RAT grips, any experiences?

[icarus]

Hi!
I recently came across the RAT grips website www.ratgrips.com, and wonder if anyone have any experience with their sniper grip system?
It looks quit comfortable, but I don`t know if it`s just "cool" but not working, or how durable it is?

All feedbacks appreciated

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

I just stumbled across their page, too. Came straight to the hide to see what the 'experts' were saying about it.

I'm surprised there wasn't already a thread on this.
Even more so that no one has chimed in with a response yet...

 

[BlackWhiskey]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Some guys on here knock them, but Paul Howe likes them and I would say that he's a pretty reputable source. It's not my cup of tea but I think if it works for you then go for it.

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

It's just because I am a horrible procrastinator. I still have a box sitting here with the full kit in it waiting for me to decide what rifle to stick it on.

 

[jerseymike]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

They have some very innovative products on their site, including this http://mybootybath.com/

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Hey icarus, that 'sniper' system you were looking at is on sale at brownells right now. $69.99 instead of the $99.95 on the Rat website.

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=41060/Product/MOLDABLE-GRIP-SYSTEM

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

I got my Rat Grips in the mail today from Brownells.
Pics up soon. Review later.

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

The packaging:

What's inside:

Grip Left Side:

Front of grip with finger-grooves/texture:

Inside the grip and/or what the open back looks like:

Close-up of the texturing that it comes with:

Notice that it says the word "tactical" on the grip in 3 different places. I'm shooting better already...

I'll put some pics of what it looks like installed once my grips get here. I'm not going to do the whole installation-process, because that's covered pretty thoroughly on the Rat Grip website.

 

[High Binder]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

LOL, I work in the oil industry and as such work extensively with plastics which are an oil product and can only say: PROFIT MARGIN.

'But it's a good idea/use for a cheap and very common plastic. Very clever.

 

[bribassguy]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

if you dont' care for uber taticool, they make a very inexpensive model of the same thing that "tatical" framers "run" on their "SBR" framing hammer.


The draw back is that they are yellow but made by the same guy.

 

[taseal]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: bribassguy</div><div class="ubbcode-body">if you dont' care for uber taticool, they make a very inexpensive model of the same thing that "tatical" framers "run" on their "SBR" framing hammer.


The draw back is that they are yellow but made by the same guy.
</div></div>

could be spray painted I guess.

I'm not too crazy on looks but sure as hell don't want a yellow grip! lol

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Well, I received the new grips in the mail this week from Wes at Mid South Tactical Network (MSTN). So I attached one to the 700 and broke out the Rat Grips.
Here's what I used:
Liquid confidence, bowl of cold water, Porter Cable 1500watt heat gun, towel for the water, the Rat Grip, and the instruction sheet.

I did my heating on top of a piece of scrap aluminum, just to keep from melting the plastic of that big box I'm using as a work surface. I highly recommend the towel. The water gets everywhere pretty quick, and I'm not too excited about the proposition of using the heat gun with wet hands.
Water is the release agent, so you're supposed to have wet hands when you handle the hot Rat Grip. In hind sight, I wish I had thrown a few ice cubes in the water bowl. This stuff gets hot quick when you're handling it, whether it sticks or not.

Here's my grip from MSTN before applying the Rat Grip:

I loved the grip to begin with. It has a considerable palm-swell, a brace for your trigger finger to keep the pull consistent, a groove for your thumb, and just the slightest lip on the bottom to support your hand.

The instructions say to heat the Rat material "until shiny". I wish they would have given a temperature or something a little more accurate than "shiny", because it never did get any more shiny than when I started. I heated it on high, from about 6-8 inches away, with a circular motion to keep from making hot-spots.
It got pretty flexible and soft and folded in on itself, so I figured that was hot enough. I just wrapped it around my grip and tried to press it into place as best I could. It's hard to hold it in place, because it's so damn hot. Maybe I overheated it? I don't know, but it worked.

Here's the Rat being squished onto the grip:

My favorite thing about the Rat is that it makes such deep impressions for your digits to fall into. This should help to keep my grip consistent and make the rifle more comfortable.

Overall, I think it came out looking pretty good. It feels GREAT on my hand. It's got the squishy-factor of a soft Hogue Grip. I haven't applied any texture to the Rat yet. I want to shoot it first before I go through all that trouble just to possibly reposition it. It comes with the garden glove and some fishnet/cheesecloth to texture it with. I plan to get a little more aggressive than that with my texturing. I see chisels and flathead screwdrivers in my Rat's future...

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

After cooling all night, the Rat rubber hasn't changed shape at all and it's still stuck firm to the grip.
When the rain stops, I'll take it to the range and see how it holds up. I'm pretty rough on my gear (as you can tell by the pics of my stock) so the range trip should be a decent test of the grips durability.
More to come after that trip and some texture.

 

[Pullum]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

looks like it is gonna turn out good.

 

[Ronratgrip]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Very much enjoyed your postings of your experience, we respect the opinions especially here at snipershide. Long gun shooters are a different cat. We would like to make a offer to those of you who have engaged in this thread. It comes with free fun stuff. Please shoot me an email [email protected]. We would like see more of your opinions and feel you might like a reason to do so. Look forward to hearing from you. Ron
In your email please include mailing address.

 

[Topgun823]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Believe or not, I posted a couple of weeks ago on another thread about RAT grips.
I have had the Sniper Grip on a Remington 700 for about two years now. It was brought to my attention by Paul Howe himself at a Marksman Course.
I LOVE IT! It is extremely comfortable. Even on the hot humid summer days here in Louisiana, when the sweat is pouring off of you, your grip is still 'secure'.
I highly reccomend it for anyone wanting an easy grip modification to any firearm. My plans are to add the Carbine Grip to my Patrol Rifle very soon.

