Any success at refinishing original grips?

[cconrad1234]

I have tried a couple things with no success yet. 

Repainted: Fail, looked ok at first but then got sticky and turned into a mess
Sanded: Fail, lost too much detail and never got smooth a shiney like the originals
Purchased new from Numrich: Success but required aggressive fitting and I ended up with a scratch on them

I have a couple roached sets, I might try epoxy after sanding them down??

[ILpaul]

The CZ OEM wood panel grip inserts are very thin and prone to “cracking” when firing the pistol, per other members.
One member glued his back together with cyanoacrylate glue – “looked ugly, but worked”.
In my CA glue research, I discovered that hobbyists who make wooden pens/pencils use it to coat there items.
They use it to strengthen and finish their projects. My inserts are coated front and back.
I used a CA glue called Starbond EM-02. Its specific gravity was just above water, so it soaked in.
Hint: If you're thinking of using this product, its cure can be accelerated by the moisture from your fingers.
USE the blue nitrile gloves, and apply with fingers in multiple light coats. I just squirted it on the back.
Photo of finished project is here - 7th down.
https://czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=111750.msg870058#msg870058

[BeoBill]

Looks great! It really brings out the grain.

[ILpaul]

When I removed the “yellow” from my headlights, I used a cleaner paste and an assorted 320, 400, 600, 800 grit pack / 2000 to polish. I did have some “globbing” issues with the CA and used the 400 and 600 to cleanup. For “puddling” in the checkering a straight pin might work. I also didn’t want to ruin the checkering. GO SLOW!

This pistol was a blued surplus LEO. It was never going to be a safe queen. I chose a standard commercial grade hot salt bluing. It’s just a plain jane, probably slightly below OEM.

[il.bill]

I have had very good results using 600 or 800 grit wet-or-dry sandpaper soaked in water to remove the scratches on OEM CZ 82/83 Plastic Grips.  With patience and perseverance I have been able to get several pairs cleared of scratches and polished to a shiny black finish. A follow up with auto polish can take it a step further.  It may take a long time - you can't expect to get the scratches to disappear immediately.  It can be a pleasant and rewarding job to gently work on them while watching TV or outside on a pleasant day watching the world go by. I lost my web based photo hosting site, so no pictures to share.  YMMV, but it costs next to nothing to give it a try.