Back in the days of revolvers and steel and alloy frame handguns it was easy to customize your grips. Don’t like the factory grip?
Buy a new one in wood or rubber. It’s not quite as simple with today’s polymer frames. You can use a slip on rubber grip sleeve, which works but adds some bulk. Or you could wrap it with grip tape. That works too but isn’t very aesthetically pleasing. There’s also stippling and frame mods but that takes some skill or is expensive to get it done for you.
A much simpler solution is a pre-cut adhesive covers like the ones from Combat Textiles.
Combat Textiles Adhesive Grips
Combat Textiles offers a wide variety of adhesive grips for polymer handguns. There are even some for other handguns as well, like the Beretta 92 and CZ 75 series. They also make products for rifle stocks, optics, magazines, weapon lights, and even game controllers! The list of pistols for which they offer grips is impressive.
They cover all of the major brands and even ones like Tisas, Polymer 80, and Palmetto State Armory. In fact, it was the grips for the PSA Rock 5.7 that caught my attention.
The grips are made from 1000D Cordura fabric backed with 3M 300lse adhesive tape. They’re cut for each firearm, so you have a perfect fit for your gun, unlike some more generic grip solutions for polymer frame guns.
They are available in a wide variety of colors and patterns including, but not limited to, Black, OD green, Coyote, Ranger Green, ACU, ACU Desert, A-TACS IX, Desert Night Camo, Flecktarn, Tropentarn, M81 Woodland, Multiam, Multicam Black, Tiger Stripe ABU, Tiger Stripe Green/Black, and Tiger Stripe Desert. There are a ton of choices.
I have a PSA Rock in 5.7x28mm that’s boring, basic black. PSA came out with other colors after I got mine, but I got it for a killer deal. It came with 10 mags and a soft carry case, so black was fine at the time. Still, basic black isn’t always my preference. I was interested when I saw Combat Textiles had grips for the Rock. I reached out to them and they sent me a set of Flecktarn and Tiger Stripe ABU panels to check out.
The grips come in a zip-locked pouch with a single-piece wrap-around grip for the main frame, a backstrap cover, and two smaller pieces for either side of the frame. They also come with an alcohol pad to clean your frame before installation, and a couple of stickers.
There are instructions on the back of the packaging. Basically, you have everything you need to do your install. Pricing is $19.99 for most sets that I looked at, with a couple for certain models running a buck or two more. I thought that was extremely reasonable.
Installation
Although there are directions on the packaging, I also checked out the Combat Textiles website. They have a good installation video there as well. It’s worth watching, and is only a couple minutes long. Which gives you an idea how fast and easy these are to install.
With that said, I did enlist my daughter’s help putting my grips on. I can’t even put Lego stickers on straight so I trusted her to do a better job. Plus, I had the excuse that I wanted to get some pics of the installation. I decided to go with the Flecktarn grips for now. I have Flecktarn B5 Systems stocks on one of my AR’s that I figured it would match up with nicely.
Your first step is to wipe the plastic down with the alcohol wipe. This is to make sure the frame is clean and free of oils. Then remove the backing on the adhesive and line the grip up with the frame.
Being that these grip panels are cut for each individual gun, it’s obvious where you need to put them. You can use the mag release cutout and other cuts as guides as to where the grip should sit.
The adhesive is pretty forgiving. If you mess up you can pull it and adjust without compromising the adhesive. When you have the grip panel where you want it you just run your fingers over the grip making sure it’s even and pressed down firmly. Once applied the grip panels are secure and don’t shift or lift.
After the main group panel is installed you can install the backstrap and side pieces. The backstrap can be a little fidgety since you’re dealing with the curve of the backstrap.
But again the adhesive is forgiving enough that you can move it around if needed before you press it down firmly. Installation was well under 5 minutes and that was even with us chatting about it, and me taking pics. It really is quick and easy to do.
They don’t permanently modify your gun like stippling does either. You can easily remove them or swap them out if you change your mind and decide you want to do something different later.
Looks and Feel
The most obvious effect of adding the Combat Textiles Adhesive Grip is the look. Particularly if you choose one of the camo patterns it really makes your gun pop.
I know aesthetics don’t affect function, but if they didn’t matter everything would just come in basic black. It’s nice to have options and to be able to pick something that makes the gun yours.
It isn’t all looks though. The Cordura fabric has a texture to it that does improve your grip. It’s secure without being overly rough. It works especially well when it’s wet too.
So for foul weather or sweaty hands it’s a definite bonus over the polymer of many frames.
For a very modest price, the Combat Textiles Adhesive Grips are an easy way to improve the looks and performance of your handgun.
They’re a lot cheaper than most custom grips would be for your revolver or 1911 or the like. Plus, they’re fast and easy to install. You can install the Adhesive Grip quicker than you could remove the grips on your 1911 and swap them out with new ones.
If you’ve been thinking about updating your carry gun, Combat Textiles gives you an easy option. It won’t cost you more than the price of a beer and some pizza either.
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