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Old October 7, 2012, 07:17 AM   #1
chaz12
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Buffalo Brothers ivory grips

I had read a lot of good reviews about these grips and I decided to get a set on a new Pietta 1851. I paid an extra 100 dollars to send the pistol to them for custom fitting.

Unfortunately, what I got back did not live up to even minimal standards of quality. The basic simulated ivory resin was quite good in color and texture, but there were tiny black speckles scattered all through it. One area was completely discolored with them. There was no mention of this type of imperfection in the written descriptions or pictures.

I probably could have lived with the black specks, but the fitting of the grips was very poor. There wasn't one area that fit really well. There were large gaps where the grips joined the pistol frame, and the angles there were not square with the frame. The bevel angles on the bottom surfaces of the side panels did not even match one side to the other. There were places along the backstrap and bottom where the grips had been over sanded in a small spot so that the line of the grip dipped where it met the grip frame.

I went to remove the grips, and then came to find out that no care had been taken to protect the frame when the grips pieces were glued together. The grips were glued to the grip frame with excess glue. That was not a real problem since it was fairly easy to break one side panel off and then remove them, but the idea is to avoid gluing them to the frame in the first place. They are meant to be removable as one piece.

I took them off, disposed of them, and put the original Pietta grips back on.
Very disappointing, but we live and learn.

Chaz
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Old October 7, 2012, 07:43 AM   #2
Hawg
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I would have taken pics of it all and contacted the co..
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Old October 7, 2012, 07:45 AM   #3
pghrich
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WOW, that was quite a expensive lesson, i cant believe you had no recourse like return, money back, or even another set, do you have any pictures, rich
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Old October 7, 2012, 09:53 AM   #4
chaz12
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I was so disgusted that I did not think thru my options, but clearly the replies to my post are correct.

I dug the grips out of the trash can and emailed Buffalo Brothers telling them I was dissatisfied and asking for them to make it right.

We'll see what they say.

Chaz
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Old October 7, 2012, 11:03 AM   #5
pghrich
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Good move, most companies now a days are trying to do the right thing hopefully said company is one of them, rich
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Old October 7, 2012, 12:36 PM   #6
Roshi
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Thanks!

I almost bought a set for my 51 Pietta. I'll take then off my list. I ordered a set from NC Ordinance knowing I'll have to do some fitting myself. However, these are two piece grips.
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Old October 7, 2012, 04:15 PM   #7
pghrich
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Roshi

FYI, i had two sets of grips from them ,on both of them the inserts pulled out and i didnot over tighten them, beware,rich
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Old October 7, 2012, 10:37 PM   #8
Fingers McGee
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chaz12
Unfortunately, what I got back did not live up to even minimal standards of quality. The basic simulated ivory resin was quite good in color and texture, but there were tiny black speckles scattered all through it. One area was completely discolored with them. There was no mention of this type of imperfection in the written descriptions or pictures.
I had a similar experience with their grips for a pair of Schofields. First pair I got were - to put it mildly - crap. The second sets were a little better.
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Old October 8, 2012, 04:35 PM   #9
Rigmarol
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Great useful info. I have also been looking to do some ivory grips. This company is now scratched off my list.

Thanks for the info and I hope you get satisfaction from them.
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Old October 9, 2012, 05:08 AM   #10
olmontanaboy
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I would reccomend this company http://www.truivory.com/ their a bit pricy but outstanding grips that fit perfect with free custom fitting.







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Old October 9, 2012, 10:18 AM   #11
pghrich
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Hello and WOW!!!, those are simply gorgous, i want some but i can't afford them, now what do i do, credit????, rich, "edit", after doing some research i can afford them at around $100 to $150 not as bad as i first throught, rich

Last edited by pghrich; October 9, 2012 at 10:29 AM.
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Old October 9, 2012, 11:58 AM   #12
olmontanaboy
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That's good Rich, I don't think you will be dissapointed. Their about as close to genuine ivory that you can get. The down side is it can take awhile to get them made but I thought it was worth the wait. I only had to send the trigger guard and backstrap from my navy to them and couldn't be happier with the fit.
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Old October 9, 2012, 06:11 PM   #13
dickydalton
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How much does pricy mean?
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