To this day, I still find that one of my pistols that provides me with a superb index and ergonomic fit and operation is my venerable Ruger P89. I've experimented with multiple aftermarket grips over my ownership, finally (I thought) pretty much settling on a set of Hogue rubber fingergroove grips. Although I was pretty pleased with the Hogue Fingergroove rubber grips,
I had see-sawed for a period back to the OEM Xenoy grips, as I liked both their durability (I've literally never heard of a grip plate breaking or cracking) and their thinner profile. However I had two problems with them: 1) the sharp tang at the upper left grip curvature, even after some judicious filing and sanding, and 2) their relative slick surface, not providing a firm enough grip for me. I has experimented by having my gunsmith lightly bead-blast them, and while it provided a nice subdued matte finish, grip effectiveness wasn't significantly improved. The OEM Ruger grips had horizontal grooves molded in, much like World War II Walther P38 grips; they provided some grippiness over a smooth surface, and were easy to clean dirt and detritus out of the grooves, but were not particularly effective in significantly increasing the grip.
As part of the updating Ruger did when the P93 and P94 were created, in addition to the more streamlined slide and receiver, the grips, while remaining of excellent Xenoy material, were modified in three ways; 1) The grips were dished in more significantly, increasing users grip on the receiver by reducing the size of the grips, 2) The horizontal grooves were replaced by a form of polymid checkering, similar to what Glock ended up with on their Gen4 and Gen5 receivers. The last modification, 3), was that the upper left grip protruded out further from the frame due to it covering a revised spring setup on the P93/94 compared to the P85/89; this provided a flush fit to the P93/94 frames, but protruded out as a shelf when placed in the P89 frame.
Replacing the P89 OEM grips with the P93/94 OEM grips for increased grippiness was suggested to me years ago by Mike Smisko, one of Rugers P85/P89 project engineers; he stated that while the grips came from different molds, the fit specifications were essentially the same, and the P93/94 grips would be workable in the P89 receiver with some minor reworking. I filed that in the back of my mind, but didn't think to go that route for many years after we discussed it.
So-why the change? Well, as good as the Hogue rubber fingergroove grip feel and are in use, they still add some bulk and additional hand displacement to the frame. Additionally, over time some devulcanization can occur, giving a tacky feel, and some surface degradation (which I found slightly occurring on the inner grip retaining tabs). While dealable by applying rubbing alcohol, I really wanted to side-step both issues by going back to the improved Xenoy Ruger grips.
William Ruger was exceptionally demanding of inherent quality and durability of all his gun's components, and the P85/P89 was a very personal flagship project-he very much wanted to win the DoD pistol trials of the 1980s, and have a Ruger as the US military's issue sidearm. The P85 wasn't quite ready for the XM9 trials, but was ready for the subsequent XM10 trials. From what I've been able to gather, the modified P85s submitted passed the trials with flying colors, but the XM10 was Beretta's to lose-which they didn't...so there was no Ruger M10 (although as a Group XO and when in the Corps Forward Field Tactical Operations Center, I did carry one as my personal defensive weapon, but that's another story...) I discuss some of the history of the P85 and P89 in a previous p-f thread for any interested: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....onal-Ruger-P89
I easily and inexpensively found a set of lightly used P94 OEM grips on eBay, for about $15. After thoroughly cleaning and drying, I found that they almost perfectly fit in my P89's receiver, needing but light taps with the polymer head of my Lyman gunsmithing hammer, and the screw holes aligned perfectly
The right grip snapped immediately into place, with a flush fit. The left grip plate at the grip top protruded shelf-like in the P89 frame, necessitating light filing and sanding to bevel the shelf for comfort when using, and to blend in at the top rear curve of the grip tang.
In all other dimensions, the left grip provided a perfect grip in the receiver grip recess, after being lightly tapped in.
In use, I've found the following:
1). Better overall ergonomics, due to the slimmer grip receiver dimensions;
2). Increased grippiness, due to the much more effective polymid molded checkering;
3) Increased grippiness and index due to the beveled upper shelf for my strong-hand thumb-a nice unexpected benefit.
I embellished (or made ridiculously garish) the appearance by using a red Lacquer-Stik to fill in the "Ruger" molded in the grip surface-hey, it's my gun....
So there you have it. I much prefer the P94 grips on the P89 to the OEM horizontally grooved Xenoy grip for their reduced grip dimensions, and increased grippiness, and I prefer them to the Hogue rubber fingergroove grips due to the decreased bulk (and probably longer lifespan). Years ago, I had tried and used for years the Craig Spegel-designed Uncle Mikes Santoprene rubber checkered grips for the P85/P89, but I eventually experienced deterioration in their retaining tabs which compromised their retention in the gun, so I also consider the P94 grips to be a superior solution to them (I assume that they also pop up occasionally on eBay and similar, usually at pretty inflated prices).
I doubt that this discussion will result in land-office sales rates for surplus or used P94 OEM Xenoy grips, but they are a very viable option for period P85/P89/P91 users-and pretty much plug and play.
Best, Jon
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