Wicked Grips Wednesday is a new feature we are going to be running here at The Arms Guide. It is the day when we each week we will be highlighting a new grip style or design from our friends at Wicked Grips. Before we dig into the various offerings that Wicked Grips has to offer lets address the question some of you are asking yourself, “Who is Wicked Grips ?”
Wicked Grips is the brainchild of creative genius Ed Strange (Yes that’s his real name I checked). The company has been in business for just over twelve years and has had their grips and accessories featured in several major gun industry publications such as, Handguns Magazine, RecoilWeb, American Handgunner to name just a few. Ed and the folks at Wicked Grips make more than just grips, they also feature a complete line of accessories for the venerable 1911 line of pistols. Lets take a look at some of their accessories and the grips they sent us to test and evaluate.
1911 Accessories
As I said Wicked Grips makes a full line of 1911 accessories including some awesome looking recoil spring plugs like the one shown above. Will they make you shoot straighter or be faster on the draw ? No they won’t, BUT they will be a cool conversation piece at the range or when you are hanging out with your range buddies. I mean who doesn’t want to be the envy of their friends sometimes?
Continuing their 1911 line of add ons, Wicked Grips makes some rather unique grips screws which can come with several styles of gems in the center. Before you tough guys laugh, think about the women in your life who shoot, and we all know how women love to accessorize things, including their guns. Something small and unique like one of Wicked Grips 1911 screw sets might be just the thing for a stocking stuffer or mothers day, to gain you some brownie points.
The name of the company Implies that they also make grips, which they do. Wicked Grips currently makes a full line of grips to cover many of the popular pistols on the market like Smith & Wesson revolvers, Para Ordnance 1911’s, Desert Eagles, Sig P226’s, Beretta 92’s and of course single stack 1911’s. In total they make over 160 different styles of grips over, featuring dozens of different patterns and inlays. Chances are if you are looking for a well made custom grip for one of the pistols listed above, they’ll have something to fit your tastes.
Not to be overlooked of course is the fact they also make 21 different grips and rail covers for the AR15 family of rifles. Many of the grips for the AR15 feature classic designs and themes from the American Revolution such as “We the People” and the iconic “Join or Die” snake cartoon first made popular by Benjamin Franklin in May 1754.
Our Demo Grips
Now that we have told you about the company, lets get into the grips themselves and what we found out. First off Wicked Grips sent these grips encased in bubble wrap and inside a metal case, then wrapped that case with more bubble wrap. High marks for safety and security in the shipping department. Opening the case I wasn’t sure what to expect, what I found was two aluminum grip panels and one aluminum AR15 grip adorned with the “Join or Die” motif.
The grip panels are smooth aluminum and are 1.5″ wide x 6″ long with a depth of .454″. They also come with both short and long allen head screws for attaching to your rail surfaces. These panels are not an easy on / easy off style of panel, which isn’t a drawback it’s  merely an observation. The surface of the panels are smooth but they are arched to provide the shooters hand a fair amount of contour for gripping. I closely examined the logo on the grips and I was shocked at how well they looked even with a magnifying glass. I have no idea how its done but the logos aren’t some sort of paste on sticker at all. Again high marks were scored for design and build quality.
The AR15 grip that accompanied the rail panels also featured the same “Join or Die” markings, and smooth aluminum finish. It also featured the same unreal quality when it comes to the graphics themselves. Like I mentioned previously, I looked hard and close and have no idea how the logo gets on the grips but it’s not glued on or engraved. The closest thing that you can see is that the pistol grip is actually a two piece grip.
Overall Thoughts and Evaluations
The AR15 grip installed like any other grip and it felt large in my hand, until I installed it on my Noveske SBR. The Wicked Grips aluminum grip for some reason feels much smaller when installed compared to my Ergo Grip that I normally run on my AR15. This Wicked Grips offering has a nice feel and look to it, the only slight comment I can make about it is that if it is wet outside the aluminum will become slick. They do however make a black aluminum grip that has teetered panels on it for the AR15 and that will be something I will look into very soon.
If you are in the market to dress up your pistol or AR15 and are looking for quality products you really need to consider Wicked Grips. In my opinion its refreshing to see another company manufacturing gun parts from the state of Michigan. Wicked Grips is part of what feels like a gun renaissance that is happening in Michigan, there are new companies and gunsmiths gaining notoriety everyday. Stop by their web site and take a look around, you won’t be disappointed, and remember they also make a very nice line of wooded grips for 1911’s.
Thanks
Rick
