Any info on these Ivory Grips?

[Chaosrob]

Yes, I realize these are for a colt, but I do not belong to any colt forums .

Going through my vault I found this set of grips that I forgot I even had. I bought these a few years ago, but decided I did not want to put them on my SAA.

Thinking about placing them up for auction, but not sure what their value would be.

If anyone has information on them it would be most helpful. TIA

 

[2152hq]

AJE brand grips were used by the Colt Custom Shop in the 70's when they first got the new shop up and running. The markings on the back of yours are the same that show up on the back of Colt Custom Shop guns from the late 70's, maybe into the 80's.
Maybe they used others, but I've seen those markings on their guns grips from the time.
Undoubtedly the company sold to other outlets and the general public.

Seems that the AJE brand was sold to or the name changed to AJAX Custom Grip Co. somewhere along the line.
Might not be the right name change, but I think that's what happened to the company.
AJAX has changed owners a few times too I believe.

Real ivory grips for the SAA run about $400 and up right now. The carving might increase the value or decrease it,,all depends on the opinion of the buyer.

 

[Chaosrob]

AJE brand grips were used by the Colt Custom Shop in the 70's when they first got the new shop up and running. The markings on the back of yours are the same that show up on the back of Colt Custom Shop guns from the late 70's, maybe into the 80's.
Maybe they used others, but I've seen those markings on their guns grips from the time.
Undoubtedly the company sold to other outlets and the general public.

Seems that the AJE brand was sold to or the name changed to AJAX Custom Grip Co. somewhere along the line.
Might not be the right name change, but I think that's what happened to the company.
AJAX has changed owners a few times too I believe.

Real ivory grips for the SAA run about $400 and up right now. The carving might increase the value or decrease it,,all depends on the opinion of the buyer.

Wow, that is great information. Thank you very much for taking the time to share it.

 

[squidsix]

I bought ivory last year for a Colt "d" frame, and I spent a hair over $400 on the pair, with no carving, but a bit more visible grain than your set. SAA grips are more material, but easier to cut, so likely you are looking about right there. Give Nutmeg Imports a call, or send them pics. They will tell you what they would get for them.

 

[Chaosrob]

I bought ivory last year for a Colt "d" frame, and I spent a hair over $400 on the pair, with no carving, but a bit more visible grain than your set. SAA grips are more material, but easier to cut, so likely you are looking about right there. Give Nutmeg Imports a call, or send them pics. They will tell you what they would get for them.

Thank you sir. I appreciate the information.

 

[-db-]

Art Jewel Enterprises (AJE) at some point became Eagle grips. Here is their page for real ivory SAA grips: Gun Grips | Standard Grips - Colt Single Action Army Genuine Elephant Ivory Grips | Gun Grips

 

[Chaosrob]

Art Jewel Enterprises (AJE) at some point became Eagle grips. Here is their page for real ivory SAA grips: Gun Grips | Standard Grips - Colt Single Action Army Genuine Elephant Ivory Grips | Gun Grips

Thank you DB. Maybe I can get them to trade me for some plain ones lol

 

[-db-]

The carving is likely a Sambar stag, AJE/Eagle sourcing a lot of their grip materials from India.

Sri Lankan sambar deer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/2008/01/04/13/694-Sambar_Stag_2.standalone.prod_affiliate.56.JPG

 

[Dave Nash]

Yes, I realize these are for a colt, but I do not belong to any colt forums .

Going through my vault I found this set of grips that I forgot I even had. I bought these a few years ago, but decided I did not want to put them on my SAA.

Thinking about placing them up for auction, but not sure what their value would be.

If anyone has information on them it would be most helpful. TIA

"Chaosrob":

Not wanting to pile on or just repeat what you have already been told, I believe that the name "AJAX" in AJAX Grips was derived from the name of the owner or founder: A. Jack Rosenberg. As a company, they have been around for 50-some years and went through a change in ownership/organization in 2010. I did business with them in the 70's and 80's and I believe the people I worked with at the time (who knew the folks at AJAX even before then) continued to deal with them at least until the 1990's.

Mr. Rosenberg was one of those great "characters" that made the gun business what it was and I will remember those days for a long time to come.

I will also remember my dealings with Harbans Singh who was the man who built up Art Jewel/Eagle Grips through hard work and living up to his word. Before they moved to Carol Stream, Illinois, they were in another Western suburb outside of Chicago and I did a lot of business with him then and it was always pleasant.

I honestly don't know if AJAX supplied Colt's Custom Shop as mentioned above (although I have no reason to doubt it) but I do know that Art Jewel/Eagle sure did.

Much of what I did with them in my work locally back then revolved around ivory and stag grips for Colt Single Action Armies. And for those of you on this site that know those guns, you will also know that when it comes to grips, we should all be thankful that most of us here are Hand-Ejector collectors of one sort or another for at least we can generally switch out the stocks without the trials and tribulations those particlular Colt's involve.

The SAA grip frames and their relationship to the rest of the gun can be all over the map and replacement stocks almost always have to be fitted (matched or mated) to them through what can often be a laborious process. I always fitted my own but when it came to customer guns (especially higher end customer guns), I would lug them out (2 or 3 at a time) to Eagle and have coffee or tea with Harbans, while he had his guys fit and polish whatever he and I had personally selected from his inventory.

As they say, those were the days.

Better yet, while those guns were being addressed by his crew and we were exchanging pleasantries, Mr. Singh would also show and share with me whatever he was up to that week for Colt. I saw grips, beautiful exotic hardwood gun cases, rosewood, teak and ebony handled screwdriver sets, oilers and all kinds of really neat stuff made back when ivory wasn't so evil (or ungodly expensive). Some of it was simple and traditional and a lot of it was embellished with either the Colt name or Rampant Colt logo. A few of these things were cataloged by Colt in their at-the-time elaborate Custom Shop promotional literature package but much of what I saw were one-of-a-kind items designed by them and sold to private customers where, in many cases, they would probably never be seen again outside of the final owner's home or gunroom.

