Question about Cimarron Thunderer Grip Frame

[103]

Hello all, new here.  Nice board.

I searched on this, but couldn't find anything definitive.  I would like to install the Thunderer grip on my SAA.  I want to know if I need to get the front half of the frame or can I reuse the standard one.  I have a USFA Rodeo (all USFA, no Uberti parts, if that matters) that I want to tinker with.  And if the front piece can be reused with some relatively minor filing or what-have-you that would be fine by me.  Whole thing is getting reblued when I finish.  Thanks a lot!

[willyboy]

The magic 8 ball says ''maybe yes,maybe no''.Seriously,pard my best bit of gun tinkering yet was to modify and install a Thunderer grip and gripframe assembly on a Pietta 1862 Police ...actually,they are NOT  a police,but still a pretty cool gun built on a '51 navy frame ,by Pietta.I think what they are is a half fluted cylinder 1861''baby Army,but be that all as it may,I tried the grip on a coupla guns,to see which one I was going to put on,and learned it's pretty much up to how much fitting you want to do.It looked OK on my old ''Armi Jager' and fit pretty well on my ASM's but they were longer in the trigger guard part of the gripframe.The trigger guard part of the grip frame that came with the grip was just a smidge wide,but if I'd been set on fitting the grips to that gun I could have mated those surfaces with a file of more importance is do the grip frame screw holes,and do they take the same sise screw?In the case of the Pietta the srewholes on the Uberti neede to be hoggered out a bit,which I did with a hand drill,and Swiss needle file set.Turned out good traded that gun and a .38 Uberti Lightning for Trapdoor Springfield.Sooooo,to sum up ,it depends.

[Grizzly Adams]

I also fitted a Thunderer grip frame to an 1862 police.  I had to bend slightly the rear portion of the Pietta's trigger guard - what is actually the front strap of the grip - to make it fit up correctly with the back strap.  Made an "Avenging Angel" that looks really cool!

I understand that the Thunderer grip frame is pretty much a bolt on for the RM convertion.  See Abilene's post over on the Riders of the Storm board.

Give it a try!

[Springfield Slim]

You can if the gun is an Uberti and the Thunderer backstrap is Uberti. Don't know how close USFA guns are to Uberti.