips for the '66 probably 15 years ago I thought they were just too "slippery" with no checkering and didn't know checkering was an option. Several days after I sent the grips back I get a call.... from Craig himself asking me if I thought I'd be happy if he hand checkered the grips and sent them back free of charge...for $10! As I said, I still have'em. What a great guy!

Check out Novak Sights.Com. They have pictures and prices of all of their Spegel grips.

Frank

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S&WCA #2173

I have five (5) Smith J frames with sets of Craig Spegel Boot grips, and have purchased them from both Lightning and Novak. The service has been excellent from both, but the grips are not cheap. Supposedly, the high cost is the result of the shortage of the various hard woods used in making the grips. I like mine, but I'd have to give a good long thought to buying another set because of the cost.

I buy all mine direct from Craig, The longest I have waited is 4 months and the shortest is less than one month. I believe he makes them in runs for the same firearm so it depends on when he gets to your model. Great guy and price is good.

I've gotten all mine straight from Craig.

I always save the money and ride out the wait.

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Stu

cell phone pics of grips that cost $60 directly from craig:

EDW, those look really great. Can you tell me how those grips compare in width to the old Uncle Mike's Boot Grips?

Great looking grips EDW. I am at four months and counting waiting my set in walnut direct from Craig (he warned me that they might take a while, but rosewood makes my break out in hives!!).

i remember uncle mike's boot grips were supposed to be the rubber version of spegel's wood grips, so they should have the same dimensions.

when i ordered this set, i told craig i wanted his lowest priced grade as i did not want to have a set of overly expensive grips on an everyday ccw. this set is what he sent and it is a standard grade panama cocobolo.

ed

How does one order direct from Craig? I don't see any shopping cart on his website, or an email for that matter.

Does he only take orders by phone?

In the past I have just called him. Very nice fellow. We discuss what I think that I want, he gives me an idea of a timeline and a price, I put a check in the mail. Very simple and worth the wait.

I agree with you. The price others charge is all out of whack. So I get mine from Craig directly. In fact, I now get them from him semi-finished, fit them to the gun frame and send them back to Craig for finishing and checkering. Here are some pics.







keith

I have two sets on order from Craig placed over the summer. I will wait based on the suggestions of others here on the forum...when they arrive I will post.

I have a set on my 642 that I ordered from Novak's. The advantage with ordering from Novak's was that I ordered them the same day I ordered my 642. The grips arrived the day before my 642 so they were ready to go. In fact, I haven't tried any other grips since getting the Spegels. I haven't even shot my 642 with the factory grips.

When I'm finally able to get another J-frame I will order directly from Spegel as I would like to try his checkered version. I'm also curious about his custom-fit option. I'll still have my current set to use during the waiting period.

I'm also considering getting a set of checkered/extended grips for my 65.

I have been waiting a few months for mine. I don't really remember
when I sent him the letter. Should be a nice present when they come
unexpectedly
I did just get some Herrett Jordan Troopers made to fit my hand.
Highly recommended for those with larger hands and guns.
The gun practically points itself.



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Nemo

I like the shape & profile of my uncle mike boots but like wood grips, so I'm thinking of trying some Spegels. I checked the Novak website & got a severe case of sticker-shock. Next I emailed Lightning Sports & I hope to hear that they have some in stock for a reasonable price. Otherwise I'm thinking of maybe trying a set of Altamonts.
I do have two sets of j-frame Badger boots (RB & SB) and like them, but want to try some others also. Boot grips may all look very similar but there can be quite a difference in the shapes-- check the thumbnail below which compares Badgers to Uncle Mikes. Besides the difference in the finger-groove area, what you can't see in the photo is that the Uncle Mikes leave quite a bit more of the rear of the trigger guard exposed.

Attached Images

badgers vs uncle mikes.jpg (180.1 KB, 296 views)

The Spegels are very nice especially for the money. Here are some in ebony on a 3" 624:



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Nemo

Just scored the high horn version in the classifieds for 45 bucks. Can't wait to try them out.

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442 J frame

Novaks has a couple at around $125 & several for more (in a couple cases, way more), but Lightning Sports' least expensive set was $225. I guess they're pretty, but WHEW! That's a lot of cheese when the old Chief I'd put them on only cost me $350.
Those two outfits would probably sell more Spegels (at least to cheapskates like me) if they carried shooter-grade grips as well as premium-grades.

Might give Jim Badger a look, too.

I've had both and they are comparable.

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Professional Trainer

Like others have said, go straight to Craig himself for his grips. Bit of a wait perhaps but they are hand made from hand selected woods...he makes every pair himself! Craig invented boot grips so to have a pair of his is a bit special IMHO. I only have two pair now but will have more soon before he retires.

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586 003.jpg (82.4 KB, 331 views)

Spegel's the only one who lists boots as a standard item for the SB j-frames, but the catch is the several-months-long wait. After seeing some photos you'd posted on another site of your d-frame Colts with custom-made Badger grips, I gave Jim a call when I wanted a set of grips for my square butt Chief Special. Jim made up a real nice set of rosewood boot grips for me, cut down from his normal 3-finger-size design, and I had them in less than a week. No extra charge either.
Now that's what I call customer service!
I was so pleased that I bought a set of his grips for my RB Chief also. I wanted them minimally sized so he again made up a special set, with an open butt instead of the slightly longer ones he catalogs. Now I have a matching pair of 2" Chiefs, one RB & one SB, right down to the grips.

I ordered directly from Craig, told him I needed a set for my 36-1, and as we were wrapping up the details I mentioned that they were for a square-butt gun. Good thing I mentioned that! With the dark finish of the gun, the reddish hue of the cocobolo looks almost orange.

Those SB boots look nice! Here's a shot of my SB Badger boots.

Attached Images

my SB M36 with Badger boots 1.jpg (221.2 KB, 390 views)

hotrod,

nice looking grips too. does the badger's cover the backstrap?

ed

No, the Badgers leave the backstrap open. I like that in a boot grip for better concealability, plus I don't have real big hands & so don't need the added reach. I'm very pleased with them, they are really comfortable.

Just got a model 17-9 last week, and got to shoot it Friday. It is a nice gun, but there is just one problem, my hands are too big for the grips. My Model 41 fits my hand like it was made for it. Does anyone know where I can get larger grips for the 17? Does any one make custom grips to fit a person's hand?

Thanks

Herretts Gun stocks by Herrett's Stocks, Inc. will custom make several types of grips to fit your hand.

The Jordan Trooper model, shown in the post by Nemo288 above, is probably the most suitable for those with large hands.