Aftermarket Glock Frame Mods?

[El Cid]

I'm not looking for stippling or grip reduction. I want the half moon cut on the bottom of the front strap that has come from the factory on and off over the years. I've seen the value first hand during injured shooter training, and it doesn't bother me when shooting.

While it seems a fairly simple mod, I'd be willing to pay a professional to do it for me. I've googled much and found nothing so maybe nobody is doing this because I'm the only Glock shooter left without sissy hands? ;) Any suggestions? I need to email Boresight today and see if Ben will entertain my idea, but if y'all know any other folks in that line of work you'd trust please share. Thanks!

This is what I want - on all my Glocks.
https://gunmagwarehouse.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/llo3ybp6vljz.jpg
Image courtesy of gunmagwarehouse.com

[Stone]

The glock store will do it. If its not specifically an add to cart option under frame mods then just call them. Similar mods are $50 a frame...

Battle ready arms is another one but I have never worked with them or purchased anything from them directly so i cant vouch for them.

Honestly thats a pretty simple mod with a dremal tool, the trick is to just practice a bunch of times on some sacrificial material which will give you the confidence you need...

You will just use a nickel or quarter and draw a half circle with a white paint pen. Then just remove the material to your line and use some fine grit sand paper to fine tune your work.

[El Cid]

The glock store will do it. If its not specifically an add to cart option under frame mods then just call them. Similar mods are $50 a frame...

Battle ready arms is another one but I have never worked with them or purchased anything from them directly so i cant vouch for them.

Honestly thats a pretty simple mod with a dremal tool, the trick is to just practice a bunch of times on some sacrificial material which will give you the confidence you need...

You will just use a nickel or quarter and draw a half circle with a white paint pen. Then just remove the material to your line and use some fine grit sand paper to fine tune your work.

Thanks. For $50 a pop I may have to suck it up and try it myself. I just cringe at the possibility of wrecking a frame.

[BK14]

Thanks. For $50 a pop I may have to suck it up and try it myself. I just cringe at the possibility of wrecking a frame.

Practice on other things like A2 grips, the mag loader from the Glock box, etc. Keep the dremel speed low, and go slow. When the wheel heats up, the plastic starts to melt, which is no big deal, but needs more cleanup after.

[Sig_Fiend]

If you want to take on the task yourself, I'd recommend getting a chopped up frame to test on. OTDefense (https://store.otdefense.com/search?q=scraps) has some of different guns, though the Glock frame scraps are currently sold out.

[vcdgrips]

Stone is spot on.

You could also get a 3m variety pack of sand paper and wrap in around something round and just go low and slow. Putting the lower in a padded vise (you can use paperbacks in a pinch) will keep it steady while yo u do your thing.

If you go the Dremel route, light touch and slowest (ergo coolest ) speed is the way.

[Stone]

El Cid Dont forget shipping each way, which last time I shipped a frame was about $25 so thats about $100 per frame and it sounded like you had several you wanted to do. For several hundred bucks you could get a nice dremal tool, a steak dinner and still have cash left over to fill up your truck.

Here is Half round center punch that I would definetely try before I went the dremal route: https://www.amazon.com/Cooyeah-Half-Round-Cutter-Leather-Crafting/dp/B082NTJY1V/ref=sr_1_30?keywords=Leather%2BCraft%2BHalf-Round%2BCutter%2BPunch&qid=1664987084&sr=8-30&th=1

More: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Half-Round+Cutter+Punch+Leather+Belt+End+Cutter&i=arts-crafts&crid=2N9NJSTAYT49O&sprefix=half-round+cutter+punch+leather+belt+end+cutter+%2Carts-crafts%2C108&ref=nb_sb_noss

Maybe someone here can get you the dimensions on the cutout and you will only need one punch. In all reality you can make the half circle any size you want (within reason of course) One punch size will give you consistancy for all your frames. Just cut a piece of wood that fits in the magwell and protruds out about 4" that will supprt the frame when you strike the punch. You will also need to support the backside of the frame as well so the striking force doesnt stress out the hand grip. You could drill a 1"1/4" hole in a 4x4 block of wood then cut the block in half so the back of the grip lays flat in it and if the magwell is flared the flare will hang past the end. Hopefully that makes sense. You would just be making a jig to support the frame all around as you strike the punch. So for about $20 you can do as many frames as you want to.

If my descrpition doesnt translate well into a mental picture, let me know and I will draw a sketch for you on Paint...

ETA: Actually, if yours has the flared magwell the backside will need to be supported as you will be sending force through the flare on the front side. Just cut a small notch in the half moon portion of the jig and it will drop down in it, that way the whole backside or the handrip is supported...