 

[Valere]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

I was able to take two Rat Pads and greatly improve the grip on my LTR for a quarter of the price (excluding heat gun and shipping) of their Sniper Grip System. It took about an hour and a half of trial and error and I was constantly riding the line between pain and actual skin burns even with copious amounts of water during application but I'm pretty happy with the end result.

I set up in the kitchen and worked on the stove as it was the most heat resistant surface in my home. I had to maintain a constant awareness of the stove knobs to make sure I didn't inadvertently turn on a burner.

I cut the first Rat Pad in quarters then heated the first quarter up and stuck it to the rifle then stuck them onto one another. I experimented between sticking them together first or layering them on the rifle, didn't seem to make a difference either way.

Once I got the first four quarters on and a general form, I quartered the second pad and filled in the palm swell with three squares and built up the pinky extension.

With the last quarter pad, I folded it in half and built up the bottom to support the pinky extension. Reheating and blending the material together was a constant process, but it paid off with clean lines by the end.

The final process was to flatten the bottom after everything was nicely blended, then to apply the texture. At first I tried the cloth on the bottom, pressed against the pan and wrapping up into the finger grooves. This caused the finger grooves to round out and was undesirable. In the end I decided the glove texture was sufficient for the grip and the rough texture cloth for the bottom. I laid the cloth flat on the pan (wet) and put the glove on then soaked it in the water. When the material was hot and ready to go, I gripped it with the wet gloved hand and used my other hand to push the pan flat against the bottom. Be ready for some pain and even a burn if you hold the gloved hand on there for too long. It holds the hot water in the glove and on your hand so get the texture you need and let go before it hurts. Once it feels hot, it only gets worse because the glove is saturated with hot water by that point so be ready to submerge the glove in the cool water. I used an ice pack on the opposite side of the pan to speed up the cooling of the bottom of the grip so it would release the rough texture cloth faster. (picture is without the cloth on the bottom)

In the end, I think it turned out great. It cost me a little over $40 considering an $11 heat gun and the price of the pads.

My favorite part, it matches my stocks black duct tape...

A quick tip, if this stuff is hot and contacts a dry surface, it will likely stick to it so make sure everything is wet that you don't want it to grab onto. Also, be careful not to cover up any screws or any other areas necessary for disassembly.

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Ron at Rat Grips sent me a pretty extensive care package. He was true to his word in returning the favor for writing the review, and I will review the additional materials that he sent me.
I look forward to testing this stuff on a lot of other weapons. I'll soon be making a cheek pad for the McRee and putting some grips on a couple pistols (likely the 1911 and the Glock).
I have a lot of material to work with, and a variety of firearms at my disposal, so my question to the Hide is... What do you want to see in the next review? What do you want to know about these grips and pads? What would you use them for, that I haven't thought of?
I'm thinking that the durability of the grips and the ability to remove them without damaging the weapon will be what I'm the most curious about. But, like I said, I have a lot of this stuff (and it was free) so I'm willing to get pretty in depth this time around.

 

[Valere]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

1: Create/improve the stock bolt knob

2: Fill the triangular gap between a vertical rail grip and a rail when shooters hold in front of the grip rather than grasp it.

3. Fill the gap of a loose upper and lower of an AR-15 by filling the edges.

4. Build up the stock comb but create a well for a cleaning rod to be used.

5. Extend take down pins

6. Apply it to the bottom and/or sides of the forend of a stock to give a stickier/softer surface when resting or shooting off of a hard ledge.

 

[thehjot]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

1. The bolt know is a good idea. I'll try that one. I think the material might give the shooter a little more purchase on the existent knob, but I don't think the material is sturdy enough to really build up on the knob without fear of it pulling off. I'll give it a shot though, and let you know.

2. I think I understand this one. I'll try it, though I can't imagine why it wouldn't work.

3. What edges? The space between the upper and lower? Not to sound ignorant, but why?

4. I am going to make a cheeck-pad out of this stuff and try it. If I understand correctly, you want a tunnel that runs parallel to the bore, built into the rubber cheeck-pad, through which you could pull a cleaning rod? I might be able to do that, but I think the tunnel would collapse when you put pressure on it with your cheek.

5. I'm completely lost on this one. How would this work?

6. That's very straightforward. It's done on the RatGrips website and I don't think it needs further testing, as it's the same basic idea as the pistol grip. Feel free to disagree.

 

[Valere]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Thanks for the effort. I'm just sharing ideas, not really concentrating on how realistic they are. My take is you won't know unless you try and since you have the material, why not? Who knows, you might even figure out a new use for it while trying to address an unrelated issue. Good Luck!

3. Many times people have a slight (or significant) amount of rocking between their upper and lower and this may be a nice alternative to an Accuwedge. Wherever you can find an area on the lower that is big enough to be filled in with a pad, fill it in, close the wet upper on top of it and see if it works. You might get the perfect fit and then you would only need to trim the excess material that spills out the sides. Next to the magwell there might be a spot that works.

4. It could be a tunnel or just a groove/trench depending on the height of the comb.

5. Not sure if it will work, but it was an idea. Think of adhering an extension to the already existing pin.

 

[Muttt]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

It looks like you somehow got POOP on your rifle!

 

[MrRogers]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Our DM use them. They work great for there purpose.

 

[r33prman]

Re: RAT grips, any experiences?

Any further on this? If so how'd you go with using it on th bolt knob thehjot?