Not only did I treasure this man's friendship but I was honored and flattered that he shared such stuff with me. I think that he knew that my father was an engraver (and I that had been a tool-and-die guy at one time) so I guess he also knew that I was lucky enough to have a slightly-better-than-average understanding of such goods. In any case, I will always be grateful for what I saw back then.

His son Raj runs things now and he's a fine man too. A sharp guy, he knows grips and he knows the business. These days I only get to see him for a few minutes each year at the SHOT Show (often it's only a wave hello as I am running from one meeting to the next and he is working their booth) but they still do some really neat stuff as evidenced by the ivory grips that "-db-" linked to above.

For what it's worth, here is another link to an online "article" about the company by Rick Hacker on the NRA's American Rifleman electronic website. I believe that it dates to this past summer: http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/eagle-grips/

Finally, depending on how broad-based your reading habits on this site are, you might have seen that I made three Posts to the Thread about unusual or special (for one reason or another) Smith Revolver stocks that's entitled "Stock Collecting Junkies Unite!" and is on the "S&W Hand Ejectors: 1896 to 1961" Board.

I limited myself there to factory-made items as I thought that was the OP's original intention. Well this time, I'll limit myself to a couple of pairs that came out of Harbans' and Raj's operation a long time ago that you might find interesting

One pair, like yours, is for a single action. While checkered, they are executed in the recognizable, period Colt Fleur-de-lis pattern. The smooth outer borders (and the stocks themselves) are oversized to allow the grips to be polished to fit as discussed above. Someday, I guess, I'll have to put them on something.

The other pair is one of the bigger pieces of nicely figured stag that I've ever come across. They are target stocks for a Colt Python (or anything else built on their .41cal "I" frame). One sees target size ivories if you look around but stag, not so much. As such, I couldn't pass them up when they were shown to me. I am also including a shot of them positioned next to a pair of older (fully checkered) Colt grips so one can appreciate their size and then an image of them fitted on to an early Python as well.

After including photos of Colt grips and mentioning their Custom Shop earlier, I should also mention (as this is the Smith & Wesson Forum, after all) that while I was at Smith, I believe that Paul Piquette (the Company's then Master Engraver) bought things from Eagle to use on projects of his as well.

Hope this helps and hope you can use the information you now have from me and the others here to better describe and set a value to your grips, if indeed, you do decide to sell them.

Maybe something like:
For Sale: One Pair of Like New, Genuine Ivory "AJE" (Art Jewel Enterprises) Grips for a Colt Single Action Army. Looking NIB (New in the Box), these grips are factory carved in their Pattern 3F with both sides displaying what appears to be a large, antlered Fallow Deer; an image that provides both good looks and functional texturing. Art Jewel Enterprises (better known today as Eagle Grips) has been in the grip-making business for well over 30 years supplying stocks of all kinds to both handgun users and handgun manufacturers and these are excellent examples of their work in a material that is becoming less and less common every day.

You might want to do a quick test fit on one or two Colt SAA's and see if they are unfitted or oversize for fitting and mention something about that if they are. But I would very careful if you place them on a gun or handle them for this purpose, so as to not contaminate what appear to be their unstained surfaces from any lubes, cleaners or preservatives on the gun or even the oil from your hands. They look pristine and you should try to keep them that way.

Anyway, you take care.

 

[peyton]

I saw the grips for sale, but do you think they would work on an USFA SAA?

 

[rburg]

The suggestion to contact Nutmeg Sports is a good one. The owner is Jim Alaimo who coincidentally was the manager of Colts custom shop during the period of the grips. Jim now sells his own production ivory grips. He used to have the tables across the aisle from us at National Gun Day. I think health problems restrict him more to his home turf these days. Jim won't buy your grips, but sometimes if you catch him in a good mood he'll tell you stories.

The market for Colt items has somewhat deteriorated over the last decade. The advent of cheap import clones are partially responsible, as is the overblown price structure. SAAs just aren't worth what people were asking and a lot of them have been tinkered with to make them appear rare or desirable.

I don't think you can find a set for under the $400 price guessed at above. The carving, if done today, would add at least that much. The problem will be finding someone who wants the caribou. Its still better than the dragon's I've got on a set of N frame grips on an RM. My guess is that if you're in a hurry, the $400 will be a good guess. If you have time and patience you can do better. Just don't get discouraged if no one buys them the first day or first few months. They'll sell eventually.

For a background story, my former gun show partner (deceased) had a beautiful SAA. It was modified with fire blued screws and a few other things I forget. But it had a spectacular set of ivories with a carved Marilyn Monroe in her classic pose with the wind blowing up her dress. A very well done carving. She was maybe even "enhanced" as some of the young girls are today...

So along came a buyer. John dug his heals in and wouldn't separate the grips from the gun. And he wanted $3300 I think for the gun. And out of generosity of his heart, he admitted he'd come down to $3200. But the buyer guy was persistent. He wanted those grips badly (I did too).

Then I went on one of my infamous missions across the room. When I came back, the gun was sitting there nekkid. Without a stitch on! The scoundrel had purchased the grips off John's gun. And I just had to hear the story. It seems John had his price (integrity was hard to come by). When the guy came back for maybe the 4th or 5th time, he offered John $1600 for the grips. That was big bucks maybe 8 or 10 years ago. So he relented and sold. Then slapped a set of factory grips back on the gun, priced it at $2000 and sold it later in the day.

You're market isn't as wide open. The country is full of perverts that like MM. You're looking for a Colt fan who lives or romanticizes about Alaska. One with a bunch of money.