[Grouse870]

There is a grip tape company. I think handle it grips? That still uses the cut out on there grips. Might make a good template.

[Stone]

Here you go: https://temcoindustrial.com/2-inch-hydraulic-knockout-punch-electrical-conduit-hole-cutter-tool-set/


https://temcoindustrial.com/manual-lever-sheet-metal-stud-punch/

https://temcoindustrial.com/th0392-3-4-conduit-hole-size-knockout-punch-unit-with-manual-draw-stud-1-05-actual-hole-size/

[Mark D]

I suspect you can easily do it yourself. Just go slow.

[Joe in PNG]

A broomstick, a variety of sandpaper, and some double stick tape would be how I'd go about it. Fasten the stick down somehow, stick the sandpaper to the stick, and get to sanding.

Start with the heavy grit, then use the finer stuff to progressively polish the cut.

I'd mark the centerline of the grip somehow, and check regularly to ensure I'm not going off center.

[LukeNCMX]

Altenatively, you can use base pads designed for single handed mag stripping.

Henning Group’s Blueline base pads are an example.

[Evil_Ed]

If you happen to have a Gen2 or other frame with the cutout, you could simply make a cardboard template; whittle down a piece of cardboard until it fits perfectly in the cutout. Viola, template. You can affix that to the frame you want to cut, and use that as a guide.

Personally though, I'm not that brave...the only Glock carving I've ever done was to shave off the finger bumps on a Gen 4 G19 (the compact frames have the bumps precisely where my fingers go; don't suffer from that problem on the full size frames). Shaved them off, wrapped the grip in some AGrip Grip Tape (https://www.brookstactical.com/), and within 6 months, Glock came out with the Gen 5...and a little bit after that came out with the improved Gen 5, with the breech face cut. C'est la vie.

Moral of the story: Wait a few months, I'm sure the Glock Perfected Gen 6 will reintroduce the finger bumps and the front strap cutout :)

[sickeness]

TBH I honestly don't know why the fuck people bust out the dremel to modify plastic parts, it's like trimming a bonsai with a weed whacker.

I used to be the same way but one day a light bulb went off in my head and I realized I could do most of these jobs way cleaner and more accurately with plastic model snippers and wood carving knives. You can get both off Amazon for about $30 together. Finish with sandpaper and it will look professional with no risk of taking off too much material.

[JCN]

Thanks. For $50 a pop I may have to suck it up and try it myself. I just cringe at the possibility of wrecking a frame.

Files and saws will be slower but will reduce the risk of wrecking. You can start with a shallower cut out notch and stop when you get to a contour that looks good.


TBH I honestly don't know why the fuck people bust out the dremel to modify plastic parts, it's like trimming a bonsai with a weed whacker.

I used to be the same way but one day a light bulb went off in my head and I realized I could do most of these jobs way cleaner and more accurately with plastic model snippers and wood carving knives. You can get both off Amazon for about $30 together. Finish with sandpaper and it will look professional with no risk of taking off too much material.

It’s like chainsaw carving ice sculptures…

It’s FUN.

[CraigS]

VCDgrips has the best idea for a first time frame mod. I have several pieces of wood dowel, copper pipe, and even pvc pipe w/ sandpaper wrapped around them. About 6 inches long and about 4 inches of sandpaper. I usually use the sticky back paper that comes in about 4 inch squares. I wrap it around and then a couple wraps of masking near the edges. The paper is a heavier weight which makes it last a lot longer than standard paper. The nice part of this technique is you can start w/ a smaller than final size and work your way up. Makes it easier to be sure you are keeping your cutout centered since you can fudge it sideways a little as you need to.

[JCN]

VCDgrips has the best idea for a first time frame mod. I have several pieces of wood dowel, copper pipe, and even pvc pipe w/ sandpaper wrapped around them. About 6 inches long and about 4 inches of sandpaper. I usually use the sticky back paper that comes in about 4 inch squares. I wrap it around and then a couple wraps of masking near the edges. The paper is a heavier weight which makes it last a lot longer than standard paper. The nice part of this technique is you can start w/ a smaller than final size and work your way up. Makes it easier to be sure you are keeping your cutout centered since you can fudge it sideways a little as you need to.

Curved file with the contour already built in works well too.

[El Cid]

Awesome ideas - thanks everyone!

As for practicing on an old A2 grip, I did that when I thought about stippling my own guns... it just convinced me to pay a pro. lol! I may start with the broomstick and sandpaper idea at first and see how it goes.

The only mag floor plates I've seen that work for one-handed manipulations are the TD/LAV and I have a few. But they are wider than the gun and make it harder to conceal in warm weather. If I ran Glock, there would be 2 SKU's for each gun. One with the cutout and with without.