You’ve got a new Glock and can’t wait to use it. But wait – you’ve discovered that the polymer grip is a little too smooth for comfort. You can just see yourself dropping the gun the next time you get a sweaty palm. No need to worry; today, let’s go over how to stipple a Glock and why you might do so.
Stipple a Glock 101 | What You Need to Know
What Is Stippling?
In a nutshell, stippling is the act of modifying or converting a polymer grip’s surface by giving it dots, ridges, dimples, or any other imperfections in order to add texture to make your weapon more difficult to drop.
A textured grip is harder to drop since it drags on your hand’s skin, so even if you’re sweaty, you’ll be less likely to fumble your weapon in a tense situation.
You stipple a Glock’s polymer grip by using a soldering iron or similar heating implement to melt the polymer in a certain pattern or texture.
Stippling is useful because many Glocks and other firearms come with smooth polymer grips that aren’t textured, or aren’t textured enough.
You can use stippling to add permanent texturing to your gun’s grip.
Why Stipple a Glock or Another Gun?
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There are tons of reasons why you might decide to stipple your weapon.
As mentioned, adding traction or texture to your weapon’s grip makes it harder for you to drop, and a little harder for someone to take the gun from you in close quarters scenarios.
You might also decide to stipple your Glock’s grip to add a little personalization to the firearm.
You can decide the pattern yourself if you’re doing the stippling in person, so you can easily come up with a textured pattern that’s representative of your likes, personality, or any other idea.
Others might decide to stipple to smooth out or grind down finger grooves or other texturing elements that might not go well with their hands.
For instance, if your Glock came with a grip with finger grooves for “average” sized fingers, the grip might be uncomfortable if your fingers don’t happen to fit into whatever size that is!
You can use stippling to remove those grooves and add a different type of texturing for better comfort.
Stippling Considerations
Before you stipple a Glock, there are a few things you should keep in mind:
- Make sure that the Glock is one you plan to keep. Stippling is a permanent modification to the grip, and you may not be able to sell it to someone else depending on the type of stippling you do
- In case it’s unclear, you should only stipple a polymer grip. Don’t try to do this with a steel grip, as the method won’t work since steel doesn’t melt the same way as polymer materials
- Make sure your weapon is running smoothly. Stippling usually ends any existing weapon part warranties
How to Stipple a Glock
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Stippling is pretty easy once you get the hang of it.
All you need to start is a soldering iron, and preferably a cheap one because the tip will get dirty with a bunch of melted polymer after a couple of pokes.
Here’s a great example of a cheap soldering iron, although you can find even more budget-friendly kits on Amazon.
Once you have your iron, let it heat up for a few minutes and go to the maximum available temperature.
Mark your Glock’s grip with a marker so you don’t solder any part of the grip you don't want to be altered. Then start using the soldering iron on the grip.
A basic procedure will just have you “dotting” the grip by pressing the soldering iron to the grip polymer over and over, one spot after another.
There are plenty of other online tutorials if you want to implement a more advanced texture or pattern.
That’s it! Now your Glock is effectively stippled, and you'll be hard-pressed to drop it, even with sweaty palms!
Have you tried to stipple a Glock or any gun? We'd love to hear your experience in the comments section!
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