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Back in the pre-WWII years, when a customer asked Colt's to checker the grip straps it was invariably done on the diagonal, often with a fancy border. Are there any custom smiths working today that offer this option? Any willing to try? I can imagine how difficult it is; impossible to get it perfect. But that's part of its appeal to me. It has an organic look that is unmistakenly done by hand.

Beautiful! What model is shown in the bottom two?

Brownell's has forever had this checkering guide in their catalog, that is for exactly this-- but I have never known anyone to use it.

Nice pics, I agree that it has a a very appealing look. Maybe a Boarding Pistol would have had this mod... ?

I've tried it - and you're right, it's extremely difficult. Laying out your first lines along a guide isn't so bad, but following those lines and spacing them is really tough. It's also very hard to get anything resembling an even set of runout lines on the sides.

The originals were actually done by engravers, using a hand graver that spaced one line at a time. That made it possible for them to work within borders, as in the pictures. Rifle bolt knobs are still done in this fashion. Even these fine old examples are not what we'd refer to in today's world as really technically perfect checkering, though. The process was just too difficult. I'd bet a good modern engraver would be able to come up with a way. Processes and tools have progressed so much in the last 50+ years, that diagonal checkering could likely be made to come out as nicely as common vertical/horizontal checkering.

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That may not be as perfect as horizontal or vertical checkering of today, but that's a really, really neat look.

I love checkering that is contained within borders. It just looks better to me. The diagonal checkering is really something that I might have to have some gunsmith try on a gun of mine some day....

Ned,

The bottom two pictures are a Colt Woodsman. Isn't it fascinating how they cut right up to and around the serial number?

By the way I don't want to hijack my own thread but I might have a base for your boarding gun project if you want to contact me offline.

Regards,
Kevin

That does look classically beautiful.
It makes an agressive surface look elegant.

It seems like I've seen that checkering done on old bullseye guns. But, I guess most customs from "way back when" would have been bullseye guns.

I've always liked checkered trigger faces too. It sure goes well with that checkering.

I know that it's not quite the same, but Miller Custom does a cross pattern checkering that looks kind of close. It looks like it is a little more aggressive.

Scroll down some in this link and you will see a picture of it:
http://www.millercustom.com/new_page_2.htm

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that is classy checkering. i can just imagine how tough it must be to do. i wouldnt mind seeing the gun ted mentioned doing. you have any pics ted??-cam

AMAZING timing of this thread. I should buy a lottery ticket tonight. Stay tuned.......

Thanks for sharing the awesome pictures, Kevin. Don't know how you do it, but you turn up the neatest stuff! That is some very cool craftsmanship on those pistols!

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Stan's up to something (again)....... this is gonna be good.....

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I know that George at EGW offers a checkered insert that can be tig welded to the frame. Since they are made with a CNC machine I wonder how hard it would be to write a program that would rotate the checkering 45 degrees to come up with a diagonal pattern.

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God, I SO want to hate Kevin but he keeps turning up the coolest stuff!!!