Hi, I bought one of those cool pistols "back in the day," then sold it . . . but now have another one that I found last year . . . complete with the very rare FIFTEEN-ROUND MAGAZINE. I've always loved the ergonomic "fit" in my hand of a BDM!
For those readers not familiar with the BDM, here's my two-tone BDM "Practical" model . . . they originally sold for the same price as their High Power brothers . . .
Sadly, the BDM died a very, very fast death when the Clinton high-cap ban was enacted not long after the first run of these neat 9mms came out. Browning didn't have a huge stockpile of already-manufactured 15 round magazines to grandfather in . . . and no other pistol mags will fit a BDM.
Thus, High-Power priced BDMs with 10 round magazines DIED on dealer shelves and even back when I bought my first one, accessories for this pistol were yet to be developed . . . no aftermarket nightsights, no custom parts or gunsmiths, no grips, nothing. Not many BDMs ended up ever being made either. Heck, the only Browning magazines I ever found for my first one were hard-to-find TEN ROUND versions.
To add insult to injury . . .
When Browning canceled the BDM production, they dumped their remaining BDMs on the market with 10 round magazines at huge discounts (thus further adding insult to injury to dealers still having their original BDMs collecting dust on their shelves).
I had a front sight disintegrate on my first one, and even then, the supplies of BDM parts at Browning's only factory repair place in UTAH only had a limited supply of parts. Today I don't believe Browning supports original BDM parts at all! They sold off the remaining inventory and washed their hands of the whole affair
Bottom line . . . I don't think anyone ever developed aftermarket grips for this pistol . . . and since the original grips are so thin and designed to wrap around to become the backstrap too . . . I doubt any other grips will work on the BDM that could be crafted out of hard materials.
I loved the ergonomics of my original BDM "Practical" model but it was a jam-o-matic and Browning Utah could never get it to really run so I dumped it. I'm pleased to say that my second BDM Practical does not have that flaw!!! After I found my second one to be a good one, I bought two original 10 round Browning mags, still in the box, from an old stocking dealer. Wish I could find some more 15 rounders for it.
IMHO, I think a compact sized, aluminum-framed BDM would make a fantastic CCW pistol but alas it will never, ever be made by Browning. Instead, all we got was a full-sized version before all the little bugs were ironed out.
Wish I could give you more encouragement. However, a few custom holster makers DO have BDM dummy pistol molds and CAN make BDM holsters!
